Annual Report Sustainable Development Report ... - Groupe SEB

your world is
on the move
As world market leader, Groupe SEB views its sector and its industry from a global standpoint.
Faced with particularly aggressive competition, the Group is responding by adapting
its industrial strategy, structures and product innovation.
Reorganizing,
to ensure our long-term business
Unlike most of its rivals who have massively relocated
their production, Groupe SEB operates 12 factories in Europe,
thus showing its desire to maintain strong centres of expertise
in this region while concentrating on three strategic priorities:
– to adapt our industrial base in Europe so that we can remain
competitive in the long-term, by specializing factories to
generate synergy and economies of scale, and by strongly
defending our technological advantage over competitors;
– to expand our competitive multi-product plants, locally based
in international markets;
Anticipation
Progress
&
|22
– to make greater use of sourcing for components or basic
products, so that we can concentrate on our strong point:
innovation.
Meanwhile, we continue to add to our wealth of expertise via
targeted takeovers which bring us mastery in new
technologies. This was the case in 2005 with our acquisition
of Lagostina in Italy and Panex in Brazil.
2005 R&D budget: €45 million
Industrial patents budget: €7 million
450 people, of which 20% in research