CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
16 February 2012
Company News
Lectra Names Laurent Alt Software R&D Director
Lectra announced the nomination of Laurent Alt as the new director of its Software R&D department.
Lectra's R&D department is 220 employees strong, including 200 people in France. Every year the company consecrates major investments in R&D: EUR68.8 million over the past four years and EUR18.2 million (8.9% of revenues) in 2011 alone despite the economic crisis.
"The decision made in 2005, after deep consideration, to maintain Lectra's R&D and production in France has enabled it to meet the three challenges it faced: compete with the low-cost products of its international competitors that had relocated to China and those of its Asian competitors; increase its competitiveness; and boost its margins. This decision has also enabled Lectra to protect its industrial property," said Daniel Harari, Lectra CEO. "The arrival of Laurent Alt at the head of the Software R&D team follows Lectra's ambitious investment policy over the past seven years. Laurent is a man of talent. In addition to his management qualities, his mastery of complex information systems projects, and his knowledge of latest-generation technologies, his experience in CAD and PLM will enable us to reinforce our technological advance all the more."
Laurent Alt, a graduate of the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Paris, began his career in 1987 at Thomson Digital Image where he created the first software for articulated characters and participated in the development of a 3D modeling package intended for industrial design. Over the next 14 years he held positions in R&D management, corporate strategy, and consulting and pre-sales for PLM solutions at Dassault Systèmes. In 2007, Laurent joined SpaceClaim, an American concept design software startup, created by Mike Payne, co-founder of PTC, and then Solidworks, where he directed the 3D geometry tool R&D team. Finally, in 2009 he became CEO at HD3D, a company which develops digital content production management software, in partnership with French audiovisual leaders such as Mikros Image, Mac Guff Ligne, and even Eclair Laboratoires.
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