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businessEURO
PEAN
www.european-business.com
Interview with Philippe Dizier, CEO of Le Bélier SA
Making light of the mobile transitionAluminium is widely regarded as the fastest, safest and most cost-effective way to increase performance, improve fuel economy and reduce emissions while maintaining or even improv-ing safety and durability in the automotive industry. Le Belier SA headquartered in Vérac, France specializes in cast aluminium safety-related parts with a worldwide market share of 45% in regard to aluminium braking systems. Through its foundry, machining and tool-mak-ing divisions the Group provides a fully-comprehensive service program ranging from the production of prototypes to machined parts ready for installation.
Just over a century after the pio-
neers of the automotive industry
were first ‘Opening the Highways
to all Mankind’ the same industry
is transitioning fast. Along with the
trend towards evermore fuel eco-
nomical vehicles, electrification is
becoming more common either in
hybrid or pure electric form. Other
engineering trends focus on weight
reduction in vehicle subsystems by
using lightweight structures made
of alternative materials. Light, fully
recyclable and perfect with regard
to environmental and anticorro-
sion standards, aluminium has
become the preferred material for
the automotive industry. In fact, it
has become the second most used
metal following steel and accounts
for nearly 9% of the average vehi-
cle weight – compared to only 3%
30 years ago.
As a global supplier of cast
aluminium automobile parts, Le
Belier SA plays an important role
in the transitioning process of the
sector. The Group has a pres-
ence on three continents with ten
manufacturing sites in France,
Hungary and Serbia in Europe,
Mexico in Latin-America and
China in Asia. “All our sites com-
ply with the worldwide accepted
manufacturing standards,” em-
phasizes Philippe Dizier, Chief
Executive Officer. “In spite of
our international or rather global
orientation, our local operations
allow for close contact to cus-
tomers. Moreover, our efficient
internal organization enables us
to respond to customers’ require-
ments fast and efficiently.”
The origins of Le Belier SA date
back to 1961, when Jacques Gal-
land established an aluminium
and copper alloy gravity die casting
plant in Vérac and started pro-
ducing parts for the railway and
electrical industries. Continuous
innovation and investment have
resulted in dynamic growth both in
terms of business and geographic
expansion. The plant in Vérac has
become the nucleus and head-
quarters of an international busi-
ness with 3,800 employees and a
total turnover of 312 million EUR.
In 1999 Le Bélier SA was listed on
the Second Marché of the French
Stock Exchange. “We pursue a
policy of providing local service to
our key customers and progres-
sively expanding into international
markets,” says Mr. Dizier. “The
geographical focus is gradually
shifting, however, as growth is
taking place above all in Asia. We
have been present in China for
20 years so that we benefit from
the strong growth of the Chinese
automobile market and are able to
meet the local needs of our main
customers.”
Although the Group’s service
program focuses on brake, chas-
sis and turbo parts respectively,
it accounts for a wide range of
customer requirements. Through
its foundry, machining and tool-
making divisions Le Belier Group
serves leading Tier I suppliers as
well as, to a smaller extent, auto-
mobile manufacturers. “Our wide-
ranging service program ranging
from prototypes to machined parts
means added value and com-
petitive advantages for our clients,
especially in the supplier chain,”
points out Mr. Dizier. Reducing
fuel consumption and CO2 emis-
sions remains Le Belier’s priority
Each plant complies with global manufacturing standards: fully automated assembly station
businessEURO
PEAN
www.european-business.com
Le Bélier SAPlantier de la Reine 33240 Vérac France
+33 557 550300 +33 557 550399
[email protected] www.lebelier.com
as it continues to make light of the
mobile transition. Aluminum re-
mains its answer also in view of the
growing trend towards hybrid or
electric vehicles. Once again, the
light and corrosion-resistant mate-
rial is fully in line with this trend.
“The aim is to increase the reach
of the new vehicles to improve
their acceptance, and the vehicle
weight is an important factor,” says
Mr. Dizier. “We are on the safe
side anyway, even if the share of
hybrid or electric vehicles reaches
the forecasted 20% by 2025, as
our aluminum turbo parts increase
the fuel economy of conventional
engines.” Le Belier SA is well on
its way towards even expanding its
operations and its global presence,
making its advanced technical
know-how available to the aviation
industry in the process. Needless
to say, digital transformation is an
important topic for this internation-
ally operating group and has long
since become an important part
of its interactive processes in the
field of system communication and
information exchange. ❙
Stringent controls ensure the impeccable quality of each individual part