Following the takeover of Seico in July, electronics subcontractor Cofidur EMS is opening doors to new markets: prototypes, small series, etc. And it is ready to welcome new customers, especially once work has been completed on its three sites in France. And it is ready to welcome new customers, especially once work has been completed on its three sites in France.
Announced in April, the takeover was made official at the beginning of July 2024. The Cofidur EMS group has taken over another electronics subcontractor, Seico, based in Malville in Loire-Atlantique, near Nantes. Founded in 1981, the 100-strong company had sales of €15.7m in 2023. It brings the total workforce of the Laval-based group to 500.
Ambitions already exceeded
While CEO Eric Lamboley was looking to sell his company to retire, the management of Cofidur EMS seized the opportunity. When the seven executives took over the Laval-based company in July 2021, they announced that they were aiming for sustained organic growth to reach sales of 80 million by 2025. ‘This would also involve external growth,’ says Chairman Laurent Dupoiron. ‘For two years, we had been looking for and listening to opportunities. With Seico, we are already exceeding our targets, with sales expected to reach €100 million by the end of 2024. We already achieved 30% growth last year. And we think that by integrating Seico into Cofidur, one plus one should make two and a half.’
From prototyping to major accounts
The relevance of this takeover can be seen in the complementary nature of the business at every level. ‘There are definite advantages to being a highly certified company like Cofidur and working with major clients. The downside is that we are less flexible for certain markets,’ continues Laurent Dupoiron. Seico, on the other hand, can be very reactive when it comes to making prototypes, developing innovation kits for start-ups, for example, and producing small series. This could also enable us to bring back some of Cofidur's customers, who until now have worked with other companies upstream of their projects before placing orders with us. With Seico, we'll have the most complete service possible, from design to industrialisation.
Preserving Seico's agility
‘It was also to preserve this know-how and agility that we assured the Seico teams that we were not going to make any changes to the workforce or internal operations,’ adds Gilles Delaunay, HR Director at Cofidur EMS. The plant will be managed by Hervé Olry, another of the group's managing partners, who is Director of Upstream and Industrial Partnerships. The geographical proximity between the group's head office in Laval and the Malville plant can be an advantage when it comes to supporting new teams and monitoring the company's integration process. The disadvantage,’ says the chairman of the Laval-based group, “is that two of us will be hunting in the same area…”.
Three plants, three sites
The Cofidur group now has three plants: in Laval, near Nantes, and in Périgueux (Dordogne). And each one is undergoing investment. Prior to its takeover, Seico had just completed an industrial project. Following the acquisition of the neighbouring 10,000 m plot, the factory was extended by more than 2,000 m . An investment of €5 million in the walls and machines capable of fitting 30,000 electronic components per hour. As Seico chairman Eric Lamboley explained in 2023: ‘The aim is to meet the demand of current and future customers’.
Laval to get back all its floor space
At the 30,000 m Mayenne plant, demolition of the part burnt down in March 2023 has just been completed. ‘We expect to start work in the autumn for a period of six months. We're reserving this part for prospecting. In a new, air-conditioned building, we'll be able to say to customers: this is what we can adapt for your production’, explains Gilles Delaunay. One new customer is already keeping around twenty employees busy. The start-up Qiara has all its connected objects (apart from cameras) for home security manufactured in Laval. Over time, ‘this could add up to a lot of business’, says Gilles Delaunay.
Growth prospects for the Périgueux site
The Périgord site produces mainly for the military and aerospace markets. It should therefore benefit from a favourable economic climate in the years ahead. ‘Airbus has announced an increase in orders of more than 50% over the next ten years’, notes Laurent Dupoiron. The Tier 2 manufacturer intends to take advantage of this windfall.
In fact, the plant is currently undergoing a project to extend its production area by 1,000 m . ‘We have two buildings that are more than fifty years old and which are thermal wastes. And between these two buildings, there's nothing but a patio, which isn't very industrial in itself,’ explains Laurent Dupoiron. This new structure will link the two wings of the U-shaped building, giving a total area of 8,000 m. ‘This will enable us to optimise flows. We're also taking advantage of the opportunity to redo the exterior and insulation, as well as creating new social premises,’ adds Gilles Delaunay. It's a project that will probably last eighteen months. The total cost is estimated at €3 million. Thirty jobs could be created from 2026.
Source: Le Journal des Entreprises
