RESEARCH AND INNOVATION SINCE 1949
Ezio Cristina founded CRISTINA Rubinetterie in Gozzano, Northern Italy, in 1949. The development of the company closely followed the route laid out by the founder until the arrival of his sons, Alberto and Riccardo, who drove the company towards transformation on an industrial scale. At the end of the 1980s, the acquisition of SILFRA takes place, a company specialising in the production of soil pipes, electronic and time-controlled taps and fittings. With this expansion, CRISTINA Rubinetterie moves further into the industrial sphere, strengthened in June 2017, when the brand became part of the Caleffi Group, a leader in the manufacture of heating, air conditioning, plumbing and drainage parts. Through this partnership, CRISTINA secured both the continuity of the brand and its growth at an international level. Additionally, 2017 saw the launch of an exclusive showroom space in Milan. Cementing the company’s public image, it became a place to enter into dialogue with a creative community of designers and architects, conduct business and design meetings and host a vast array of events.
CRISTINA Rubinetterie was among the first to introduce the thermostatic mixer to Europe in 1968 and to propose an extensive range of 100 surface colours. Leading the way once more, the company was also the first in the world to introduce the single lever mixer in the 1980s. In 1994, the decision to produce single lever mixer cartridges, an important investment in technology, allowed a high degree of safety in the control of the production process and in the quality of the products themselves. Similarly, the use of stainless steel (guaranteed by a Centro Inox quality mark) was introduced in 2003, with the company dedicating an entire division to the material. The expansion of the Gozzano logistics centre followed in 2007, housing a fully automated warehouse. Today, with four production sites located in the upper area of Novara, totalling 35,000 square meters, with employees numbering over 250, CRISTINA Rubinetterie continues to operate a completely Made in Italy production. The export turnover share exceeds 60% and the company is present in over 60 countries. CRISTINA is a member of the Green Building Council Italia that uses the Leed rating (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) as an evaluation system of the sustainability of buildings.
In 2020, CRISTINA Rubinetterie renewed its strategy, focusing on the company's path in the coming years, orientating it towards design, wider project work and the hotel sector. In addition to a diversified range of products across its catalogue, the company confirms the development of tailor-made solutions (in terms of dimensions, finishes and types of use) to meet varied design requirements. The range, intended for bathrooms, kitchens, wellness centres and outdoors, is designed to be functional, durable and aesthetically in line with contemporary interior design projects.
The internal R&D department, designing solutions and products present across the world.
We operate locally to be present globally.
Technology, research, creativity. The founding pillars of company operations.
Aware that sustainability means protecting the territory and caring for future generations, CRISTINA Rubinetterie, far from mere green washing, is implementing a series of initiatives in which the company is increasingly committed to the ecological transition process.
The company claim “From Yellow to... Green!” is becoming more and more a firm ethical awareness and consequent concrete action.
Here is the news on the subject:
Progressive introduction of an internal component to packaging boxes, made of cardboard pulp. A material chosen for its excellent cushioning properties, which protects the product during transport ensuring its integrity until destination, it is sustainable, 100% recycled and recyclable, biodegradable product, easily stackable (thus allowing a reduction in storage volumes). The molded fiber, meets the requirements for modern industrial packaging but, at the same time, helps to reduce the impact of the life cycle assessment of the entire finished product on the environment by meeting precise dictates and obligations of continuous improvement of the environmental management system according to ISO14001. The product, deriving from recycling processes and being recyclable again, allows a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, is therefore eco-sustainable and meets the standards of European green points.
The QR code on the outside of the boxes allows you to identify the materials used for packaging and its disposal.
Production waste is being sorted with increasing attention to allow more specific disposal by type.
Low-energy LED lamps are progressively used in all plant lighting systems.
The company has finalized the aggregation of the assembly and shipping units of the CRISTINA and SILFRA branded products in the single site of Fontaneto d’Agogna, this warehouse efficiency has led not only to a better management of the work and production flow, but also to the simplification of bureaucratic procedures and fewer transport operations aiming to reduce waste.
The series introduced in 2016 include the reduction of water consumption, with increasingly marked progress in the area of sustainability.
The redevelopment of the internal spaces of the plant, which are more luminous, ventilated and salubrious, is also aimed at improving the well-being of the workers.