VIR Valvoindustria Ing. Rizzio S.p.A. was established in 1971 in the town of Valduggia, in the province of Vercelli in northern Italy. The factory is named after its founder, Ing. Savino Rizzio, who astutely developed it into the international company it is today, a leader in the production of valves suitable for all types of fluids. Today's production capacity exceeds 10 million pieces a year, most of which is exported world-wide.
VIR's activities are closely linked to the ancient local tradition of bronze casting for the artisan production of bells. It is worth noting that VIR is located in the district of Cusio-Valsesia, which is today considered one of the most important areas in Italy for the production of valves and fittings. VIR's principal activity is the production and distribution of ball valves, both manual and actuated, balancing valves, gate valves and butterfly valves in brass, bronze, polypropylene and cast-iron for the distribution of water and gas to be applied in plumbing, conditioning, industrial and irrigation installations.
The Company has a highly qualified team of technicians, dedicated to the development, research and study of new products; since 1992 VIR has held a quality system certification according to UNI EN ISO 9001:2008 standards, and innumerable international specific product certifications.
Towards the end of the 1990s Ing. Rizzio's son, Giovannibattista and daughter, Valentina, joined the company and contribute to the organization of the distribution and the implementation of the technological innovations.
In 2003 VIR acquired the American company RED-WHITE VALVE CORP - RWVC - to obtain a direct presence in the north-American market; the guarantee of VIR's quality of production, together with attention to the environment, is confirmed by the American NSF 61 certification, obtained for the products having an extremely limited release of lead.
In 2008 a new company in China was inaugurated: Taizhou VIR Valve Manufacturing Co. Ltd., dedicated to the production of certain specific lines of valves.
In 2010 VIR inaugurated the new VIR Shanghai company, based in Beijing Road (W), Shanghai, for the distribution on the Chinese market of the VIR products.
Today, VIR is a successful international company, thanks to its commitment to research and development. The quality of the products is attained by means of constant investment in innovation and the care given to the manufacturing from the very first productive stages. It is rare to find in the sector, but VIR has its own internal foundry, and itself provides the design and construction of the machines necessary for the assembly and packaging of the products, in order to guarantee a constant qualitative control.