SOGECLAIR'S SUBSIDIARY, OKTAL SAS, AND RENAULT FOUND AVS SAS, A SIMULATION JOINT VENTURE
TOULOUSE (July 4 2017, 6 pm) - Building on more than 15 years of collaborative development at Renault, the formation of AVS will further enhance product development using driving simulators. This new joint venture will acquire the automotive assets of Sogeclair's Oktal subsidiary, which will be transferred to the newly formed company. Simulation testing has become strategic for the automotive industry with the widespread use of assistive technologies and autonomous cars. The new developments in products and services aim to strengthen the position of SCANeR TM (developed by Renault and Oktal) simulation software as the world leader.
· Groupe Renault will acquire a 35 percent stake in a new joint venture, Autonomous Vehicle Simulation (AVS), formed together with Oktal, a subsidiary of Sogeclair, which will hold a 65% stake. · Groupe Renault's investment in Autonomous Vehicle Simulation (AVS) will reinforce the capability of the Renault-Nissan Alliance to further develop and test autonomous vehicles. · This includes the SCANeR TM software, a worldwide leader in driving simulation software already used across Renault and Nissan and various OEMs, Tier1 manufacturers and Research Centers. AVS will accelerate simulation softwares, driving simulators time to market forOEMs, Tier1 manufacturers and Research Centers.
Groupe Renault supports AVS development by delegation of Dr. Andras Kemeny, Automotive International simulation Expert, as Senior Scientific Director and by ordering a high performance simulator, news developments and software maintenance.
"Fleet testing and simulation go hand in hand with developing autonomous vehicles. In order to achieve the targeted level of reliability, test vehicles must accumulate a vast number of kilometers," said Karim Mikkiche, Alliance Global VP Customer performances & CAE/Test Engineering. "Normally, this would take many years of driving. Along with fleet tests and accelerated testing methods, simulation with virtual testing can be helpful to accelerate the process and accommodate it within a project timeline".
"Along with Renault's investment, we will significantly accelerate the development of SCANeR Studio's new features dedicated to the Autonomous/Connected vehicle", said Laurent Salanqueda, CEO of OKTAL.
OKTAL and SOGECLAIR have been supported by VULCAIN (M&A) and D'HOIR BEAUFRE ASSOCIES (Lawyers).
ABOUT GROUPE RENAULT
Renault has been making cars since 1898. Groupe Renault today is an international group that sold more than 3.2 million vehicles through 12,700 outlets in 127 countries in 2016. It employs more than 120,000 people and operates 36 manufacturing facilities worldwide. To address the major technological challenges of the future and pursue profitable growth, Renault has four primary focuses: international development; complementary coverage across its three brands (Renault, Dacia and Renault Samsung Motors); electric vehicles; and its unique alliance with Nissan. With its new Formula One team and front-line profile in Formula E, Renault practises motor sport as a powerful force behind innovation and brand recognition
ABOUT THE RENAULT-NISSAN ALLIANCE:
The Renault-Nissan Alliance is a strategic partnership between France-based Groupe Renault and Japan-based Nissan Motor and Mitsubishi Motors. The automakers combined sold 9.96 million vehicles in nearly 200 countries in 2016 - more than one in nine vehicles worldwide. The Alliance has strategic collaborations with other automakers, including Germany's Daimler and China's Dongfeng. It also owns a majority stake in the joint venture that controls Russia's top automaker, AVTOVAZ. The Alliance is the industry leader in zero-emission vehicles and is developing the latest advanced technologies, with plans to offer autonomous drive and connectivity features and services on a range of affordable vehicles.
ABOUT SOGECLAIR
Founded in 1986 and based in Toulouse, Sogeclair is a French leading high-tech engineering company specialized in the design and development of industrial products and simulation solutions for the aerospace sector, and for the civil and military transport industries. Services provided by the Group include:
- Aeronautical and space engineering through the production of aero structure subassemblies;
- Production and engineering of vehicles for a wide range of application e.g. military, industrial or light vehicle;
- Simulation of software workbenches and industrial product simulators for design and training purposes.
The Group operates through several subsidiaries including OKTAL S.A.S., a company specialized in Simulation that was acquired by Sogeclair in 2001. ABOUT OKTAL
OKTAL is a worldwide supplier of high class Automotive and Train driving simulators for Research, Engineering and Training operations. OKTAL is the editor of SCANeR(TM) software package, widely used in the Automotive sector to deal with ADAS, Autonomous Vehicle and HMI use cases.
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