Daher presents the company’s new “Take off 2027” five-year strategic plan and acquires Assistance Aéronautique et Aérospatiale (AAA)

A change in dimension with the “Take off” 2027 strategic plan

“Take off 2027,” which is Daher’s new strategic plan through 2027, sets the goal for Daher to become a large, profitable international company developing in four complementary businesses.

Priorities identified by the Daher Group for this five-year plan are the internationalization of its organization, the improvement of the structural profitability of all its businesses, along with the commitment to innovate and decarbonize.

Backed by a business model that is balanced between manufacturing and services – which has demonstrated its resilience over time, and in particular during the COVID-19 crisis – Daher also has also decided to make the “manufacturing services” a business sector in itself, alongside aircraft production, manufacturing and logistics. The result is a link between the Group’s manufacturing and logistics activities. Capitalizing on its know-how, these business sectors apply the competencies of adaptability, agility and commitment for which Daher is recognized, while strengthening the Group’s presence in the aeronautical value chain – and more broadly, the manufacturing value chain – along with its proximity to customers.

Five key orientations for Daher’s transformation in the “Takeoff 2027” strategic plan

One imperative
Improve the economic performance to ensure the sustainability of a company with 160 years of history, as well as strengthen its competitiveness in the service of customers while also investing in human capital and strengthening ESG (environmental, social and governance) performance.

Three challenges
• Transform the managerial culture by moving towards a results-driven culture (based on the Daher Leadership Model) and recognition for the core values and know-how of the Group’s employees;
• Innovate for customers and decarbonize by envisioning the products, services and processes of tomorrow for each of its businesses; challenges that will be the focus for the three technical centers launched by Daher in 2022 (Log’in for logistics, Shap’in for aerostructures, and Fly’in for aircraft);
• Integrate and develop the acquisitions, by duplicating the TBM success story for Kodiak, while launching a hybrid aircraft; by benefitting from the Stuart factory’s competence to make the assembly of aerostructures one of the pillars in Daher’s manufacturing offer; by applying the KVE Composites Group’s capabilities to secure Daher’s technological lead in composites; and by developing the manufacturing services business with AAA (Assistance Aéronautique et Aérospatiale) after this acquisition is approved by the competent authorities.

One accelerator
Make visible and known, by further highlighting the robustness offered by the complementarity between its manufacturing and services activities, and the sustainability of its family business model since 1863.

Daher strengthens its position in industrial services with the planned acquisition of Assistance Aéronautique et Aérospatiale (AAA)

AAA provides complete service solutions that are complementary to those of Daher – in particular for the assembly and installation of structures, systems and engines, along with runway work, maintenance, industrialization and quality.

The overall business volume of AAA and its subsidiaries is approximately €200 million. Daher’s goal is to continue what has made AAA successful since 1990 by relying on the skills of AAA’s 1,900 employees in its primary aeronautical employment area within France, along with the company’s teams based at subsidiaries and holdings in Canada and the United States, as well as in Germany, Qatar, China and the Philippines.

This strategic sector consolidation operation will enable Daher to accelerate its French and international development in the manufacturing services businesses for civil and defense aeronautics, and to even better respond to the growing needs of this sector in the context of rising production rates.
With the acquisition of AAA, Daher will become the benchmark for manufacturing services in France and a leading player worldwide.

The merger, subject to approval of the competent authorities, should be finalized during May 2023.
Gilles Chauby, the Chairman and CEO of AAA, declared: “We chose Daher to pursue the development of our company based on a strong alignment between Daher’s family DNA, its development strategy and the values of AAA. This is the best way ahead for our managers, technicians and employees, as well as for our customers.”

Didier Kayat, the Daher CEO, added: “We are very happy to welcome the AAA teams, whose values are perfectly compatible with Daher’s family and entrepreneurial DNA. The development of manufacturing services is an integral part of our new strategic plan and is perfectly aligned with our commitment to support our aeronautical customers in a context that remains complex.”

2022, the year of rebound despite a difficult context

In 2022, Daher recorded sales of €1.3 billion for all of its industrial and services businesses – an increase of 15.4% compared to 2021.

2022 was marked by growth across the company’s activities.
• Aircraft production: 73 aircraft delivered (compared to 68 in 2021) and a record level of orders for the TBM and Kodiak families, which were boosted by the launch of two new versions during the year: the TBM 960 and the Kodiak 900;
• Industry (aeronautical equipment and systems): The return to 2019 levels in air traffic resulted in an increase in production rates for aircraft manufacturers; at Daher, its activity was up by 16.3%;
• Logistics and services: With Daher’s activity increasing by 10.7%, 2022 was marked by the extension of existing contracts and the pursuit of internationalization, with a new presence established in Germany and Spain, in particular.

Last year was impacted by the crisis in Ukraine, the resumption of inflation, the rise in energy prices, strong tension in the job market and the persistent fragility of the aeronautical supply chain. The situation considerably complicated day-to-day operations and affected delivery times and the costs and profitability of Daher’s industrial manufacturing.

However, 2022 saw achievements in each of Daher’s businesses and confirmed the company’s rebound:
• Launch of two new aircraft: the TBM 960 and Kodiak 900;
• Acquisition of the aerostructures production facility at Stuart in the U.S. state of Florida;
• Inauguration of the Log’in technical center for logistics innovation at Toulouse, France.