Investing to meet demand Crouzet Switches

Sonia Goual, Crouzet Switches Sales Manager for Northern Europe

INVESTING TO INVESTING TO MEET DEMAND MEET DEMAND

Crouzet Switches, a brand of Custom Sensors & Technologies, is a specialist in snap-action electrical switching, with more than 60 years’ experience in markets where security and reliability are key requirements. The brand looks set to maintain its position as one of the world’s top three producers of microswitches.

Since 2006, Crouzet Switches has been part of the CST Company, a Californiabased specialist in designing and manufacturing sensing, control and motion products. Through its brands, BEI Kimco, BEI Sensors, BEI PSSC, Crouzet, Crydom, Kavlico, Newall and Systron Donner Inertial, CST offers customisable components for missioncritical systems in the Aerospace & Defence, Transportation, Energy & Infrastructure, Medical, Food and Beverage and Building Equipment markets. Focused on offering a premium value service and committed to the highest standards of excellence, CST, with 4400 employees worldwide and sales of $590 million in 2014, is a dependable and flexible partner for even the most demanding customers.

One of the key areas of specialisation for Crouzet Switches is the nuclear industry, where it has been active since the 1980s. Sonia Goual is Crouzet Switches’ sales manager for northern Europe: “We offer a range of nuclear certified limit switches, particularly designed for harsh environments,” she comments. “Our limit switches comprise a hermetically-sealed microswitch which combines a snap-action mechanism, and a high degree of resistance to shocks, vibration and temperature. The microswitch is filled with an inert gas that protects the contacts and allows flow from low level circuits to higher currents.”

The brand’s high quality products have been recognised with the RCCE certification for K1, K2 and K3, and as a leader in its field it is also a member of major

CST Factories in Valence, France

nuclear associations including the PFCE (Partenariat France Chine Electricité) and GIIN (Groupe Intersyndical de l’Industrie Nucléaire). “Our products are mainly located in the reactor core and around the plant in K1, K2 and K3 nuclear plant areas such as in the Atex environment. The care taken in the manufacture of these cells in terms of assembly processes, cleanliness of components as well as inspection procedures results in a product which is ideal for operation in severe environments where a high level of reliability is essential. The Crouzet Switches hermetically-sealed cell is particularly well suited to sectors such as Aerospace, Marine and Nuclear.”

Crouzet Switches has production facilities in Morocco and China (producing for the local market in Asia). Its newest facility, opened two years ago, is in Bangalore, India, while its main production unit for the nuclear industry remains in Valence, France. More than 80 per cent of the brand’s products are bespoke items, and “The overseas facilities, which specialise in adapting the brand’s standard products to clients’ specific requirements, tend to be opened to respond to the needs of particular customers and are often driven by the brand’s specialist knowledge of harsh environments,” says Sonia Goual. “For instance, we have expanded in India and China, primarily because Crouzet Switches’ products are specifically designed to operate in high-temperature and high-humidity environments. While Chinese companies are of course able to produce their own similar products, they don’t have the expertise that Crouzet Switches can provide.”

New machinery meets growing demand

Crouzet Switches regularly injects 6–7 per cent of its turnover into R&D. Two years ago it refurbished its nuclear production line, and it has now installed a new machine at its Valence plant in order to automate switch production. In 2014 it also installed a new compacting machine. The brand says the investments are designed to increase capability, and to meet growing demand from its customers.

In the nuclear sector, Crouzet Switches has established a strong reputation through more than 30 years of industrial component production. With its products meeting both RCCE and IEEE K1 standards, it has been able to win international customers including the likes of Emerson Process Management, EDF, the French company Velan and China’s SUFA. Primary geographic markets are France, China (following the growth in the local nuclear industry in recent years), and Scandinavia (with important customers in Finland and Sweden, for instance). Attending events such as the recent World Nuclear Exhibition in Paris and Valve World in Düsseldorf has also helped the brand to raise its profile in other parts of the world – particularly with Russian and US manufacturers.

Looking ahead, Crouzet Switches aims to build on its strengths and penetrate new markets. According to Sonia Goual: “We want to reinforce our strong position in our existing markets, as a leader in harsh environments, and also to increase our activity in the oil and gas industry. We have a strong company behind us, and CST is keen to expand through further mergers and acquisitions. With new shareholders recently having come on board, demonstrating a belief in the company’s potential; a focus on quality products rather than lower-cost options; and the nuclear industry’s continuing requirement for high-quality maintenance products, Crouzet Switches is well-positioned for continued growth.” n