Lynred, a provider of high-quality infrared detectors for the global aerospace, defense, and commercial markets, has appointed of Hervé Bouaziz as executive president and Xavier Caillouet as CEO. Their decades of experience in aerospace and defense at Safran and Thales, respectively, shall usher a new business dynamic within the company. Their objective is to leverage together the company’s technological skills and the €85M ($93.7M) Campus industrial project to increase the offering in state-of-the-art infrared detectors, while strengthening its global market competitiveness.

As the European market leader in infrared detection, Lynred has pioneered many breakthrough developments. Currently, it is leading the EU HEROIC project, a consortium of ten European partners developing next-generation devices for defense and security. It is also designing infrared detectors for imaging satellite instruments for several European Earth observation missions, such as LSTM. Among other projects, the company is collaborating with partners to help car makers improve the reliability of collision prevention systems by detecting pedestrians or obstacles in adverse visibility conditions, particularly at night.

“I look forward to working alongside all the teams in accomplishing the company’s ambitions and furthering the growth of this French industry technological flagship,” said Hervé Bouaziz. “It is an honor to join Lynred and to be able to contribute to this great industrial adventure,” added Xavier Caillouet.

Hervé Bouaziz has thirty years’ aerospace, defense, and security experience. He joins Lynred from Europrop International, where he served as CEO for four years. Previously, he held several executive and strategic roles in electronics and defense, including his appointment in 2013 as EVP for strategy and M&A at Safran Electronics and Defense, and in 2016 as VP for military engines programs at Safran Aircraft Engines. Prior to that, Mr. Bouaziz had a twenty-year career at the French defense procurement agency DGA, where he first started as a test engineer in 1994.
 
Xavier Caillouet comes to Lynred following a thirty-year career in international roles within various Thales divisions. Recently, he was VP of radiology and CEO of Trixell, a position he held for five years. Between 2013 and 2018, he served as VP of operations in airlines support for Thales Avionics. He holds a degree in engineering (1983) from Sup’Aero, a leading French institution for aerospace.

Further reading: €19M project set to enable next-generation IR sensors – A four-year defense project, led by Lynred …, wileyindustrynews.com, 13 January 2023