The SED company is extending and investing in robotics in La Flèche

And all set - for the third time! The SED company just doesn’t stop expanding. They are preparing to start a third extension. Following an initial extension in 2005, in Rue des Frères-Chappe, diggers were back in force once again in 2016 to enable the company, which specialises in machining parts, to carry out a surface treatment. This time it is for storage purposes that a “new building of 2,000 m² is going to be built at the beginning of the year”, explains Eric Rorive, company director. Planned delivery date: end of first semester 2020. “Space is very tight at the moment”, he continues. There are more and more machines - robots - on site to support employees in their work... And they take up a lot of space.

One million euros for the extension to the building

“Over the last four years we have accelerated investment. We are putting €800,000 per year into purchasing robots” he outlines, indicating the most recent machine, which arrived on site in October.   These purchases support the company’s aim of diversifying its activities and increasing employee skills. “For example, we have a robot for loading and unloading. The operator no longer has to handle these processes, and instead is able to focus on more worthy tasks”, explains Eric Rorive. The company, which is part of the La Fonte Ardennaise group, produces several million parts each year for the agricultural, HGV and car industries. By investing “one million euros to expand from 5,000 to 7,000m²”, the company hopes to increase its turnover - “by 40% in five years” - and continue to become more robotized.