The Matrix

Founded in 1966, for the immigrant Riyad Eliya Azzam, a businessman of vision that foresaw a promising future for automobile industry, the Vibrasil is an industry with 100% national capital. Situated in the quarter Vila Santa Catarina, South Zone of São Paulo, Vibrasil today is known and respected in the market for the quality of its products, that is considered original, and the loyalty of its customers that comprises from Car assembly plants and Systematics to the market of aftermarket and export. With its wide range of automotive parts it develops Birfields Kits, Cushions, Jambs, Bushings and Dumper Kits, having in its line original products for car assembly plants as Volks, GM, Ford, Fiat among others.

The pursuit of a dream

The disturbed political landscape of the Middle East was the main reason so that many young people migrated for Brazil in the 50’s in search of a dream, which came down to live in a peace’s land. As foresaw, the promising South American country, despite many differences, that include the culture, the language and the climate, was the country of the chances, in entire growth, that received the people from open arms. On the other hand, the scenario in the East was nothing promising. The newly created State of Israel in 1948, in Palestine, resulted in a series of conflicts.
Leaded by president Yasser Arafat, in the 50’s, Fatah the biggest faction of the OLP was established (Organization for Liberation of Palestine), defender of the Palestinian nationalism, that adding the number of integrant had most of the Palestinian leadership, even with its founder exiled in the Kuwait.
Fifteen years after its foundation, the Fatah initiated guerilla activities, being the first armed faction to attack Israel in the end of the 60’s and, later was the first to give steps toward to the peace.
Foreseeing the routes that his native land would take, Riyad Eliya Azzam did not delay to be decided and left. The destination: Brazil motivated for friends and relatives who already inhabited in tupiniquins lands and wrote letters to him, saying: “You must come here, is a good place to work”.
He was convinced that the new land would be his second native land, Riyad Azzam, at that time with almost 27 years-old, embarked alone in a ship in a trip that would last one month until coming alongside in the new country. The dictionary was his companion in this long trip. “I will arrive at Brazil knowing the idiom”, the determined young thought, without imagining that in the future, a great businessman would become, admired for who know him.

A Country in party and the new enterpriser

It was accurately in the Saturday of Carnival of 1950, more precisely in February 18, that Riyad Azzam arrived at Brazil. The destination was 25 de março Street, where the work already waited for him in a wholesale store of the fabric segment. In the actual movement street of the quarter Bom Retiro, Riyad Azzam remained almost for eight months.
Next to a friend, Mr. Jorge, a new destination waited for him. The promising State of the Paraná was the new route to follow. “At that time it had an easiness to buy rolls of fabric to the installment. We decided to go to the interior of São Paulo and later, for the northward of the Paraná. A state that had many plantations of coffee, seemed a western, and later it grew with many people migrating for the city, in many trucks of change”, the businessman remembered.
The first step was to rent a store and to bring fabrics of São Paulo to commercialize. All products were bought in time, the two enterprises did not have money nor to pay the transporter. Born businessman and a man of his word, the solution was to assume the payment commitment, as soon as first money entered in the box of the new store. And he got it. In just three months the enterprises already had credit and the first loan in the bank of the city.
The society lasted two years. For problems of health and infrastructure lack in the Paraná, his partner came back to São Paulo and Riyad Azzam bought his part in the business. Thus, Paraná was its city per nine years, until the constant frosts and the falls of fabric sales had made to think in a new destination to follow.

Come back to São Paulo

His old partner, Mr. Jorge, had acquired a plant in São Paulo capital. Accustomed to work with machines in his native land, Riyad Azzam was to know the business. With the thought to change of branch before the things got worse, he came back to the Paraná and he made a great liquidation to finish his fabric supply all. “I sold everything in the balcony. With the money, I came to São Paulo, and I opened a small rubber plant in the Jabaquara, with only six employees and two machines and which, in the start, before being Vibrasil, it had my name”, he says.
The new business was so successful that in only two years, in 1966, he bought the land of 6.9 km, in the quarter Vila Santa Catarina, current headquarters of the Vibrasil. This Quarter, at the time was a farm. At the time, the new company was composed only for the plant, without office area and all the notes were made on top of a drum.

Homage to Brazil

The new headquarters gained a new name: Vibrasil, a sort of pun of Viva Brazil (enrolled in a street where the businessman passed), in homage to the country who received it. “I respect and taste very much of Brazil. With all the problems that this country has, it still can be considered the best of the world”, he defends, complementing that there is no country in the world that does not have problems. “Here, the people are very good. My employees are the best of the world. I never suspended an employee, when it was necessary I asked for to the head of the department to instruct them more. In this way, my employees dress the shirt”, the businessman teaches. The formula is so well-aimed that Mr. Azzam remembers an episode where an inspector of the work made an inspection in the plant. “Later, he came to my room, and he congratulated me, affirming that he is very difficult to enter in a company where the employees speak well of the owner”, he is proud.
Pride also for who works with him. It is not rare to find cases where the businessmen help the employees, either for the purchase of the proper house or for disease. As a consequence of this mutual confidence, the door of his room never is closed.

The beginning

Vibrasil, a strong name that soon would conquer the recent assembly plants installed in the country. Manufacturing hoses of rubber and profiles for cars, with only one machine, the quarter of Santa Catarina saw the plant to grow, new machines internally to arrive and the creation of a laboratory for the development of parts.
With this enterprising mentality, the first customer of the Vibrasil was the Willys (later acquired for Ford), later the DaimlerChrysler, Volkswagen, GM. “I was going slowly and almost 95% of my sales were for the assembly plants”, Azzam says.

With the specialized aid of the technician, then the production of the Vibrasil followed international standards. At a time where the assembly plants had only two suppliers multinationals, the Vibrasil was the only one that competed of equal for equal with them.

Growth

In 10 years, the plant already was totally ready and working a lot, as well as its founder, who until today follows the work routine.
Located in a quarter that soon if would transform into residential, in the decade of 70 the City hall of São Paulo decided to forbid industries of the city inside.
Without losing time and with the concluded plant, the businessman searched in Pirapora de Bom Jesus, next city the Barueri, a land for the construction of the new plant.
The acquired land totaled 40 km and was donated by the local City hall, on behalf of the progress. “A few months later, I constructed a shed of 3 000 m2 and there I started to make mixtures and composites. At that time, the Goodyear looked at a composite supplier, and I became its supplier. Soon it started to give profit. Also I started to search new materials, new raw materials, as courvin (synthetic leather).
I have been studied for 10 years the market and searching the improvement of the quality and the development of new techniques. In a few time, I got to plan the assembly of the plant of courvin. I called a constructor and I made a contract to raise a plant of 6 mil m2. With the supplier of machines also I made a contract of six months. I contracted one chemical technician to develop the products, in order that before the plant is ready, already had until customers. The plant delayed four months and the constructor still paid fine for the delay (laughs). There also, beyond the plant of courvin, I made the hose plant”, he says.
The plant in the quarter of Santa Catarina was not inactivated as foresaw the City hall and, currently, it is dedicated to the production to attend of the market of auto parts.

Native land of heart

Without ever having come back to Palestine, his native land, Riyad Azzam keeps the good reminder and the accent. “There, it does not have tranquility, always has problems. I prefer to stay with the good reminders, instead of going there and seeing all the hurt land. The two people, Palestinians and Israelis, do not have many heads and have children create to order for the war. E so that all this war? ”, he asks.
In contrast to his countrymen, he constituted a great family, with four married children who had given to eight grandsons, being six boys, and two girls. Sacredly, all the Sundays, the family gets together, transforming the house of the patriarch in a great party, surrounded for affection and love, in the same way as he leads his company.
Between the relatives, employees who encircle him and the old employees, biggest lesson of life transmitted for this winning man is the will force and the belief of whom everything is possible, is enough to believe in its dream. A life lesson that is transformed into a great incentive to follow its example. In the current world, there are no men like Riyad Elya Azzam.

Fairs
The Vibrasil frequently participates of Fairs, the main ones in Brazil are:

• Automec (Hard and Light) - SP
• Autopar - PR
• Autonor - CE
• Autoparts - RJ

In the exterior, we participate of the following Fairs:

• Automechanica (Dubai)
• Automechanica (Germany)
• Equipotur (França)