A Safran Nacelles employee is recognized among French women in industry

September 27, 2016

Virginie Durieux, the head of assembly operations at Safran Nacelles’ site in Gonfreville l’Orcher (Le Havre, France), was among the finalists in the "Femme de Production" (“Women in Production”) award category as part of the Trophées des Femmes de l'Industrie 2016.

Organized by the French magazine L'Usine Nouvelle, the Trophées des Femmes de l'Industrie is a yearly event that awards women with outstanding career paths: 11 awards* are handed out every year to women.

The "Femme de Production" category, rewards a "female industrial director who has made her mark in a sector which is often very much dominated by men." Candidates therefore need to have "a real passion for industry, production processes and technology," and also boast "excellent human and organizational qualities."

This is one description that perfectly fits Virginie's profile. With a degree from the Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Pau and an MBA in Finance from the University of South Alabama, she spent three years working for a consultancy firm as an auditor for various industrial customers – where she soon discovered an attraction to the production sphere.

She started her career with the Safran group in 1999 as an Auditor, then Management Auditor for Safran Aircraft Engines, before becoming Deputy Head of the manufacturing line for combustion chambers and flanges which saw her head a team of 20 mechanics at the plant in Evry.

Back and forth between management control and production

In 2006, Virginie was offered the position of Head of Management Control within the Industrial Department at Safran Aircraft Engines. She was tasked with consolidating the costs involved in producing an engine. Three years later, driven by her curiosity, she joined purchasing as the deputy head of department for the "Compressor Blades" CIE**.

In 2010, she took up a new challenge and became Assembly Manager for high-powered engines, Sam146 and Silvercrest. "After alternating between the finance and management sphere and the industrial production sphere, I came to the realization that my heart definitely leaned more towards production," says Virginie. Since then, she has left Safran Aircraft Engines and joined Safran Nacelles, wishing to explore yet another new sphere. Since May 2014, she has been coordinating assembly operations at the plant in Le Havre, overseeing 420 employees and eight nacelle assembly lines.

Safran backs gender equality

Every year, Safran nominates several candidates for the Trophées des Femmes de l'Industrie. The Group leads a proactive drive for promoting women, which now account for 25% of the workforce – Safran has pledged to ensure that recruitment respects a proportion that is at least equivalent. The Group is keen to offer women incredible careers and recognize their skills. Virginie Durieux confirms this: "It is amazing that with my initial training, I am entrusted with such great responsibilities in industrial production, let alone in a cutting-edge sector such as aerospace. I am fortunate enough to work in a group with an outlook and culture which lends itself to this kind of career path."

*Entrepreneurship Award, Production Award, Projects Award, R&D Award, Innovation Award, Sales Award, Digital Technologies Award, Sustainable Development Award, International Award, Rising Talent Award, and lastly, the Trophée de la Femme de l'Industrie de l'Année (Industry Woman of the Year Award), which is the ceremony's main prize.

**Center of Industrial Excellence