In 1975, Specialized
Bicycles began importing bottles from Italy. The first ones were stiff,
low-grade plastic with an unpleasant taste and poor-quality graphics. Today, Specialized
water bottles are produced in California
from a high-grade, FDA-approved resin - eliminating the bad odor and taste
found in many of the other sports bottles on the market today. Specialized
prints its bottles on a state-of-the-art, four-color printing press at the
Specialized world headquarters in Morgan
Hill.
Unlike
mass-market sports bottles that can crack, leak, or lose graphic quality,
Specialized bottles feature leak-proof caps with soft push/pull valves and
high-quality graphics made from UV-treated inks. Specialized bottles are the
best-selling premium sports bottles worldwide. The Best Materials
Specialized
uses high-quality material in all aspects of its manufacturing process.
The ink used has also been tested and has passed all FDA requirements. The inks
are imported from Germany
and treated with ultraviolet light to instantly cure the ink - ensuring a
long-lasting imprint that can withstand the dishwasher, freezer, and bottle
cage. The screens used for imprinting are stretched to a specific line
that allows Specialized printers to achieve incredible registration and
four-color process capabilities sought by companies such as Walt Disney, Nike,
and Gatorade. Private testing labs test Specialized caps for impact strength and
safety. The caps will not shatter and the poppets will not cause a choking
hazard.
