SOMFY_ANNUAL_FINANCIAL_REPORT_2017

04 MANAGEMENT BOARD REPORT

programme, will facilitate the interoperability of our ranges and improve the lifetime of the products via simplified updates. This methodology will also help to improve design times, facilitate functional validation and improve quality performance. It will also help to make ranges more secure in the face of the risk of cyberattacks. The first tangible result of this change in our practices is the availability of a connected two-way offer based on the Zigbee 3.0 open protocol enabling the needs of the Asia & Americas region to be served. Created in record time, this range was jointly developed by LianDa and BG Interior. It involved the introduction of a transversal taskforce between these two entities, as well as distribution. This latest version 3.0 of Zigbee offers an excellent level of security and reliability since it works on the principle of a network meshed between its various points. In addition, it is an open protocol which will allow the consumer to add other products within their home. In terms of organisation, the opening in 2017 of the R&D Centre based at SOPEM on the Niepolomice site should be highlighted. The R&D Centre has 17 employees responsible for developing the EVB (External Venetian Blinds) range. Its location, near Krakow, Poland, places the team right in the centre of the main markets for these products: Central and Eastern Europe, outside regions in which our competitors are located and at the heart of the production site responsible to industrialising this range. In the context of the Smart Home, development agility and the capacity to analyse the data collected are major challenges: the Connected Solutions Activity has structured itself to meet these challenges by creating joint project groups between teams, such as between Overkiz (the subsidiary that develops the Group’s Cloud solution) and the Smart Home team, in order to accelerate the market launch of new solutions and product developments. A team is dedicated to data analysis to anticipate new usage patterns and invent services tailored to them. In terms of new products, a certain number of significant launches took place in 2017. FOR THE CONNECTED SOLUTIONS ACTIVITY — Launched in May, Somfy One is a great example of successful collaboration between the Somfy teams and those of Myfox, the leader in connected security. Since their joining in October 2016, the Somfy Protect range, offering users a comprehensive and innovative alarm and video-surveillance ecosystem, has been created. Somfy One is an “all-in-one” security system which includes video-surveillance, intruder detection, siren, alarm control unit and voice control. It is a genuine innovation and received two awards at CES 2017. From May, the launch of SomfyOne+ ensures compatibility with TaHoma. The connected door lock has been completely reworked following feedback from customers. The overhaul includes the design, in order to fit into high end doors and improve the perceived quality of the product, a Somfy Keys application, which acts as a digital bunch of keys, and lastly a digital keypad door lock. Some of these new ranges were launched at Consumer trade shows, which differ greatly from B2B fairs where the Group is usually present. Following the acquisition of Myfox, Somfy took part in the CES (Consumer Electronic Show) for the first time, which was held in Las Vegas between 5 and 8 January 2017. The Somfy One product won two Innovation Awards, in the “Smart Home” and “Embedded Technologies” categories.

Somfy also took part in the IFA exhibition in Berlin between 1 and 6 September 2017. The leading European trade show for consumer electronics and home appliances, each year it welcomes more than 1,800 exhibitors who present their latest innovations. Somfy presented its connected range and unveiled its new connected thermostat there. FOR THE HOME & BUILDING ACTIVITY — In May, the first connected motorisation range for pergolas with adjustable slats was launched. Featuring io-homecontrol technology, this innovation is the result of the collaboration between Somfy and WAY. Aimed at both individual and professional customers (for example restaurant owners), this range means Somfy can offer a comprehensive ecosystem for terraces and, in particular, for the luxury solar protection market which is currently booming. Maestria 50 WT, a motorisation for vertical exterior screens arrives on the market with a major innovation: detection of obstacles when being lowered. An innovation long awaited by customers, which helps avoid product degradation following handling errors and ensures optimum user comfort. A second competitive advantage is its universal motorisation. Maestria 50 WT adapts to standard screens with track or cord runners, as well as to zip screens (using the principle of a zipper). Maestria 50 WT is the seventh product to be awarded the Somfy environmental label. As such, it is helping to achieve the ambition of having 60% of volumes sold in 2018 being labelled Act for Green®. It has a PEP ecopassport ® environmental declaration. FOR THE ACCESS ACTIVITY — The DEXXO PRO io Connexoon was launched in March. This motorisation will now enable our customers to sell connected, rather than just motorised, garage doors. The main benefit of connectivity is the “geolocation” function allowing users to manage all home access when they arrive in the vicinity of their home without doing anything. The Activity also launched a new motor for the DIY sector, the GDK 700 assembled in Gray. Gray's factory also launched a new industrial and commercial closure range for the Simu brand: the veoHz centris. Unique in the market, this new Simu central motor with integrated radio receiver is adjusted remotely, from a Simu veoHz radio transmitter. At BFT, a new actuator motor for swing gates “Giuno Ultra” was launched. It has been designed to fulfil two major expectations expressed by customers: having products that are more reliable and easier to install. In 2017, the Group successfully renewed its accreditation of the standard ISO 9001: 2015 for the quality management system. Somfy Activités SA, Somfy GmbH, Domis, SITEM, SOPEM and Simu SAS have worked together and will collectively implement the improvement observations and recommendations formally set out by AFNOR. The Department of Intellectual Property organised Invent’heure, an event that brought together 150 Somfy employees and inventors in Cluses in mid-September to celebrate invention within the Group, thank the inventors and reiterate the importance that invention and patents represent for the Group. Somfy is one of the leading French companies in terms of filing patents with the National Institute of Intellectual Property (INPI) and was ranked 39th in 2016. In 2017, the Group filed 43 new patent applications. The portfolio is made up of 2,066 patents.

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SOMFY – ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT 2017

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