Research
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Organization

Lafarge has implemented a twofold strategy which combines centralized research and decentralized development. The objective is to optimize research while providing the best possible response to the needs of local markets. R&D is therefore organized in 2complementary divisions:

  • the Research center, which concentrates on fundamental and applied research,
  • the Technical centers and laboratories, which work under the responsibility of local Business Units to develop and industrialize solutions.

The Research center: innovation in motion

The 200 researchers at the Center seek to understand physical and chemical mechanisms and elaborate new technologies.

The 15,000 m² site boasts state-of-the-art laboratories, pilot workshops and technology buildings for large-scale testing as well as high-tech equipment including electron microscopes, field-effect microscopes and nano-scale instruments.

 

Lafarge's research projects are built around 3 main themes:

  • end-customer performance, whether in terms of product finish (quality, aesthetics, new functions, etc.) or product implementation (ease of use, productivity, etc.),
  • industrial performance, notably the improvement of production processes and environmental performance,
  • preparation for the future, notably sustainable development imperatives, such as saving energy and raw materials and limiting CO2 emissions.

Discover the life at the Research center on video!

Pouring Extensia™ concrete, Technology Center, France

Working at the Research center

Gilles Chanvillard, Director of the Structured Materials Division

"The Group's Research center brings together, on a single site, all of the scientific experts who are needed to master materials: chemists, physicists, powder specialists, rheologists, etc. Each project is piloted by a scientific support committee, which gathers and circulates information between experts. Ideas are fed into a knowledge base which, in the spirit of shared innovation, is accessible to everyone."

Product development based on real needs

Technical center in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Technical center in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Working at CTEC.

Bernhard Köck, Process Manager at CTEC.

"In 1995, a handful of experts was responsible for providing support to 5 factories in 3 European countries. By 2007, CTEC has become a recognized center of excellence, working on behalf of 40 factories in 14 countries on 3 continents. My colleagues come from 20 different countries and speak 16 languages!"

 

The decentralized network of Technical centers means product innovation can easily be adapted to the needs of local markets.

Technical centers and application laboratories work with factories, country teams and Businesses to:

  • develop products suited to local needs,
  • improve industrial performance.

With excellent knowledge of local markets and local needs, laboratories and technical centers are ideally placed to communicate local requirements to the LCR. For example, Avancrete bagged cement was launched in Malaysia having been developed at the Asian Technical Center, which is based in Kuala Lumpur.

Factories throughout the world can also call on a network of local experts to intervene rapidly to improve processes in plants, for example by optimizing formulas to reflect the availability of local raw materials.

 

Lafarge has 4 Technical centers for Cement located in:

  • Vienna, Austria, serving Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle East (Cement Technical Center - CTEC),
  • L'Isle d'Abeau, France, serving Western Europe and Africa (Technical Center Europe and Africa - TCEA),
  • Montreal, Canada, serving the Americas (Corporate Technical Services - CTS). The CTS has a branch in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
  • Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, serving Asia (Asian Technical Center - ATC). The ATC has a branch in Beijing, China.

 

 

The Technical Development Center for the Gypsum Business is based in Avignon, France. The headquarters of the Business are also located here, facilitating exchanges and synergies between researchers and marketing and production.

The Center studies the application of products and systems in real environments. For example, the Center has a very sophisticated acoustic measurement laboratory which allows it to:

  • analyze different systems developed all over the world and evaluate and measure their performance under identical conditions,
  • promote knowledge transfer between the countries where the Group operates.

The Technology Center: the Group's showcase

The Lafarge Technology Center at L'Isle d'Abeau, near Lyon, employs 500 people of 20 different nationalities in:

  • the Research center,
  • several key entities of the Cement Business:
    • the Western Europe and Africa Technical Center,
    • the Cement Performance Department,
    • the Training Department,
  • the Intellectual Property Department,
  • the Technological Watch Department.

Each year, the Technology Center welcomes nearly 20,000 visitors from around the world!

Research Center at L’Isle d'Abeau near Lyon, France

Last update on 06/19/2009

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Lafarge & Columbia University

Innovative concretes & sustainable architecture

Find out all the program of the conferences dedicated to concrete and organized by Columbia's Graduate School of Architecture in exclusive partnership with Lafarge.

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