Compagnie de chemins de fer départementaux (CFD) is a French company that has historically specialised in the construction of railway equipment. It used to build and operate rail networks. It is listed on the stock exchange (FR0000037871 - MLCFD). It has been ISO 90014 certified since 2000, and is a holding company that manages rail-related industrial activities and property assets. Its capital is mainly family-owned.
Compagnie de chemins de fer départementaux was founded on 4 August 1815 to build and operate railway lines. Most of these lines required the use of metric track for reasons of cost and because of the relief of certain networks.
The Company was formed by two Belgian banking companies, united with Crédit Foncier. Its initial capital was 30 million francs. It was within the framework of the law of 11 June 1880 (interest guarantee for VFIL and tramways)6 that the CFD companies and the Société générale des chemins de fer économiques were formed.
The first line built by the CFD company was the line from Port-Boulet to Château-Renault, in Indre-et-Loire. There were two mountain networks at the time: the Corsica network and the Vivarais and Lozère network. The CFD network comprised up to 3,000 km of lines. Most of them were closed in the 1950s for lack of profitability, as were many secondary French lines. The remaining lines were taken over by the SNCF or by local authorities.
In order to replace the steam locomotives, and in addition to the railcars (built by Billard), the CFD company began to develop the construction of diesel locomotives7, mainly for metre gauge. Diesel locomotives were built on steam engine chassis in the workshops on its various networks.
The Montmirail workshops in the Marne department specialised in this work. After the closure of most of the lines operated by the company, the construction of railway equipment became the main activity.
In 1992, CFD took over the former railway construction department of Soulé in Bagnères-de-Bigorre, which became CFD Bagnères, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the CFD group. This takeover enabled the company to benefit from the techniques used in the construction of railway carriages and railcars.
Under the name CFD Bagnères, the new company was chosen in 2006 to build the twelve new CFC AMG 800 railcars currently in service. Chemins de Fer de Provence also received 4 units of the same type with an upgrade of the Deutz V 8 engine, and Société des chemins de fer tunisiens 10 units. The construction of railway equipment is now CFD's main activity. But this will change from 2011.
In March 2008, 60% of the capital of CFD Bagnères was sold to the Spanish rail manufacturer CAF for the sum of 8 million euros 8. The partnership with a larger rail manufacturer is necessary because of the large order book in progress for CFD Bagnères, which requires significant guarantees to ensure activity. The remaining 40% is held by the CFD holding company, which is listed on the Paris stock exchange. At the end of March 2010, the holding company bought a 10% stake in the Richard Flamée Group.
In April 2011, the CFD holding changed the composition of its subsidiaries by buying all the companies in the Belgian Flamée Group.
2012: two new acquisitions
Backed by a large cash position generated mainly by the sale of CFD Bagnères, the company is looking for external growth. In January 2012, it acquired a 60% stake in Rouxel Informatique, a company specialising in vehicle and workshop management software for road transport companies. Its main customers are Veolia, Keolis and RATP9.
In February 2012, Segrif acquired Dr Brandt, a manufacturer of industrial blood pressure monitors for which Segrif was the importer in French-speaking countries. Dr Brandt is based in Bochum, Germany, and employs 25 people.
The CFD group continues its strategy of development and reinforcement in 3 sectors of activity:
- Rail
- Logistics and transport software
- Industrial technology
In 2013, the logistics and warehouse management software company Infflux was integrated into the group. In 2014, ASCO Instruments, a company specialising in gas analysis and sensors for the oil and nuclear sectors, joined the Group.
In 2015, Microtrans, a company specialising in transport software, was integrated into the CFD group. In 2016, the PETROUTILAJ plant was acquired by the 3DRD design office to form PETROUTILAJ-3DRD. This new CFD entity gives the group a design office and a manufacturing and repair site for railway rolling stock. In 2018, the company acquired the remaining 40% of Rouxel Informatique.
