Born in Cremona into a family with a tradition of metals trading and processing, Giovanni Arvedi began his entrepreneurial career in 1963 with the founding of his first two companies, a trading one - Arvedi Commercio – and a manufacturing one – ILTA. The latter was equipped from the start with the most modern technology for the manufacture of carbon steel welded tubes, technology which in 1970 was extended to stainless steel tubes, at the time a specialised field of production.
Growth continued in 1973 with the construction in Cremona of Acciaierie Tubificio Arvedi, a works equipped with the most advanced technology for the production of steel and hot rolled steel tubes.
In 1983, upon invitation by the Minister of Industry, Giovanni Arvedi collaborated in the drawing up of the National Plan for the Welded and Seamless Tube Industry.
In 1984 he was awarded the honorary title of Cavaliere del Lavoro by the President of the Republic. In the period 1985 - 1987 he re-launched numerous activities belonging to the former FIT Ferrotubi, among which Tubificio Lombardo in Corbetta and Arinox in Sestri Levante.
In 1989 he held the presidency of the Association of Industrialists of Cremona, a position he maintained for four years.
The turning point which determined a change of role was in 1992 when the revolutionary steelmaking project of Acciaieria Arvedi started operation in Cremona using innovative technology based on the original ideas developed by Giovanni Arvedi for the manufacture of flat rolled steel.
Since its initial application, Arvedi technology has been constantly refined and developed to the point of assuming a guiding role in the steelmaking technology sector.
In 2004 he was appointed Vice President of Federacciai, the Italian federation of steel manufacturers.
Over the years Giovanni Arvedi has founded and developed various companies operating in the sectors of rolling, manufacture and processing of steel products, which now process over 5 million tonnes of steel, employing 6400 people and with an annual consolidated turnover in 2021 of billion euros.
In acknowledgement of these important results, on 9th June 2006 he was awarded an honorary degree in business management by Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore of Milan.
In July 2009 in Grantham (UK), the prestigious British organisation IOM3 - The Institute of Materials, Minerals & Mining – awarded him the Bessemer Gold Medal in recognition of his significant merits as an inventor in the steelmaking sector. Only one other Italian, Prof. Federico Giolitti in 1919, has received the same award.
Following the continuous research and development carried out on the basis of ISP technology, in 2010 commissioning was concluded of the new ESP (Endless Strip Production) plant, the world’s first plant to implement the continuous cast-rolling process.
ESP represents the crown of Mr Arvedi’s remarkable intuition and vision which he pursued for over 20 years to achieve a process which brings together compactness, quality, cost-effectiveness and compatibility with the environment.
In November 2012 on the occasion of its “International Steel Day” Stahlinstitut VDEh, the German association of metallurgists with about 9,000 members, awarded him the Carl Lueg Medal, the highest German honour in the steel sector, at its International Steel Day in recognition of his important contribution with ISP and ESP technology to the development of industrial production of hot rolled coils, the only Italian to receive this award since its institution in 1904.
In June 2013 in New York, in the ambit of the 28th edition of the Steel Success Strategies conferences, he was awarded the “Willy Korf/Ken Iverson Steel Vision Award” for his contribution to the world steel industry.
He is involved both through the Fondazione Giovanni Arvedi e Luciana Buschini, and through the Arvedi Group companies, in supporting many social, sport-related and cultural initiatives, one of the most outstanding of which is the creation and subsequent donation to the town of Cremona of the Violin Museum. In recognition of Giovanni Arvedi’s commitment to this project, in April 2013, with a decree by the President of the Republic, he was awarded a diploma for cultural and artistic merits by the Minister of Cultural Heritage, Lorenzo Ornaghi.
On 30th October 2013 the Politecnico di Milano awarded him an honorary degree in Mechanical Engineering for his “creation and realization of highly innovative solutions in steelmaking, in particular in the in-line casting and rolling of steel with a system that is unique in the world, economically competitive and environmentally sustainable for a high quality product”.
In December 2013 the Town Council of Cremona awarded him the “Town of Cremona Gold Medal” for his outstanding and extraordinary entrepreneurial, cultural, social and philanthropic achievements.
On 5th February 2016 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. presented him with the “Award for the best technological innovation” for the outstanding and innovative contribution made thanks to ESP technology. Eight months later, on 31st October, the Peter the Great Polytechnic University of Saint Petersburg awarded him an honorary degree of “Doctor in Science” for “the excellent level attained in the sector of technology and innovation”.
More recently, Giovanni Arvedi was awarded the “2020 AIST Tadeusz Sendzimir Memorial Medal” reserved for those who have achieved significant breakthroughs in the steelmaking world.