Can you introduce us to the Sibiu Francophone Business Club which you preside and tell us about its tasks and responsibilities? What are the areas of activity regrouped within this business club?

– Founded in 2015, as part of the cooperation between the departments of Ille-et-Vilaine (France) and Sibiu (Romania), I have the honour to preside the Sibiu Francophone Business Club (C.FAS) since its inception. Our association brings together around forty companies and NGOs from the Sibiu region (South-East Transylvania). Ranging from the individual entrepreneur to the international group, this organization supports its members in their implementation, development and promotion.

– Recognized for its successful activity, it is also a meeting place for local economic actors and a space for dialogue promoting the creation of business opportunities between its members and also with other economic, institutional and social C.FAS partners, especially through our partnership with CCIFER.

– With a multi-sectorial vocation, the C.FAS regularly organizes events in order to:

• Defend the interests of Francophone businesses and promote corporate Francophonie
• Support the development of local businesses by organizing BtoB and networking events
• Promote vocational training and support its development in Romania
• Promote the French language in academic institutions through a strong link with L. Blaga University of Sibiu.
• Be the bearer of joint projects meeting the needs of members.

– Built in the image and under the impetus of the CFA Cluj-Napoca, we co-organize the “Francophone Business Club Awards” every year for high school students in Transylvania in the form of thematic sections, in order to promote corporate Francophonie and Francophone businesses in the region.

– Monthly meetings are also organized to promote synergy between members and to better act as a network. Thematic conferences are also organized according to the needs of the members and legal, legislative or financial news, as well as a regional networking and BtoB event called “The Francophone Business Meetings of Sibiu”.

More information on the website: cfasibiu.ro

You are also the Managing Director of NTN-SNR Rulmenti in Sibiu, Romania, could you give us a quick introduction to your company, its development since its creation more than 10 years ago, your areas of business and their geographic distribution?

– NTN-SNR Rulmenti was created in 2004 and was one of the first companies established in the industrial area of Sibiu. Today, we have 1,100 employees, 3 production facilities of more than 30,000 square meters to manufacture 100,000 wheel and gearbox bearings daily, as well as 9,000 transmissions for our customers, manufacturers and automotive suppliers located in Europe.

– Originally, it was the products and means transferred from France that allowed the start-up of the factory.

– From now on, new and modern means are industrialized within Sibiu, in order to produce bearings developed in Romania for new applications. This development can only be done by a high level of performance, especially in quality.

– Our local technical centre, made up of a team of Romanian engineers, designs the future bearings, the bearings and transmissions expertise, in close liaison with our head office based in Annecy, France.

What are your development plans for the coming years?

– We have several important projects within our factory:

• Given the evolution of wages in Romania, and the shortage of manpower, we must boost productivity initiatives in order to make this factory sustainable.
  This involves automation, increased skills, and higher value-added products. Currently, we are getting started on our first bearing assembly robot.

We also invest heavily in internal training, but also on dual education with two local colleges.

Success in these different projects will allow us to industrialize new and more complex bearings, especially for electric vehicles.

• We are finishing off our fourth facility, which will allow us to integrate the machining and assembly lines of our transmissions, in order to have a facility dedicated to this activity as a whole which will optimize our on-going flows and customer service.
• The technical centre will continue its development and integrate new activities.