Sputnik Expands To Lyon
The French subsidiary of the Swiss manufacturer of inverters for photovoltaic systems Sputnik Engineering AG is moving from Paris to Saint Priest near Lyon .
"In the south-east of France there are the largest number of solar plants, especially in the Rhône-Alpes region. Lyon has also become a magnet for the solar industry. Roughly half of all French PV installation companies have their headquarters in this region", says Didier Jeannelle, head of Sputnik's French subsidiary. The managing director plans to continue to expand the sales and service of SolarMax products in France , improve responsiveness to customer needs, and expand the training program. The company's new building, already equipped with a heat pump, which will soon have a solar system as well, is located only 20 minutes from central Lyon and the Lyon Saint Exupéry Airport.
Jeannelle plans to increase his staff in the short-term to six. He is currently already supported by the key account managers Denis Ferra and Jocelyn Rogron, who work from Grenoble and Nantes , and two sales representatives based at the new location in Saint Priest.
"The expansion of our French subsidiary and the move to Lyon comes at exactly the right time," says Jeannelle. "The French solar market is booming and we can expect stable growth at least until 2012. Future growth depends on future legislation. In the market for systems operated by home-owners Sputnik is already No. 2 in France . In future we will also increase our share of the central inverter market for medium-sized and large-scale plants." To achieve this goal, Didier Jeannelle is planning to expand the company's partner network to cover the market for medium-sized and large-scale plants and sales in French overseas territories.