Draft:Carlo Bertani

Italian engineer and founder of Elesa S.p.A., a machine parts manufacturing company.

Born in 1894, Carlo Bertani eventually became a student at the Politecnico di Torino (Polytechnic University of Turin), but he put his studies on hold to enlist as a volunteer when World War I broke out. After several years serving his country, Bertani graduated with an Engineering degree from the Politecnico di Milano (Polytechnic University of Milan) and went on to complete his training in the telephone industry at a company that built special electrical equipment. Bertani eventually became a manager of an electromechanical company in Milan, Italy.

Using his accumulated experience, Bertani began his first company, drawing inspiration from his admiration of contemporary inventors and electrical engineers. He bought a small workshop in Monza, Italy that was outfitted with three hydraulic presses. Using his original designs, he began to manufacture standardized handles and handwheels of all kinds for machine tools. Bertani’s unique revolving handles were used for the controls of hydraulic systems made for Italian aircraft manufacturer Aermacchi and its interceptor fighter aircraft. The handles were molded in Bakelite, a synthetic plastic, and featured unusual shapes and finishes. Bertani added knurling patterns into the handles for easy touch recognition for pilots flying at night.

Bertani’s company was set up to manufacture electrical components for domestic use, but the company later decided to pivot toward industrial components. His company was named Elesa in 1941, using the prefix 'Ele' from previous names and adding the suffix 'sa' as a reference to the type of company it was–a corporation, or Société Anonyme. The official name at the time was Elesa, 'Industria Stampaggio Materie Plastiche' (plastic material molding company).

Family
Carlo Bertani’s wife, Armida Seveso, was his helper and an entrepreneur in her own right. She would continue to be part of the company for decades, alongside both their son and grandchildren.

Alberto Bertani, founder Carlo Bertani’s son, and one of Elesa’s own, graduated from Politecnico di Milano in 1949. This was the same institution that housed the 1963 recipients of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry (Giulio Natta and Karl Ziegler), recognized for their discoveries in chemistry and polymer technology. Alberto went on to create the world's first plastic spoked handwheel in 1955, just six years after his 1949 graduation.

Alberto Bertani was also behind some innovative Elesa designs and went on to help the company win an award at iF Industrie Forum Design Hannover (originally Die Gute Industrieform) in 1977.

In 1989, the founder's grandson–Carlo Bertani, Jr.–joined Elesa after graduating with a degree in Mechanical Engineering and spending a year abroad in the United States. In 1995, he was joined by his brother Andrea Bertani, a Bocconi graduate (Luigi Bocconi University) of the School of Economics and Business Management.