FV 089 : (Part 1) The success story of entrepreneur Joseph Puzo
Buy Full Notes What do airbags, artificial hearts and the Discovery robot have in common? Joseph Puzo is the CEO (in French, "PDG") of AXON' Câble, a very high technology entreprise producing cables. These are not just any cables: Axon' is the provider for the French Ariane space rockets, Airbus aircrafts, the camera on the Discovery robot sending pictures of planet Mars to the world, and many other fascinating projects! This world class industry is actually established in my small hometown, Montmirail, bordering fields in the Champagne region. An episode about electric cables? Fear not, this interview is far from being boring!! Listen to find out about more projects that require high precision cables, sometimes thinner than a hair. You'll be impressed at what humankind is now able to do to push the boundaries of space exploration and medical science. For instance, France has developed the "cœur Carmat", the first artificial heart that replaces the actual heart and Axon was involved in this project. If you’ve always thought that "a cable is a cable" (or if you hadn’t given it any thought before!), Joseph Puzo will share with you its industrial secret: the very recipe to make unique, high technology cables. How specific do they need to be compared to standard cables? What do they need to resist to? And how to test them in environment where Man has never been? Joseph Puzo definitely has a real talent at explaining technical, complex information in a very clear, simple manner. Follow his fascinating stories and journey in the first of this 2-parts episode! Vocab List brevet (nm) = patent câble (nm) = cable concurrence (nf) = competition concurrent, e (n, adj) = competitor cordon (nm) = cord, string cuivre (nm) = copper divulguer = divulge, disclose, reveal fiable (adj = reliable filiale (nf) = subsidiary, affiliate, branch fusée (nf) = space rocket gaine (nf) = sheath, sheathing implanté,e = set up, established isolant (nm) = insulating/lagging material moteur (nm) = engine parabole (nf) = satellite dish PDG (Président Directeur Général) = CEO, chief executive, managing director plaqué argent = silver-plated prise électrique (nf) = electric socket réseau (nm) = network, reception salarié, e (n) = employee, staff member sidérurgie (nf) = steel industry sonde (nf) = probe, space probe tenir à l'écart = remove from somewhere, put in isolation volant (nm) = steering wheel voyage d'affaires (nm) = business trip Questions: Describe what the "One Web" project consists of. What is Téflon? What are its 3 great properties? Which precise childhood memory do I have from my visit to Axon’ open house? Answers: A French-American society is preparing the launch of 2.600 satellites that will allow anyone, anywhere in the world to get 4G reception, simply using a satellite dish. Axon’ is wiring these satellites. It’s a type of plastic containing fluorine. It can resist to very high temperatures, it’s an insulating material and it is biocompatible. There was a cable which was flame resistant. This cable is the Vibraflame and actually also resists to vibrations. It is used in aircrafts and in the steel industry. Links & Resources axon-cable.com "Réinventer l'industrie, les aventures de Joseph Puzo" (Elisabeth Bourguinat, 2015) http://www.josephpuzo.fr/biographie/ https://www.gpomag.fr/web/interviews/joseph-puzo-pdg-de-axon-cable https://www.academie-technologies.fr/members/210-joseph-puzo http://www.tracesecritesnews.fr/actualite/axon-cable-la-tete-dans-les-etoiles-68862