Hervé Morin, President of the Normandy Region, visited Paquet Fontaine’s production site in L’Aigle on Wednesday 23 September 2026. He was joined by Thierry Liger, Member of Parliament for Orne and Regional Councillor, Véronique Louwagie, Mayor of L’Aigle and President of the Pays de L’Aigle intermunicipal authority, and Departmental Councillors Philippe Van-Hoorne and Didier Duvaldestin.
The company, a wholly owned subsidiary of GA Smart Building, has recently completed a programme of improvements at its Normandy factory. The Normandy Region contributed €333,900 through its “Impulsion Développement” scheme, supporting machinery purchases and temperature control systems for the building.
The factory has undergone a comprehensive modernisation programme
The modernisation of the 5,000 m² L’Aigle factory involved simultaneous improvements to the building and working environment:
- The building extension added 400 m² to the sheet metal fabrication and architectural metalwork department.
- New temperature control systems improved the building’s thermal performance, providing better temperature regulation throughout the factory. This is particularly important in the structural glazing bonding workshop, where the process requires a stable, controlled temperature. The installations also improve working conditions, especially during heatwaves.
- The offices and staff facilities were refurbished to improve employee comfort. On the building’s main elevation, Paquet Fontaine also installed a ventilated double-skin façade incorporating Cristal Confort, a product developed by its own teams.
These improvements form part of a €2.5 million investment plan spanning several years at the L’Aigle site. The plan covers the building and machinery, alongside the factory’s environmental performance. It strengthens a manufacturing facility that has operated in L’Aigle for more than sixty years and employs 40 of the company’s 60 staff.
In L’Aigle, Paquet Fontaine demonstrates that French industry can innovate and invest to prepare for the future. By supporting the modernisation of this factory, the Normandy Region is investing in jobs and competitiveness while strengthening industrial sovereignty. Behind this new equipment are dedicated people and outstanding expertise, supported by a clear ambition: to make Normandy a centre for manufacturing and innovation that serves sustainable construction.
We have done for our own factory what we do every day for our clients: make a building perform better and become a more comfortable place to work. I would like to thank the Normandy Region, whose support made this programme possible. It strengthens an industrial site that has been part of L’Aigle for more than sixty years and safeguards the jobs associated with it.
Industrialising construction strengthens national sovereignty
Paquet Fontaine is part of GA Smart Building’s off-site manufacturing platform, which serves all construction industry stakeholders and comprises nine factories in France. Two are located in Normandy: Paquet Fontaine’s L’Aigle factory and Prega’s Criquebeuf-sur-Seine factory.
Off-site manufacturing produces building components in factories rather than on construction sites, eliminating on-site logistical constraints. It delivers consistent industrial quality and can shorten construction schedules by up to 50%, while improving team comfort and safety.
At national level, the GA Group is an active member of Filière Hors-Site France, an association bringing together more than 150 industry organisations. Its mission is to develop skills across the sector and encourage changes to regulatory frameworks. Alongside this work, the collective movement “Demain tous hors-site”, launched by Filière Hors-Site France and the Convention des Entreprises pour le Climat, aims to make off-site construction an appealing new standard.
Off-site construction is essential to national sovereignty and global competitiveness, and it starts in our local communities. I firmly believe that investment in R&D and manufacturing facilities, as we are doing for Paquet Fontaine in L’Aigle and Prega in Criquebeuf-sur-Seine, is one of the keys to meeting this challenge. My thanks go to the Normandy Region, which shares our convictions, for its support. This investment also helps make the area more attractive.
Author
Amandine Guillaume
Director of Communications & Marketing
