Fiocchi
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Fiocchi Munizioni is one of
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
's largest and oldest
manufacturers Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of the secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a r ...
of ammunition. The company's
headquarters Headquarters (often referred to as HQ) notes the location where most or all of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. The term is used in a wide variety of situations, including private sector corporations, non-profits, mil ...
and main production plant are in Via Santa Barbara in
Lecco Lecco (, , ; ) is a city of approximately 47,000 inhabitants in Lombardy, Northern Italy, north of Milan. It lies at the end of the south-eastern branch of Lake Como (the branch is named ''Branch of Lecco'' / ''Ramo di Lecco''). The Bergamasqu ...
, Italy.


History

Fiocchi Munizioni was founded on 3 July 1876 in Lecco, Italy, by accountant Giulio Fiocchi. In 1876, Giulio Fiocchi took over the
ammunition Ammunition, also known as ammo, is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. The term includes both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines), and the component parts of oth ...
production part of a
weapon A weapon, arm, or armament is any implement or device that is used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime (e.g., murder), law ...
and ammunition company already based in Lecco, which produced small-
caliber In guns, particularly firearms, but not #As a measurement of length, artillery, where a different definition may apply, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel Gauge ( ...
ammunition. At that time a radical change was introduced in
firearms A firearm is any type of gun that uses an explosive charge and is designed to be readily carried and operated by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see legal definitions). The first firearms originated ...
: the newly developed breech-loader replaced the traditional muzzle loader. Fiocchi started manufacturing cases with primers suitable for reloading; in the early 1890s production was extended to complete cartridges loaded with bullets or shot. At the same time, Fiocchi gave up the production of black powder, as it was no longer profitable. At the beginning of the 20th century, Fiocchi diversified and began making
snap fastener A snap fastener, also called snap button, press button, press stud, press fastener, dome fastener, popper, snap and tich (or tich button), is a pair of interlocking discs, made out of a metal or plastic, commonly used in place of traditional butt ...
s using scraps from cartridge production. Fiocchi Snaps was formed in 1903. It assumed an important role to counterbalance the trend of the ammunition market, but at the end of the 1980s Fiocchi made a decision to focus on ammunition as its core business, and the snaps factory was sold. During its long life, Fiocchi has manufactured all kinds of ammunition from
pinfire The pin-fire (or pinfire) is an obsolete type of metallic cartridge used in firearms, where the priming compound is ignited by striking a small pin that protrudes radially from above the base of the cartridge. Invented by Frenchman Casimir ...
, shotshells, and cartridges to all kinds of cartridges and cases, both rimfire and
centerfire Two rounds of .357 Magnum, a centerfire cartridge; notice the circular primer in the center A center-fire (or centerfire) is a type of metallic cartridge used in firearms, where the primer is located at the center of the base of its casing (i. ...
. They manufacture rarer cartridges, for example the .455 Webley.


Recent history

Fiocchi Munizioni makes small-bore ammunition and offers a wide range of products. Its presence and production sites are also in the United States and in Hungary. In 2008 Fiocchi UK was opened in the United Kingdom. According to a recent interview with Carlo Fiocchi, the head of Fiocchi America, more than 75% of the ammunition sold by Fiocchi in the United States is also manufactured in the United States at Fiocchi America's production facility in
Ozark, Missouri Ozark is a city in and the county seat of Christian County, Missouri. Its population was 21,284 as of the 2020 census. Ozark is also the third largest city in the Springfield, Missouri Metropolitan Area, and is centered along a business loop ...
.Carlo Fiocchi Interview
/ref> Fiocchi America's composition of U.S. ammo manufacturing and sales according to the interview is as follows: *95% of the centre-fire rifle ammunition, which accounts for ~15% of Fiocchi’s U.S. sales *75% of centre-fire pistol ammunition, which accounts for ~35% of Fiocchi’s U.S. sales *100% of shotshells, which accounts for ~35% of Fiocchi’s U.S. sales *0% of rimfire ammunition, which account for ~15% of Fiocchi’s U.S. sales (along with components) Furthermore, Fiocchi shooting cartridges have contributed to several World Cups and Olympic triumphs, as the Games in Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008. In 2011 newly developed 12GA shotshells filled with chemical tracer Cyalume in which allows the shooter to see where the shots are going and help with training of
sporting clays Sporting clays is a form of clay pigeon shooting Clay pigeon shooting, also known as clay target shooting, is a shooting sport involving shooting at shooting target#Clay pigeons, special flying targets known as "clay pigeons" or "clay targ ...
. The tracer shots are
non-toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacteria, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect o ...
and
biodegradable Biodegradation is the breakdown of organic matter by microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi. It is generally assumed to be a natural process, which differentiates it from composting. Composting is a human-driven process in which biodegrada ...
and packaged in a sealed metal can in Fiocchi's line of Canned Heat ammunition. The Canned Heat line of ammunition allows a greater shelf life. Fiocchi Munizioni was entirely owned by the Fiocchi Family, until
Czechoslovak Group The Czechoslovak Group (CSG), formerly Excalibur Group, is a Czech industrial-technological holding company encompassing over 100 companies with over 10,000 employees worldwide. Headquartered in Prague, CSG operates in several sectors including d ...
acquired 70% of the company.


Fiocchi of America

In partnership with
Smith & Wesson Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. (S&W) is an American Firearms manufacturer, firearm manufacturer headquartered in Maryville, Tennessee, United States. Smith & Wesson was founded by Horace Smith (inventor), Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson as the ...
, the Fiocchi family had a factory in
Alton, Illinois Alton ( ) is a city on the Mississippi River in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 25,676 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is a part of the River Bend (Illinois), Riv ...
, in the 1950s. Diverging company interests caused Fiocchi to sell its share to Smith & Wesson and withdraw from the American market. Great-grandson Carlo Fiocchi joined the family business in 1980 at the age of 24 and worked as a product manager in charge of the English-speaking market. His responsibilities included overseeing its meagre exports to the United States. Carlo travelled to the United States on his honeymoon, with instructions to bring back marketing research for a US facility. Carlo concluded that opportunities could not be exploited unless Fiocchi had a physical presence. In 1983, an FOA facility was built in Springfield, Missouri, to import
ammunition Ammunition, also known as ammo, is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. The term includes both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines), and the component parts of oth ...
, the location selected because of his father’s existing contacts there and that it offered the most favourable rail and trucking costs. After a year and a half, they realized that importing loaded ammunition was not an effective business model. The company couldn’t react fast enough to the needs of the US shooters. Carlo returned to Italy and convinced the president, Paolo, to build a manufacturing plant on a farm he identified in the Ozarks near Springfield. Fiocchi negotiated a purchase with the farmer and loans with the bank. Providing a platform for quality manufacturing jobs, the Fiocchi enterprise was enthusiastically welcomed by the local government.


References


External links

* {{Official website
Fiocchi USA website
Ammunition manufacturers Defence companies of Italy Italian companies established in 1876 Italian brands Firearm manufacturers of Italy