The semiconductor industry is growing exponentially in Europe. Eumetrys specializes in this field and sells measuring instruments used in the manufacture of these electronic chips, but it is also ensuring the long-term future of its business.
Since 2012, Eumetrys has specialised in the installation and commissioning of metrology equipment for semiconductors.
Present in our telephones, our computers but also our refrigerators or our cars, these components are poorly known because they are microscopic and production remains complex.
This 100% French SME offers an all-inclusive service, from the sale of equipment to its installation, including repair, after-sales service and user training. The work consists of measuring the production process of electronic chips and thus establishing whether or not they are functional.
This is a very promising industrial sector that has been growing exponentially for the past two years. The Covid-19 pandemic with its confinements and the rise of teleworking has led to a high demand for electronic products, which in turn has caused shortages throughout the supply chain. This has left companies struggling to find the resources to do the work their customers want.
An industrial market that is doing well, supported by recent political awareness and Europe's desire for independence in this strategic industrial sector
Apart from these logistical problems, the pandemic has proved to be a boon for the semiconductor industry and in particular for Eumetrys, which has seen its turnover increase by 80% in 2020 and by a further 35% in 2021. A trend that is not expected to diminish, as the shortage and therefore the high demand is expected to continue for the next two to three years. With the construction of numerous new factories throughout Europe, the demand for semiconductors is booming.
Today, Eumetrys works with all the units in the market, whether they are large companies such as Bosch, Infineon or STMicroelectronics, or smaller, more specialized structures that represent a significant part of its turnover, such as CEA-LETI, Qualcomm or X-FAB.
Sustaining the business
For Yannick Bedin, president and founder of Eumetrys, the current situation is an opportunity, but the future consequences should not be overlooked: "We have managed growth rather well during this period, but the question for us is to manage/control the related risks. We have no guarantee of this and we anticipate a possible backlash, which is why we need to diversify our activity so that we do not depend solely on these periods of strong growth.” Despite the shocks that the semiconductor market can experience, the entrepreneur wishes above all to increase the response capacity of his company.
Two years ago, Eumetrys therefore launched a maintenance offer for its customers' robots. This exchange and repair activity now represents 20% of its turnover. The Grenoble-based SME is also taking advantage of the phenomenon of replacing old equipment. "Since the last economic crisis in 2008, Europe has fallen behind in the renewal of its installations. Today we are faced with customers who are being pushed by Europe to increase their production capacity but who also want to perpetuate their old equipment, which means that demand is becoming even more important," explains Yannick Bedin.
An SME that keeps growing
Always with this desire to find new sources of growth, Eumetrys decided to open a workshop in Grenoble specialising in the repair of load ports. A reliable and sustainable solution to meet the needs of customers in a reactive and efficient manner. This offer also helps to reduce the carbon footprint of manufacturers by extending the life of their equipment. Consequently, Eumetrys is recruiting employees in the Grenoble region, mainly for maintenance technician positions.
EUMETRYS is also working to expand its offer of technological alternatives to OEM products, thanks to a network of selected partners, allowing its European customers to optimize their cost of ownership and thus gain in competitiveness.
Finally, EUMETRYS is planning to develop its own measuring equipment and is currently working on finding partners for the R&D part of its projects.
When in 2012, the group he works for decides to stop a product line, Yannick Bedin seizes the opportunity and continues this activity himself. Ten years later, his entrepreneurial project has taken on an exceptional dimension and also shows the importance of knowing how to renew one's activities in order to guarantee the sustainability of one's business...
The current shortage of electronic chips has brought semiconductor technology to light. The general public, the main user of these components, has thus discovered a market that was previously quite unknown. This could also enable the State and Europe to overcome the shortage and thus double the production currently carried out in Europe. The semiconductor sector is once again becoming strategic for the EEC and an entire ecosystem must adapt. For Eumetrys, this would be a real opportunity and would make the company's future a little more secure.
Challe Editors - Challenge Magazine - 2022, March 22nd