What is your background and why did you decide to join the Safe Metal Group and take over the management of its Feurst® subsidiary? 

Since I started my career, I have always been involved in some way with the manufacture and distribution of technical products. First in industry (special machinery, steel, aggregates, agriculture, paper, etc.), then in the automotive industry (engine parts, suspension components), I have also worked for a long time on the international scene. It was with this in mind, optimizing the strong potential of this dynamic company and developing the distribution of Feurst® manufactured products worldwide, that I joined the Safe Metal Group.

What is Feurst®’s business and what is its market positioning? 

Feurst® is a French brand based on 100% French know-how. It is a great pride to participate in the development of a French industry player in a context of globalization. We create and produce highly innovative, patented ground engaging solutions that contribute greatly to the efficiency and performance of the quarrying and construction sector. 

The company is clearly positioned in a high value-added market, where products, skills and experience allow us to build technical offerings that are tailored and optimized for each use. Obviously, when a solution can be of benefit to the greatest number (design, metallurgy, ease of assembly & maintenance), we integrate it into our catalog offer.

After a few months as Operations Director, how would you sum up Feurst®’s performance in 2022? 

 Feurst®’s performance is extremely strong, know-how & technicality are undeniable assets and contribute greatly to our virtuous model.

 Feurst® is both a robust and flexible company. Its capacity for innovation allows it to adapt with great agility to the needs of its customers, and offers it sustainable growth. Our revenue for 2021 has increased by 30% compared to 2020, thanks to the strong rebound in our construction and quarrying businesses. 2022 is looking good with real international success. 

I am convinced that innovation is the main driver of Feurst®, and we are fortunate to benefit from the unique know-how of our design teams, and the cutting-edge technology of Safe Metal’s production. 

What is your outlook for 2023 and beyond?

 As far as the outlook for 2023 is concerned, we first have a defined technological roadmap that will enable us to address new uses and new targets. Indeed, a new range is currently being pre-marketed, a range of hammerless teeth dedicated to construction and public works, whose technology will provide the same level of safety and performance as its big sister TURNKEY®, which will bear the same name.

Feurst® ‘s capacity for innovation is a major asset, and is the result of the company’s desire to offer ever more effective products to our users. I want innovation to remain at the heart of our business, as I believe it is the guarantee that we will be able to offer our customers products that give them better productivity and performance than any other product on the market. 

 Our second ambition for 2023 is to get closer to our customers and the end users of our products. We want to offer more proximity between our brand and our users. For 2022, I have started to digitalise Feurst® with the marketing teams. We are working on customer relations tools that will enable us to offer a maximum number of services to our customers and end users. 

 In addition, the digitalisation of Feurst® will also contribute to optimising our agility and flexibility. This renewal of processes will enable us to offer excellent customer service, capable of providing innovative solutions quickly and efficiently to our customers in France and abroad. 

About the international market, is it still an ambition for Feurst®?

Feurst®’s international presence is well established, we are present in 37 countries and we have a growing network of distributors for which we have great ambitions. Made in France is very attractive, and we are the only player able to claim it. We are therefore going to intensify the presence of Feurst® internationally. A dedicated team has been set up and its mission will be to promote Feurst® products and solutions throughout the world. It is a real challenge, but I am convinced that the technicality, innovation and robustness of our products will make Feurst® a world player recognised in the same way as our colleagues ESCO WEIR or MTG Metalogenia. 

 You seem to be very much focused on the issues in the field and the proximity to your customers and users, is this a way to design tomorrow’s solutions in partnership with your customers? 

 These 6 months at the head of operations have allowed me to understand the challenges and needs of our end customers. I have actually spent a lot of time with our customers to understand the current value of our bucket solutions and the value proposition we could move towards. Today, Feurst® is known for its technical excellence on the one hand, but also for its excellence in distribution and logistics. Most of our references are available on D+2 and it is a real competitive advantage to be able to offer such a level of responsiveness to our reseller customers and users. We are already working on service-oriented solutions for maintenance operators, but also on global solutions with our resellers.