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Symbiose: LACROIX is moving house: find out about our new French electronics factory!
17 February 2022
LACROIX Electronics
Today’s the day! February 3, 2022 marked the start of the process of moving into LACROIX’s brand new French electronics plant, Symbiose! The teams met at Beaupréau-en-Mauges (Maine-et-Loire), just a few kilometres from the old production site, to discover their new workplace 4.0…
Watch how the 18-month project unfolded
A smooth onboarding process for the teams
It was an emotional moment when the employees of LACROIX’s Electronics Activity crossed the threshold of Symbiose. For the occasion, management decided to go big by organising guided tours throughout the day for employees. A production workshop, shared offices, social spaces, etc. A 19,000 m² industrial playground now awaits our teams.
According to site director Claude Bourget, the new site has a real “wow factor”:
With the move, the Symbiose project became a tangible reality for us all. Sharing in our employees’ amazement at the first sight of the factory is a great reward for the collective work we have undertaken over the last 4 years. Despite the difficulties we have experienced, the pandemic and the shortage of supplies in particular, Symbiose has nonetheless seen the light of day!
Production equipment relocation was carried out over several weeks
Maintaining production levels while moving from one site to another: this was our internal challenge.
To do this, the transfer took place in stages over 9 weeks, in the opposite direction of the production flow. The involvement of our teams was essential in ensuring the success of this transfer in order to set our manufacturing appliances back up and to secure production for our customers.
I would like to thank the internal teams, who really took the initiative throughout this transition period.
With Symbiose, our business ambitions are sky-high. We expect business growth in our target markets of industry, aeronautics and defence, but also in high-volume manufacturing (home automation, automotive and medical).
As soon as this move phase is finalised, customers will be able to discover the industrial progress made by Symbiose. Major Smart Industry innovations that will significantly improve the customer journey include the Exotec automated store.
For Claude Bourget, it represents a return to his roots in electronics
It was in February 2021 that Claude Bourget took the reins of the French electronics factory, Symbiose, after spending more than 6 years in City activity of LACROIX. He was already familiar with the electronics sector, having previously held the position of Operations Director of the Electronics activity of LACROIX from 2005 to 2014.
I missed the electronics sector. The Symbiose project presented itself as an opportunity I had to take, a challenge to overcome. Returning to this plant as Symbiose was being set up was a real challenge for me, both on an industrial and personal level!
In just a few years, the industrial site in Saint-Pierre-Montlimart has undergone major changes, particularly in terms of technology and organisation with the development of lean strategy. Claude quickly found his feet and worked with a new management team to continue the transformation and prepare the relocation to Symbiose. This also involved creating a strong HR culture and social innovation activities to get all the teams on board for the Symbiose adventure!
I am very proud to be part of this country’s re-industrialisation by bringing Symbiose to life – it is a showcase of what industry 4.0 electronics can do for France!
We wish Claude and his teams all the best as they move into this new plant!
See you in early April for the latest episode of the “Yes to Symbiose” web series
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