The process that brings a new Zard exhaust system to life goes through a series of well-defined stages, where every department has to give their best to finally arrive at a product of the highest quality and unique style. From the flair of the designer to the precision of the technicians, every moment is absolutely crucial in producing a Zard exhaust system. Let's see how all the steps follow each other!

Power to the imagination: the design and prototyping phase.

The first step towards the creation of an exhaust system by Officine Italiane Zard is certainly the one taken by the in-house Centro Stile, which comes up with the first and primordial idea of the style that the new system will have to have and defines the general characteristics. Then begins a close collaboration with the Prototype Department: in this laboratory, in fact, highly specialised technicians begin the study of the new motorbike for which the exhaust system is to be designed, disassembling it and analysing its characteristics and peculiarities with an important work of reverse engineering. Together with the designers, the experts then begin welding the first versions of the new exhaust system, the actual prototypes, which will then be modified and perfected until they arrive at a desired result - one that combines both technical and homologation requirements as well as stylistic and performance aspirations. This phase takes a variable amount of time, from one to three weeks, and depends very much on the degree of complexity of the project being developed.

The Zard’s own Centro Stile

Allow us to spend a few words to talk to all of you enthusiasts about the Centro Stile of Officine Italiane Zard. Design is a crucial aspect of any exhaust system, but Zard in particular has made it one of the pillars of its products, which have always stood out from those of its competitors because of their distinctive style that is integrated into that of the bike on which they are mounted. This target was achieved by bringing Giuseppe Armano into the company, in 2021, a designer with decades of experience in the field of automotive design and a very long career in the Centro Stile Alfa Romeo, who has given a decisive imprint to the look of the new Zard systems. The first exhaust system produced with this new integrated approach was the one for the Triumph Street Triple 765, complete with an aerodynamic carbon-fibre heat shield, which was then followed by a number of highly successful models such as the system for the Harley-Davidson Sportster S 1250 or that for the Ducati Monster 937.

In the hands of engineers: testing and industrialisation.

A Zard exhaust must look good, of course, but not only that. It must also be safe, meet homologation requirements and why not, offer an improvement in the bike's dynamic performance! Once its final look has been defined, the technicians and engineers at Officine Italiane Zard are busy with the testing phase of the new exhaust system, which involves long work sessions on the test bench to ensure that emissions and performance are perfectly optimised. At the same time, engineers from the in-house Technical Department are in charge of defining its industrialisation. Up to this point, in fact, the design of a new Zard exhaust is still a highly handcrafted creation, which must then be translated into a detailed blueprint and computer model to guarantee subsequent production free of any kind of discrepancy or defect. As always, creativity and craftsmanship meet technology and industrial know-how, for the best possible result. The final touches: homologation and production start-up. We're almost there: the prototype of the new Zard exhaust system has been finished and enthusiasts are scrambling to fit it to their bikes. What's missing? One crucial step, actually: homologation! All Officine Italiane Zard homologated exhausts have to undergo strict tests by the TuV Italia institute, which certifies their safety and compliance with the regulations set by the European Union. This phase lasts an average of two to three weeks, after which they can finally move on to the production of the new exhaust system which, as with every Zard creation, takes place entirely in Italy, in the factory in Baldichieri d'Asti, in Piemonte. Different motorbikes have different requirements and so do the exhaust systems that are designed for them: for this reason, the time window that leads from the final prototype to production is rather wide and can vary from a minimum of one week to a maximum of one month, depending on the specifications.

Finally on the road: the delivery of a Zard exhaust.

Well, this is it, everything has gone according to plan and finally the exhaust can be ordered by motorcyclists all over the world! While the Marketing Department Team does its best to create all the promotional materials and publish on the zardlab.com website and Officine Italiane Zard's social pages all the information about the newcomer, the production departments take care of assembling the mass-produced units, made according to the exact specifications of each customer at the time of order, with all the different finishes possible. From the designer's brief to the tarmac of your favourite street, in about two months. Now you too know how a new exhaust system from Officine Italiane Zard is born!