Legris SA is goes to achieve such maturity

Our financial capabilities allow us to buy back three companies over the next three years. "We will throw our vest on companies of 100 to 300 million euros of annual sales," declared in July last Hugues Robert, forty-one years, the General Director of Legris Industries Group. This explanation came a few weeks after the surrender of the Comap, which would have reported approximately 120 million euros, giving the group specialized in flexible fittings for fluid and diverse in the logistics part of the flexibility he needs to pursue its external growth strategy. A strategy that materializes through proposed acquisition (1) for an amount not specified of Parisian society Ceric, a designer and manufacturer of plants for manufacture of earthenware products and other building materials. With 300 million euros of turnover with 1,600 employees between 20 subsidiaries throughout the world, this company was born in 1960 of the initiative of two engineers ceramists. It has always preserved its capital family but aged over seventy-five years, Michel Rasse and Jean Mérienne wanted to sell primarily to a purchaser attached to heritage values.

Closer to the family business is also an objective of management of Legris Industries, for about twenty years, complied with the requirements of the stock exchange before withdrawal in March 2004. Not without a real satisfaction. Hugues Robert, the right arm of very discreet President Pierre - Yves Legris, fifty-one years, reason: "analysts understand our trades and their changes, even if our strategy is clear and registered in the long term." Result: Legris family and that of Yvon Jacob, the Chairman of the Supervisory Board, now have 61 of the shares in the company commander, holding in which the Fund Chequers Capital and Arnold & s. Bleichroeder took a 31 stake alongside staff (8).

If Legris Industries has always maintained in its perimeter his trade of origin, the design and manufacture of automatic fittings for fluid management in industry (division Legris SA), born in 1969 invention of instant connection seamless, he hesitates not to separate some of its activities. "Selecting just timely", continues the HEC Hugues Robert.

Implementation of a factory in China

Best of fittings of plumbing to the habitat Comap eight months ago, its turnover. "His dedication to Aalberts Industries has been a very good decision, since it is entered into at the time of the release of a new range of innovative products, immediately marketed in all of the network of the Dutch group", j. Hugues Robert, before clear: "Above all, we aware that this company had an insufficient size to quickly become one of the leading of his specialty."

The willingness of Legris Industries to develop niche activities but on a global scale is engraved in the marble for ages. The resumption of Ceric meets this requirement. Legris SA is goes to achieve such maturity. It has 10 industrial sites and logistics distributed in Europe, America and Asia. To add 25 trade settlements. The activities of this division in the hexagon are more than 21 of its 208 million euros of sales business, compared to 50 for the rest of Europe and 19 for America. This long march toward globalization continues, since Legris SA has recently established a plant in China. And if, today, it produces only 4 million euros of turnover, it should grow quickly as the needs of the local market are enormous. The Director-General also justifies this choice by the need to provide materials at low prices, while India, the industry is very concerned about quality and willing to invest, the group can export its products manufactured in the old Continent.

To orchestrate this globalization, "we have gradually implemented the necessary human resources", he said again. Some 50 people installed at Headquarters, in Rennes, in a building of the 19th century, beautifully restored, fly different trades. Among them, the principal leaders of the company are found in a Development Committee. This true Government meets every two months and sets the broad lines of policy to be implemented.

The emphasis on R & D

Among the leaders in its markets clearly requires Legris Industries to devote a significant part of its activities to the R & D. It is part of family groups which, in France, file more patents. Thus, if its division Savoye (73.8 million euros of turnover in 2005), specializing in logistics, "in a particularly competitive environment", it is for many innovations, according to Charles-Antoine de Barbuat, his boss. Savoye designs software, computer process, sorting systems and automated storage of important platforms, with as a customer, for example, Decathlon, for which she has put in place three Italy and France tools. In Britain, the company, which saves 40 of its export activities, has also signed recently with Next, the first English textile manufacturer, a contract for the construction of a platform. Each year, Savoye recorded an increase in activities of the order of 20.

Concerns among the staff

Legris Industries management considers that its strategic line there is no dark side, but staff is often concerned about its Roundtripping. The Group was present at a time in the cranes Potain was resold in 2001 and industrial cold long. He also controlled a company design and manufacture of automatic truck. All of these companies have been surrendered, and others will follow. Thus, the direction of Legris Industries does not hide that the fate of Autoline (150 employees) could play in the short term. This company, located in the periphery Rennes and has another plant in Mexico, manufactures rubber for automobile fittings. But its size is found to be too modest to manufacturers and equipment suppliers.

After a few hours strike widely followed in July 2005, Bénédicte Peronnin, Director of human resources, also a member of the Executive Board, developed a "Guide of manager". Real Vade, it is used by 800 site managers, managers and executives, asked to inspiration to meet their road map. " Moreover, "Cap trend", a letter of economic information, informed monthly in 5 languages all the staff, consisting of 35 nationalities.

Pierre-Yves Legris also created the University Legris, which are exempted from the business economics training. More than 1,200 employees were already given a one-day course and a second course has been established to improve the social dialogue.

Always for welding personnel dispersed around the world, Legris Industries returned to habits of sailing sponsorship. The media Pierre Legris, the father of the current leader, had participated in the financing of a boat in the America's Cup. But Pierre-Yves, if he deems it advisable to federate its 3,000 employees around a common love of sport, has, himself, chose to sponsor a French sailing team for the preparation of the upcoming Beijing Olympic Games. The staff expected to gain notoriety in France but especially in China, where the first steps of the group remain, in his eyes, too little of the local leaders.

Always to correct the deficit of notoriety, Pierre-Yves Legris joined the UN Global Compact and is involved in sustainable development and social responsibility of companies. Its goal: reduce the energy consumption of all of its industrial sites and show that he actively participated in the fight against the greenhouse effect.