THIOT INGENIERIE was created thirty years ago by Patrick Thiot, and has been located in the French village of Puybrun in the Dordogne Valley since 2008. Back in 1988, the company only consisted of 2 people, but we now have 30 employees who have come to join us from all over France and even from abroad! To keep pace with our growth, the time has now come to rethink the design of our premises to make more space and to better reflect the values that inspire us. These are the same values we wish to share with our customers: respect, trust, equanimity and technological innovation.
1988: A company is born
Patrick Thiot was working as an engineer at the DGA (French Defense Procurement Agency) Research Center in Gramat when he decided to start his own business in 1988. He soon specialized in his preferred field, the design and manufacture of laboratory launchers. These devices, intended for use in university laboratories and research centers, make it possible to perform high-speed impact tests on all types of materials in order to study their behavior. THIOT INGENIERIE quickly built an international reputation for its gas guns, which are now found in the most prestigious institutions. Thanks to its experience and unique expertise in this cutting-edge sector, the company gradually expanded its range of fast dynamics equipment to include Hopkinson bars, detonation chambers and acceleration generators.
The very first gas gun manufactured by our company
Patrick Thiot receiving a reward
008: A shock physics laboratory
“We gradually came to realize that many of our customers had neither the necessary facilities, nor the means of financing their own test equipment,” points out CEO Patrick Thiot. In 2008, in response to growing demand, the company decided to make its expertise available to customers by providing test services directly. The company created its own shock physics laboratory for this very purpose, which was to become the first private laboratory of its type in Europe.
Starting out with just two gas guns, the laboratory has been adding to its test equipment ever since. It now boasts more powerful gas guns—able to achieve speeds of up to 10 km/s—a dynamic press capable of delivering a 200-tonne load in 3 milliseconds and an acceleration generator (up to 100,000 g). These machines all offer impressive levels of performance, and we ensure that all of our tests are carried out to the very highest degree of accuracy.
The first equipment of our laboratory
The Thiot Ingenierie team at the inauguration of the shock physics laboratory.
2018: new facilities to celebrate the company’s 30th anniversary!
To support these developments, the company will be expanding its premises in 2018. This work will be carried out for several reasons. It will increase laboratory space so that new test equipment can be installed, allowing for more flexible schedules and giving our teams more room to maneuver. A brand new building will be built for the administrative departments. It will be able to accommodate 20 additional employees and will be the first noticeable development for the coming changes.
There will also be a conference room to hold international technology symposia on shock physics and laboratory launchers.
This building has been designed to reflect the technological and scientific excellence of the company and help our customers, partners and employees move forward with confidence.
Works completion: December 2018
