European missile house MBDA and its subsidiary Matra Electronique (MEL), which specialises in the manufacture of high-precision electronic equipment, have set a brand new ‘4.0 factory’ in the Hauts-de-France industrial region of northern France.
The new site in Venette, which was inaugurated on 18 November 2024, will serve as a centre of excellence for defence electronics in Europe. The site will increase MEL’s weekly electronic component transfer capacity by 2.5 times, from 200,000 to 500,000 transferred components.
“The women and men of Matra Electronique have an essential role in the MBDA Group’s mission. Together, we are creating a sustainable, innovative, high value-added industrial model to meet the challenges of sovereignty in France, in Europe and among our allies,” said MBDA CEO Eric Béranger at the factory’s inauguration ceremony. “With this new production facility we are pursuing our commitment to the ‘war economy’: immediate acceleration of production capacity, development and aggregation of industrial skills in France, and the ability to accelerate even further in the months and years to come.”
“Combining the skills and technologies we depend on to guarantee our sovereignty in electronics, our new site sits at the heart of a dynamic, forward-looking local ecosystem that contributes to the resilience of our supply chain and developing our activities,” added Frédéric Wilmot, chairman of MEL and industrial director of MBDA France. “It also enables us to maintain cutting-edge expertise and essential jobs in our local areas.”
MBDA says the new factory represents a one-third increase in MEL’s site area and provides the capacity for future extensions, enabling MEL to adapt rapidly to changing customers’ needs and providing a “growth lever” for the years to come.
“Employees will benefit from modern workspaces, making the company a more attractive place to work, with the site also designed to minimise its impact on the environment,” MBDA stated, adding that it “is part of a dynamic ecosystem of industrial and local players who will help to strengthen the entire industrial value chain”.
