Dassault Group Dominates the European Market

Dassault Group is one of the few large privately-owned conglomerates that is still owned by its founding family. The French conglomerate serves a broad range of industries ranging from 3D software, aircraft manufacturing to boat building, architecture and mass consumer goods. The group has decades of experience in leading edge-industries that have helped their customers achieve success. The group has the following subsidiaries: Dassault Aviation, Dassault Falcon Jet, Dassault Falcon Service, Sogitec, SABCA, Dassault Systemes, Figara Group , Immobiliere Dassault, Chateau Dassault and Articurial. Collectively, the group has expertise in aeronautics, advanced digital technology, communication, etc. One of their benchmark companies is their subsidiary, Dassault Systems.

Dassault Systems is one of the world’s leaders in 3D CAD technology. Dassault Systems was founded in 1981, but its history dates to 1977 when a group of 15 engineers developed 3D Computer- aided design software. The men were engineers from Avions Marcel Dassault, which today is known as another Dassault Group subsidiary, Dassault Aviation. The group of men were led by Francis Bernard, who were initially trying to develop a 3D Computer- aided design software, today called CATIA. The software development was to help create designs, but with no intentions of selling the technology to other manufacturers. The development of the new technology quickly reached top management at Avions Marcel Dassault. Management at Avions saw the potential of the new technology and wanted to commercialize the product. The company management understood the severity and the high cost of selling the new technology. The company weighed their options and believed it would be more profitable to make an agreement with IBM to sell CATIA as an IBM product and have a 50/50 revenue sharing. The agreement was extremely successful for both companies, resulting in the new technology receiving attention from other sectors outside of aeronautical design. The automotive industry was interested in CATIA and automotive manufacturers such as BMW, Mercedes and Honda realized how the technology could advance their design tools. Soon enough, CATIA technology was advanced and customized to fit other industries such as consumer goods, machinery and shipbuilding. Dassault Systems experienced exponential growth and expanded to the US, Japan and Germany. Over its course, the company has made multiple acquisitions and has expanded its product lines.