Jacques Roulland
Born 1936, war orphan in 1940, mother newly married in 1944. Only child, he is catapulted overnight among a brotherhood of 4 boys and 4 girls. Change is harsh but fruitful. He discovers what common life means!
After high-school, two years at Rouen University in view to become English teacher and at the same time working as a waiter at the NCO Club of the nearby US Airforce base. Two distinct approach of her Majesty’s language.
1958-1961, compulsory military service during 28 months. As a ward of the state member, he gets a desk-job at the Military Staff next to the Ministry of Defense. There, he observes the birth of the French Nuke Force: A bomb, air crafts and missiles in charge of delivery. Connections between Ministry-Parliament and President help him understand how the, then young, Vth Republic is operating.
Married 1961 he is a young father short after; he works for two years in a metalworking SMB specialized in what is then known as “Goods from Paris”. A light promising future makes him search something else and soon he settles in Angoulême, in the sales department of another SMB producing textile technical goods for the paper, fibre-cement and other industries.
In 1966, the company merges with 3 similar ones. The merger creates the biggest European company in the activity and boosts his career – CEO of the company where he was working, soon becomes Managing Director, then CEO of the new entity-. He gradually gets in charge of sales management, including exports over some eighty countries. Besides recording orders and invoices, the job involves to deal with Banks, Customs, Foreign Representatives, COFACE (French Insurance Company in charge of helping exporters) and forwarders of all type. At the same time, he personally gets involved in sales of the company’s production for the fiber-cement industry in France, Germany and Spain. Years along, he develops the market in Europe and finely in Latin America, Middle-East and a few Asian countries. He thus acquires a true knowledge of the fiber-cement product, from manufacturing process to usage.
He retires in 2003.He is interested in History, mainly in Industrial Histories in which he has been involved. In 2015, he publishes “COFPA, 4 companies and a wedding”- Editions Mer du Sud- which tells the turbulent history of the company earlier born from the merger of four of them, which created a branch in the US in 1967, which was purchased by its daughter in 1981, which was sold by the same one 10 years later to an Italo-German Group, the latter being in turn purchased by another US Group, which finely closes the whole lot at the beginning of the 21st century.
Boosted by the local sales of this first book, I get in mind to renew with a second one. It will be dedicated to another story, that of the fiber-cement industry which, at least in France, suffers from quite a sad notoriety. I will develop it at a worldwide level and you can soon discover the English version under the title of:
#fiber(S)cement.com
120 years of the history of an Industry
Seen heard and read by Jacques Roulland
Publisher yet unknown.
