Safran Electrical & Power plans to install production lines for its EngineUs electric motors at sites in France and the UK. Starting in 2026, a high-volume production model inspired by the automotive sector will enable the manufacture of 1,000 motors a year to serve electric and hybrid aviation markets.
In 2025, Safran will open four lines to automate the production of the motors. Two will be located in Niort, western France, at the group's electrical systems center of excellence, and two in the UK, at Pitstone, Buckinghamshire, which serves as Safran's rotating machines center of excellence. The UK site will be home to automatic production lines for rotors and stators—rotating machines at the heart of the motors—while Niort will handle the automatic production of power electronics and final motor assembly, Safran said.
At Niort, France’s DGAC has agreed to provide a 50 percent investment, and machines specialist, Baron Groupe, will develop the automated lines and workstations. In Pitstone, Aerospace Technology Institute has taken a 50 percent stake and Adelphi Group will facilitate line set-up. Two British universities—the University of Warwick and Nottingham Trent University—will also provide expertise to implement co-engineering methods.
“We have chosen to create our future automated electric motor lines in Niort and Pitstone because these facilities are a perfect fit for our industrial plan,” said Bruno Bellanger, executive v-p and general manager of the power division of Safran Electrical & Power. “This is a significant step toward mass production of our EngineUs electric motors to the highest performance standard. We are on the home stretch in obtaining final certification from the air authorities. This state-of-the-art equipment is one of the essential building blocks in Safran’s decarbonization strategy.”
Safran said five aircraft manufacturers—VoltAero, Aura Aero, Bye Aerospace, Diamond Aircraft, and CAE—had selected EngineUs electric motors to equip their electric or hybrid aircraft.