JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #81 - May/June 2013 - 27

human resource

Sales manager:
keeping the customer in mind
Even if a company has the best products, it will fail if those in charge
of selling them fail in their customer relations. The world of composites is particular in the sense that there are few standard solutions.
This is even truer for chemical engineers specialised in our field. Let’s
look at the viewpoint of Gilles Le Moigne, global sales manager at
Michelman, to help us see more clearly about sales management in
composites.

interview

Gilles le MoiGne
Global sales ManaGer
MichelMan

JEC Composites Magazine: What
was your background when
you joined Michelman as sales
manager?

Gilles Le Moigne: I have
always been passionate about the
technologies and materials used
in sporting goods such as skis,
bicycle frames or Formula 1 cars.
This passion has never left me,
and guided my university and
career orientation.
After receiving an engineering
degree in composite materials,
I joined Porcher Industries as
a technical support manager.
Porcher manufactures composite
reinforcements and thermoplastic prepregs. In that position,

I had the opportunity to meet
customers and help them use
these products in the manufacturing of composite parts. I then
transferred to a sales position and
was responsible for Porcher’s key
accounts in Southern Europe.
In 2008, I was hired as European
sales manager at SGL Carbon for
the carbon fibre business, where
I was involved in the composites
value chain and gained experience working in an international
business environment.
I joined Michelman in 2012 as
the global sales manager for their
Fibres & Composites business
unit.

deliver the best solutions to our
customers. I also manage open
projects, which involves meeting
with the customer’s sourcing and
product development team. We
are a partner in the development
process and, together with my
team, I am involved in the daily
monitoring of technical projects.
After meeting with a customer
and developing a thorough
understanding of the application
and end-use of the produced
fibres, we recommend and test
sizing formulations. Working
closely with the customer, I follow the entire process until the
formulation is approved.

JCM: What is specific in the
sale of specialty products for
composites?

G.L.M. : The supply of specialty
chemicals for the composite
industry is fascinating because of
its complexity and the innovation spirit of the field. The fibre
sizing can be regarded as the
‘jacket’ that the fibre wears and
differentiates the fibres offered
by one producer from those offered by another.
All producers develop their own
sizing know-how and apply it to
the fibre to best suit the needs
of the targeted application. The

JCM: What is your daily work?

G.L.M.: The majority of my

time is spent communicating
with customers, my internal team
members, and the other Michelman departments in support of
our sales activities. I travel extensively, meet with customers and
prospects, attend trade shows
and visit Michelman plants
around the globe. I work closely
with all departments in our
organization to implement our
sales strategy and make sure we

Michelman fiber sizings can be used in thermoplastic automotive applications

No81 May - June 2013

/ jec composites magazine 27

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #81 - May/June 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #81 - May/June 2013