Dassault Aviation inaugurated Tuesday the newbuilding at its plant in Bordeaux-Mérignac (Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, France) which is toaccommodate the design, development and after-sales support teams for the firm’s civil anddefense activities. Construction of the new building began in May 2019.

“Widespread use of digital tools must be supported by the development of a more deep-rooted,concrete aircraft culture. This shared culture will allow us to effectively integrate, from thedesign stage onwards, all the business units involved in the product life cycle: industrialization,procurements, manufacturing and support,” explains Eric Trappier, Chairman and CEO ofDassault Aviation.

“With this aim, our transformation plan includes the transfer to Mérignacof certain operations based in Saint-Cloud, to be closer to our aircraft in production and inservice. This new building, along with some existing ones, will therefore accommodate thedefense customer support, Falcon aircraft services, industrial operations, procurements anddesign office teams. However, for the design office, the center of gravity will remain in Saint-Cloud,” he added.

With a total capacity of 26,000 sq. m, the new building offers 1,650 workstations, 24 modularcollaborative work spaces and nine project offices. It also features a Falcon Command Center,rooms for aircraft system test benches, an interior street and a 268-seat auditorium. Thehighest environmental standards have been applied with smart lighting and energymanagement, solar panels (1,400 sq. m), green roofs, heat recovery system, and powerdistribution integrated into the floor. Five hundred trees have also been planted on the site.

Presided over by Eric Trappier, alongside Hugues Chambonnière, Mérignac Site Manager, theopening ceremony was also attended by the Prefect of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region,Fabienne Buccio, and many other local elected representatives, particularly the President ofthe Nouvelle-Aquitaine Region, Alain Rousset, and the President of Bordeaux Métropole andMayor of Mérignac, Alain Anziani. Representatives of the armed forces, as well as the region’saviation ecosystem and the media were also present at the event.

With over 10,000 military and civil aircraft (including 2,500 Falcons) delivered in more than 90 countries over the last century,Dassault Aviation has built up expertise recognized worldwide in the design, development, sale and support of all types ofaircraft, ranging from the Rafale fighter, to the high-end Falcon family of business jets, military drones and space systems.

In2020, Dassault Aviation reported revenues of €5.5 billion. The company has 12,440 employees.