The Scop (Cooperative and Participatory Society) is a “real advance in mentalities for the management and future of a company”, summarizes Patrick Gabriel, CEO of CORDM. This is the end desired by employees of the top-down and bottom-up approach which harms taking initiative (in this case, uA team or project manager makes decisions, which are then passed down following a hierarchical structure). In this Verdun factory, specializing in the manufacture of gears and precision mechanical transmission components, the employee has a say.
The employees are “fairly” paid, there is little “turnover”, no “difficulty hiring either”, according to the 62-year-old manager.
Collective choices
This status adopted by the company since 1982 allows “one vote for each partner, or 68 in total out of the 82 employees in the establishment, to elect a board of directors and to vote at general meetings,” explains the manager. Moreover, this requires that 100% of employees be involved after a year to a year and a half of presence: “Recruit people who will, after their trial period, be concerned by the challenges of tomorrow, the strategic choices , the projects. This gives meaning and appeals to more and more young people. This framework offers a strong sense of belonging,” notes Patrick Gabriel, who is expected to retire in 2027. “The partners will meet to choose my successor together and they will vote for the candidates who will run for this position. » Yet another collective choice.
Could Scop be a new trend in the Meuse? At the end of October, in Bar-le-Duc, the 57 employees of Bergère de France involved in the cooperative production company also became partners: “Our department proves that we can think of the company differently, especially when it is in difficulty », underlines Patrick Gabriel.
45% of turnover from exports
The CORDM company is doing well thanks to three good years (2021-2022-2023) where it recorded numerous orders. And the schedule is busy until February 2025. It must be said that the 7,000 square meter factory, completely renovated, has a fleet of around fifty latest generation machines. Thanks to the quality of its manufacturing, CORDM supplies gears to the world's largest customers.
Indeed, in 2024, a third of turnover will be generated on the rail markets for manufacturers but also operators. Another third, in the mining and tunneling sectors. And the last third concerns the steel industry, the navy, the repair of industrial gearboxes, energy and nuclear power: “We export between 45% and 50% of our production, and more particularly to Kazakhstan, Brazil and the United States. America, China and India,” confirms Patrick Gabriel.
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The quality strategy
In this positive context, what are the challenges for 2025? The manager remains confident, even if the order book is not as full as desired. Successive inflationary crises in energy, conflicts in the world and strong competition are putting the market under pressure: “We have sought to reorient our production towards the manufacture of high quality gears to break away from the low cost from countries Asians. This is a strategy that we have put in place for 2025 and which will pay off. This objective and this new challenge will allow us to maintain a good level of our order records. Next year, we will have to continue our efforts,” the manager bluntly admits.
France
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