The figures talk for themselves

2nd largest Airbus industrial hub in France

with 3 Airbus production sites (over 6,500 employees) in Nantes and Saint-Nazaire

280 firms and 29,700 jobs

6 100 students

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Great business opportunities in aeronautical engineering

Atlantic France is a land of aerospace: you can therefore rely on a strong local supply chain and high-quality talent pools.

Airbus Atlantic, one of the world leading aircraft manufacturers, has three plants in our region. This has allowed the development of great expertise and skills in structural elements manufacturing and tooling (high performance composites forming, hard metal machining etc.).

A major impact on sectors such as advanced manufacturing and electronics

As aircraft manufacturers increase their production rate and quality, tier 1 contractors and subcontractors gain more business. The development of Airbus Atlantic and its strategic partners has led to high levels of investment over the last few years. You can take part in this economic ecosystem by providing an expertise in composite materials, advanced manufacturing technologies and smart production lines.

Aeronautical engineering also represents an opportunity for the avionics industry and its suppliers. Consider providing your goods and services to the embedded electronics professionals working on commercial aircrafts, military and space sectors, and collaborate with key players in the market such as Artus-Meggitt, Eolane, SELHA, Souriau and Tronico.

Open innovation and high-level academic research

For years, the collaborative culture in Atlantic France fosters innovation and R&D with one single motto: local partnerships with global reach. Benefit from that spirit by participating in research programs led or supported by the French cluster for advanced manufacturing technologies, EMC2, and the industrial collaborative platform IRT Jules Verne.

In Atlantic France, you can also build your excellence with academic research, which is a pillar of the innovation process. Higher Education institutions such as the University of Nantes, the IMT Atlantique and Centrale Nantes engineering schools are strongly committed to helping the industry to propel to the future.

High performance transport infrastructure to connect your business to the world

Since 2018, aviation giant Airbus Atlantic has opened its maritime logistics hub to other manufacturers. Take advantage of this high-quality transport infrastructure which connects Saint-Nazaire with Hamburg (Germany) and Mobile (Alabama, USA). By offering direct access to Northern and Southern Europe, Atlantic France stands as the ideal meeting point for your clients and partners.

This supportive business environment has already attracted world leaders in aeronautics: Arconic, Spirit Aerosystems, Figeac Aero, Web Industries and more. Contact us now to be the next on the list!

IS YOUR PROJECT DIFFERENT? LET’S HAVE A LOOK AT YOUR BUSINESS POTENTIAL.

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Leading names

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Powerful networking and the right connections

Innovation clusters

EMC2

The French industrial cluster for advanced manufacturing technologies

www.pole-emc2.fr/the-emc2-competitiveness-cluster

Polymeris

Rubber and polymers cluster

www.polymeris.fr

 

 

CETIM

provides technical and scientific services in mechanical engineering, innovation and advanced manufacturing

www.cetim.fr

Business clusters

Neopolia Aerospace

more than 65 companies which pool their expertise and collaborate in order to respond innovatively to the needs of the aeronautics market.

www.neopolia.com

Innovation platforms

Technocampus Composites

Mutualized technological research platform dedicated to composite manufacturing

www.technocampus.fr

IRT Jules Verne

Mutualised research institute dedicated to the industry of the future, seeking to boost competitiveness in strategic industries by disruptive fabrication technologies

irt-jules-verne.fr

IPC Laval

Industrial Technical Center of plastics and composites

ct-ipc.com

CTTM

This technology transfer centre specialises in acoustics and vibrations, materials, biological and medical engineering, and design engineering.

cttm-lemans.com

CEA

Technology transfer platform, speeding innovation for industry and developing programs on AI and robotics/cobotics.

cea-tech.fr

Academic resources

World-class academic resources for a high-flying sector

  • Arts et Métiers ParisTech: This engineering school provides courses to develop the skills that are essential to face the challenges of tomorrow’s industry and to participate in technological developments (transport, health, energy and construction).
  • Centrale Nantes: Ranked in the top 5 best engineering schools in France. Known for its Ph.D. research studies on Manufacturing and Additive Manufacturing.  Other Ph.D. research studies on Computer Science and Automation, & Robotics.
  • ESTACA: This engineering school provides courses in all transport sectors: aeronautics, automotive, space, naval, urban transport and rail.
  • Polytech’Nantes: The graduate school of engineering of the University of Nantes, located on 3 campuses (Nantes, Saint-Nazaire and La Roche-sur-Yon). Sectors: Electronics, Digital, energy, construction and materials.