The industrial park in Racine: Thiers is growing
TB Groupe’s new buildings dedicated to cutlery are being erected
TB Groupe recently purchased one of the last available lots in the Racine industrial zone in La Monnerie-le-Montem near Thiers, France.
The construction project aimed at creating new office spaces and a facility for the storage of TB merchandise is underway. This construction project is a natural step for this cutlery company from Thiers as it will be building upon their already existing infrastructures in order to continue evolving as a company.
This project started last summer and the construction site is advancing according to schedule which brings Stéphane Guillaumont, TB’s Industrial Director, much to rejoice about: “We should be able to set up the machines in February or March. The new facilities should be functional next July.”
A brand new building, measuring 4,600 m² (approx. 49,514 ft²) will soon be ready to stock TB Groupe’s cutlery articles. The company’s directors plan to create new offices spanning 1,200 m² (approx. 12,916 ft²) right next to these storage facilities.
The company’s directors are attached to Thiers and its environs
Tarrerias-Bonjean shows proof of its attachment to the Thiers region by adding this new storage center to the buildings it already owns in the Racine industrial zone.
Éric Tarrerias, President of TB Groupe, had to make a vital decision about the location of these new facilities: “The decision to establish ourselves in this region was not a purely economical one. If we followed a purely economical mind set we would be asking ourselves if we should stay in France or not… TB Groupe’s cultural attachment to Thiers and the area surrounding it were a huge deciding factor for staying close to Thiers.”
TB Groupe’s directors had also discussed the possibility of moving their production facilities to Clermont-Ferrand (the capitol of the Auvergne region). However this idea was quickly abandoned, TB’s General Director Carole Tarrerias confirmed: “Moving to Clermont would have been a true uprooting.”
The cutlery company TB Groupe has been operating out of Thiers for the past five generations and its corporate image grew up alongside the city. This company’s historical attachment to the local heritage weighed heavily in the decision about the new site’s location.
A new storage center for TB Groupe’s cutlery articles
Increased storage capacity
The new storage facility will not only provide supplementary storage space it will also allow TB Groupe to boost their competitiveness within the cutlery sector.
The tasks that need to be performed in postproduction will be carried out more efficiently due to the cutting-edge equipment that will be available to fulfil orders and the robotization of certain operations.
The new site will also be located near one of TB Groupe’s subsidiaries, the Générale de Découpage. Being located close to the GDD was another deciding factor which was weighed into the director’s decision to locate the new cutlery facilities in the Thiers region. The GDD is also well rooted in the economic framework of Thiers and the surrounding region.
The company endows itself with a system that matches their ambition
The company TB Groupe was established in Thiers in 1962 and ever since it has worked non-stop to equip itself with innovative tools, allowing the company to evolve.
Today, Tarrerias-Bonjean employs 110 employees throughout three sites. This knife manufacturer from Thiers has integrated a Design & Creation department into its organizational structure which makes creating TB knives and silverware possible.
The leader of cutlery which is “Made in France” is also an industrial subcontractor for 280 cutlery clients.