10/7/2014 11:53:00 AM
NEWS BRIEFS
ARaymond’s New HQ in France Improves Efficiency
ARaymond Network’s EUR 6 million (US$7.6m) investment in its new headquarters in France has improved efficiency.
Rapid sales growth led the company to open hi-tech offices in Grenoble in June. Now 200 employees are based in the four-story, 3,000 sq meter building that is the new home for Raygroup, which provides corporate functions of finance, HR, procurement, logistics, and sales and marketing, and Raynet, which provides IT services.
CEO Antoine Raymond said his comopany gave architects Patriarche & Co two objectives.
“The first was to design a building that made it easy for our colleagues to contact, communicate and collaborate with each other. The second was to create an atmosphere where everybody felt relaxed. Both objectives have been achieved.”
“Previously our departments were based in different offices,” the great-great-grandson of Albert-Pierre Raymond explained. “Even teams in the same building were separated from each other by long corridors. All this made communication very difficult. Our new building is very open and transparent. With the large atrium people on different floors can see other.
“The whole layout of the offices encourages teamworking, which is very important because providing a service to a customer never depends on one person working alone. It is always a team effort.”
“Colleagues tell me they are very happy to work here. If you provide people with good working conditions, they will be more engaged and motivated. They will deliver a better service to both internal and external customers. Since moving into our new offices, we have markedly improved our efficiency, achieved consistently higher customer service levels and created more value for the end users of our fastener systems.”
The headquarters was constructed on the site of the original ARaymond factory, which opened in 1865. It also stands between two of the company’s historic buildings, one which is the former home of the founder Albert-Pierre Raymond. By 2016, this will be converted into a museum while the other building will become a training centre.
All employees were asked to vote on a new name for the headquarters and the most popular choice was “The Arch.”
To reduce its carbon footprint, the Arch incorporates eco-friendly features such as rainwater harvesting, an air circulation system (instead of conventional air conditioning) and low-energy lighting.
The ARaymond Network supplies fastening and assembly solutions to the automotive industry, truck, industrial and agriculture markets.
The family business was established in 1865, and today comprises 37 companies on four continents, with 11 design offices and 22 production sites. Web: araymond.com
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