The company published 1,110 patents in 2017 compared to 994 in 2016.
30 Mar 2018 | 2967 Views | By Autocar Pro News Desk
For the second year running, Valeo has taken first place in France’s 2017 INPI industrial property institute rankings, with 1,110 patents published in 2017, versus 994 in 2016, consolidating its position as the most innovative company in France.
This top spot in the INPI rankings illustrates the importance of innovation in the Group’s strategy, particularly in its mission to reduce CO2 emissions and develop intuitive driving.
Jacques Aschenbroich, Valeo’s chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented: “This first-place ranking reflects our teams’ incredible ability to innovate and create new technologies that are essential to the development of the electric, autonomous and connected car.”
For the second consecutive year, Valeo was also named the top French patent filer with the European Patent Office (EPO), making it into their Top 20 for the first time with 770 patents published in 2017.
In 2017, Valeo’s Research and Development expenditure amounted to 1,895 million euros, or almost 12% of the Group’s original equipment sales. Valeo has 38 R&D centres worldwide and some 20,000 R&D engineers among its 111,000 employees.
Valeo’s innovation-based strategy is highly appreciated by its customers, with innovative products (those that did not exist three years ago) representing half of total order intake in 2017.