Frédéric and Cédric Demarche are brothers. They manage DCoup Laser S.A., a company specializing in laser cutting of steel sheets and tubes, which is part of an industrial group based in the southern Belgian municipality of Florennes for more than 50 years. The fast-growing Walloon company invested in a versatile 3D plasma oxycutting system from MicroStep at the beginning of the year. The new acquisition offers a new range of possibilities.
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In 2007, Frédéric Demarche wanted to set up a business and bought a waterjet cutting system for this purpose. Thus began the activities of DCoup Laser S.A., which Demarche founded three years later with his younger brother Cédric. With mailings, which were still sent by fax at the time, they wooed potential customers in Belgium. After initially finding local customers, they soon expanded to the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg and France. Today, the brothers are active in various industries such as pharmaceuticals, agriculture, automotive and aerospace. “This diversity of industries allows us to constantly evolve,” emphasizes Frédéric Demarche, “and when one industry is in crisis, there is always another that does well and brings us orders,” adds Cédric Demarche.
10 million investment in 12,000 m² production area and modern machinery
In the beginning, the size of the workshop they took over from a company was 750 m². After a few years, the business became too small and the two brothers decided to expand the total area. “Although we are located in an agricultural area,” explains Frédéric, “we applied for and received an expansion permit.” 12,000 m² of production area was planned, and a total of 10 million euros was invested. Today, DCoup Laser has four laser cutting machines, four press brakes and a welding robot. There has also been ample investment beyond the production machinery: for example, two automated warehouses, one for steel sheets and one for pipes, in which 2,000 to 3,000 tons of steel can be permanently stored, are part of the factory.
Currently, the company processes between 130 and 150 tons of steel per week. 60 employees work in three shifts throughout the week – thanks to warehouse and production capacity, the company can respond very quickly to all requests and cutting, bending, machining and welding.
Although the company was well positioned in laser cutting, it lacked an in-house solution for higher material thicknesses. In order to further expand the company’s capabilities, the two brothers decided in 2022 to add plasma cutting and oxy-fuel cutting technologies to their manufacturing operations. The decision for the suitable manufacturer was made quickly. It should be the MG series from MicroStep. Equipped with a plasma rotator for chamfering, a drilling and tapping center, an oxyacetylene cutter and a marker for 3D machining of sheets and tubes on a surface of 12,000 x 3,000 mm. “We chose this machine because word of its qualities has spread,” says Frédéric Demarche, explaining the decision. The well-known good support provided by MicroStep partner Wouters Cutting & Welding was also a decisive factor for DCoup Laser. At the beginning of 2023, the machine was finally installed and, after one week of training, has since been operating successfully in continuous operation.
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