Daher unveiled the introduction of three innovation centres; one for each of its core businesses of logistics, aerospace equipment and aircraft manufacturing. Located at the Group's main production sites in Toulouse, Nantes and Tarbes in Daher's main French operating regions of Occitanie and Pays de la Loire, these new centres have been designed to accelerate innovation and collaborative development to help the Group consolidate the technological lead it already has in its markets.

The new facilities will promote and encourage creativity, innovation and efficiency within the company by facilitating interaction and collaborative working between operations teams and their design office counterparts, customers, public-sector partners (universities, graduate schools, academic laboratories, etc.) and private-sector partners (technical centres, business incubators, etc.) in preparation for tomorrow's aerospace and logistics industries.

All three centres will be operational in 2022.

Login, the Toulouse-based innovation acceleration platform for tomorrow's logistics industry

The new Corlog logistics site at Cornebarrieu, near Toulouse, is where Daher will locate Login, a research project accelerator and training centre for the French industrial logistics industry. The new facility is being developed in partnership with the Occitanie regional authority and support from Bpifrance, the French public investment bank.

Its core purpose is to improve and transform the industrial logistics industry, which plays an essential role in company competitiveness, by embracing an open and collaborative approach to innovation. Daher wants its new centre to welcome and host a group of industry actors committed to delivering improvements in logistics chains (startups, transportation and logistics specialists, leading manufacturing groups, SME and midsize manufacturers, solution providers, etc.).

The first call for projects was launched this July and the dedicated infrastructure will be officially opened in the first half of 2022.

The Aerostructures Techcentre in Nantes

Located on the Daher site at Saint-Aignan-de-Grandlieu in the Jules Verne industrial innovation cluster[2] near Nantes, this second project is designed to accelerate innovation in composite structural components for aerospace applications, and reduce their technological maturity lead time. The project will respond directly and effectively to the technical, economic and environmental challenges faced by the industry, at the same time as providing training for talented young people. It is supported by the French Aerospace Industry Modernization Fund.

The foundation stone will be laid by the end of this year, and the new facility is expected to be in operation by the end of 2022.

The Tarbes Aircraft Techcentre

Based on the Daher site at Tarbes, this third project will create a centre dedicated to the development of the Group's aircraft manufacturing core business, with materials laboratories, rapid prototyping workshops, mechanical engineering test facilities, systems integration test facilities, test flight preparation and operation, and other facilities.

Its many expected benefits include accelerated innovation and improved technical expertise, security and confidentiality.

This centre, whose first research project research projects will be part of the CORAC aerospace program[3], will also be operational in 2022.

"Daher would like to thank the French State, the Regional Authorities and the local authorities for the unfailing technical and financial support they have provided throughout the development process of these projects. These innovation centres demonstrate our ambition to develop increasingly innovative and environmentally responsible solutions in ways that facilitate the far-reaching transformation now underway in our business sectors, and deliver broader benefits for society and future generations. These three projects position our Group and the regions we operate in at the heart and forefront of succeeding in tomorrow's industrial challenges," says Daher CEO Didier Kayat.

For Pascal Laguerre, Chief Technology Officer at Daher, "Innovation and adventure have been integral to Daher DNA throughout its history. The launch of these three new innovation centres to serve our three core businesses sends a strong message about our commitment to continue developing bold solutions designed to benefit our customers by responding effectively to the many challenges they face. We are convinced that an open and collective approach to innovation in which operations teams work alongside researchers, designers and startups, is the best way to deliver that mission."

[1] Public-Private Partnerships

[2] which includes the IRT Jules Verne R&D institute dedicated to advanced manufacturing technologies, the EMC2 competitiveness cluster and Technocampus Composites

[3] The French Civil Aviation Research Council