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Introduction

Industry is the production of a good or service within an economy. Manufacturing industry became a key sector of production and labor in European and North American countries during the Industrial Revolution, upsetting previous mercantile and feudal economies. This occurred through many successive rapid advances in technology, such as the production of steel and coal.

Following the Industrial Revolution, perhaps a third of the world's economic output is derived from manufacturing industries.

Industries can be classified in a variety of ways. At the top level, industry is often classified into sectors:

Primary Industry: The agricultural, farming and fisheries businesses come under this head.

Secondary Industry: The industries that utilize machines, factories or human labor to convert raw materials into a processed final product. The manufacturing industries, or heavy industry, are typical examples of Secondary Industry types.

Tertiary Industry: Services-based industries are known as tertiary industries. Retail, food & beverage and professional services are examples of Tertiary Industry.

The industrial revolution led to the development of factories for large-scale production, with consequent changes in society. Originally the factories were steam-powered, but later transitioned to electricity once an electrical grid was developed. The mechanized assembly line was introduced to assemble parts in a repeatable fashion, with individual workers performing specific steps during the process. This led to significant increases in efficiency, lowering the cost of the end process. Later automation was increasingly used to replace human operators. This process has accelerated with the development of the computer and the robot. Historically certain manufacturing industries have gone into a decline due to various economic factors, including the development of replacement technology or the loss of competitive advantage. An example of the former is the decline in carriage manufacturing when the automobile was mass-produced.

A recent trend has been the migration of prosperous, industrialized nations toward a post-industrial society. This is manifested by an increase in the service sector at the expense of manufacturing, and the development of an information-based economy, the so-called informational revolution. In a post-industrial society, manufacturing is relocated to economically more favorable locations through a process of offshoring.

The difficulty for people looking to measure manufacturing industries outputs and economic effect is finding a measurement which is stable historically. Traditionally, success has been measured in the number of jobs created. The lowering of employee numbers in the manufacturing sector has been assumed to be caused by a decline in the competitiveness of the sector although much has been caused by the introduction of the lean manufacturing process.

Eventually, this will lead to competing product lines being managed by one or two people.

Related to this change is the upgrading of the quality of the product being manufactured. While it is easy to produce a low tech, low skill product, the ability to manufacture high quality products is limited to companies with a highly skilled staff.

From the above mentioned we can conclude that the nowadays world is developing very rapidly because of variety of interconnected factors. Relevant example would be that the emergence of new technologies and innovations lead to the economic growth of some countries and, in particular, in economic sectors, and of cause to changes of social preferences and needs. So all this leads to the fact that the majority of sectors are constantly changing their positions in the world economy. Each sector is necessary for the well-being of the entire population of the planet and has its own influence on them.

So during this work we will investigate all sectors of the world economy, classify them by certain categories, analyse some trends which occur nowadays and finally we will define the most important sectors for our modern world and review the largest companies that operate in them.



1. Energy sector

industry economic production

People's well-being, industrial competitiveness and the overall functioning of society are dependent on safe, secure, sustainable and affordable energy. Production and consumption of energy resources is very important to the global economy. All economic activity requires energy resources, whether to manufacture goods, provide transportation, run computers and other machines.

Producing energy to sustain human needs is an essential social activity, and a great deal of effort goes into the activity. While most of such effort is limited towards increasing the production of electricity and oil, newer ways of producing usable energy resources from the available energy resources are being explored. One such effort is to explore means of producing hydrogen fuel from water. Though hydrogen use is environmentally friendly, its production requires energy and existing technologies to make it, are not very efficient.

Other forms of conventional energy resources are also being used in new ways. Coal gasification and liquefaction are recent technologies that are becoming attractive after the realization that oil reserves, at present consumption rates, may be rather short lived.

Performance in the sector is largely driven by the supply and demand for worldwide energy. Energy producers will do very well during times of high oil and gas prices, but will earn less when the value of energy drops. Furthermore, this sector is sensitive to political events, which historically have driven changes in the price of oil.

The Energy sector consists of companies involved in the exploration, production, or management of energy resources such as oil, gas, and coal, as well as companies that service these industries.

Now let's consider the biggest of companies European Union which are involved in energy sector.



1.1 Royal Dutch Shell

Royal Dutch Shell plc, commonly known as Shell, is an Anglo-Dutch multinational oil and gas company headquartered in the Netherlands and incorporated in the United Kingdom. Created by the merger of Royal Dutch Petroleum and UK-based Shell Transport & Trading, it is the fourth largest company in the world as of 2014, in terms of revenue, and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors".

Shell is vertically integrated and is active in every area of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production,refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading. It has minor renewable energy activities in the form of biofuels and wind.] It has operations in over 90 countries, produces around 3.1 million barrels of oil equivalentper day and has 44,000 service stations worldwide.Shell Oil Company, its subsidiary in the United States, is one of its largest businesses.

What they do to be successful:

The objectives of the Shell group are to engage efficiently, responsibly and profitably in oil, oil products, gas, chemicals and other selected businesses and to participate in the search for and development of other sources of energy to meet evolving customer needs and the world's growing demand for energy.

Shell is one of the first global companies to state and they share their beliefs when published General Business Principles in 1976. As part of these principles, they commit to contribute to sustainable development, balancing short and long-term interests and integrating economic, environmental and social considerations into their decision-making. All Shell companies are expected to comply with the Shell General Business Principles..

Shell`s strategy seeks to reinforce their position as a leader in the oil and gas industry while helping to meet global energy demand in a responsible way. Safety, environmental and social responsibility are at the heart of our activities.

Shell focuses on a series of strategic themes, each requiring distinctive technologies and risk management:

- Downstream engine

- Upstream engine

- Integrated gas

- Deep water

- Resources plays

- Future opportunities

Meeting the growing demand for energy worldwide in ways that minimise environmental and social impact is a major challenge for the global energy industry.

Shell aim to improve energy efficiency in their own operations: they support customers in managing their energy demands and continue to research and develop technologies that increase efficiency and reduce emissions in the production of liquid products and natural gas.

Methods of foresight and technology forecast

Sell`s commitment to technology and innovation continues to be at the core of their strategy. As energy projects become more complex and more technically demanding, they believe that their engineering expertise will be a deciding factor in the growth of their businesses.

Their key strengths include the development and application of technology, the financial and project-management skills that allow them to deliver large field development projects, and the management of integrated value chains.

They aim to leverage their diverse and global business portfolio and customer-focused businesses built around the strength of the Shell brand.

Shell has been developing scenarios to explore the future since the early 1970s. Scenarios are stories that consider “what if?” questions. Whereas forecasts focus on probabilities, scenarios consider a range of plausible futures and how these could emerge from the realities of today. They recognise that people hold beliefs and make choices that lead to outcomes. Shell`s scenarios team considers changes such as in the global economic environment, geopolitics, resource stresses such as water, greenhouse gases, and energy supply and demand to help business leaders make better decisions.

In an industry often defined by uncertainty and volatility, Shell is stronger thanks to the forward planning capacity that scenarios bring.

1.2 Total S.A.

Total S.A. is a French multinational integrated oil and gas company and one of the six biggest oil companies in the world. Its businesses cover the entire oil and gas chain, from crude oil and natural gas exploration and production to power generation, transportation, refining, petroleum product marketing, and international crude oil and product trading. What they do to be successful:

Leveraging their integrated business model, they operate across the oil and gas value chain, from exploration to marketing. They are a top-tier chemical producer and are poised to become a leader in new energies. They are organized into three interrelated business segments:

1)The Upstream encompasses oil exploration and production and activities involving natural gas.

2)Marketing & Services covers the supply and marketing of petroleum products, as well as activities related to new energies.



1.3 Refining & Chemicals includes refining, petrochemicals, specialty chemicals, and crude oil and petroleum product trading and shipping

A Profitable, Sustainable Model to Serve Customers Worldwide

We are expanding our business activities with a goal of delivering sustainable performance, while emphasizing investment and our social license to operate. We are pursuing several strategies:

· Growing our exploration and production operations, while strengthening our position as a global leader in gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG).

· Developing top-tier, competitive refining and petrochemical platforms.

· Making strides while keeping pace with market trends and changes, by adapting our refining base to meet demand, solidifying our European positions and pursuing selective growth opportunities in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

· Securing the energy future by stepping up our push for innovation in the fields of solarand biomass, through continued research & development efforts.

· Developing innovative solutions to improve energy efficiency, a key driver to manage higher demand and its environmental impact.

· Helping drive local development in our host countries.

Taking Environmental Factors into Account at Every Stage of the Project Life Cycle

In compliance with our Safety Health Environment Quality Charter, whenever we build new facilities or undertake major extensions to existing sites, we only launch the project once an environmental risk assessment has been carried out.

Prior to each project, an environmental audit is conducted with the help of internationally renowned experts and specialized local consultants, focusing on:

· water;

· air and soil quality, biodiversity;

· cultural heritage…

The audit then serves as a baseline throughout the site's operating life. Next, an environmental impact assessment sets out the measures to be taken during each project phase to limit the environmental impact. These assessments guide the technical decisions made throughout the project's life cycle, including with regard to decommissioning and reclamation. Monitoring programs and regular environmental audits are carried out over the entire project life, all the way through to the relinquishment of the site, and improvement programs are deployed where necessary.

MEREDIT, a New Tool to Strengthen Our Environmental Risk Management Practices

Depending on the specific topographical, geological, industrial, meteorological, ecological and other circumstances, a loss of containment (or leak) can have a variety of consequences. Modeling possible scenarios is therefore extremely complex.

Operational since 2010, MEREDIT is a new method, created by and for Total, for identifying and assessing the impacts of accidental and chronic pollution scenarios at our sites. Using the term "environmental" in its broadest sense, this includes the consequences for local residents, ecosystems and economic activities.

MEREDIT enhances the approach based on the expertise of environmental auditors by systematically integrating all of the possible scenarios.

Based on the results of around 50 tests conducted over five years at various sites with very different characteristics, MEREDIT benefits from extensive feedback from real-world incidents and accidents.

Methods of foresight and technology forecast

To satisfy growing energy demand, we need to address several challenges -- the increasing complexity of oil and gas production, the need to protect people and the environment, and the search for greater energy efficiency. Innovation is the only way to meet all of these challenges at the same time. That's why it is a priority at Total.

To match their solutions and services to energy and environmental challenges, we deploy an ambitious innovation strategy. Grounded in solid partnerships, this strategy allows themto develop forward-looking technologies and applications.

1.4 Investing in R&D

Research and development (R&D) is an integral part of their strategy and is supported by robust partnerships. In 2013, we spent close to €1 billion on R&D, which enabled us to:

· Ramp up their R&D efforts in both oil and gas exploration and production and new energies.

· Forge long-term partnerships with renowned universities, laboratories and research institutes.

· Maintain a global network of science experts and advisors.

· Create a dedicated organization to develop start-ups that specialize in innovative or clean energy technologies.

Every Total business implements an active industrial property policy to protect its innovations. In all, we filed more than 250 patents in 2013.

Total`s Constant Commitment to Innovation

At Total main innovation focuses are:

· Optimizing oil and gas exploration and production.

· Developing and commercially scaling up solar and biomass technologies.

· Improving the safety, reliability and energy efficiency of our production facilities and petrochemical operations.

· Rolling out new products that are functional, innovative and cost-competitive.

· Managing and reducing the environmental impact of our activities.

3) E.ON is an international privately-owned energy supplier.It was formed in June 2000 from the merger of two of Germany's largest industrial groups VEBA and VIAG each with an impressive history in its own right.

Both companies were founded in the 1920s to serve as holding companies for state-owned industrial enterprises. Privatised in the 1960s and 1980s, the two corporations were successful and were listed on the DAX (Germany's stock index of its top 30 blue chips). With our clear focus on the energy business , E.ON is now one of the world's largest privately-owned energy groups. Through implementing its new strategy, E.ON will in future be focussing entirely on renewables, energy networks and customer solutions and, consequently, the building blocks of the new energy world.

E.ON is a major investor-owned energy supplier. At facilities across Europe, Russia, and North America, our more than 58,000 employees generated just around EUR112 billion in sales in 2014. We have an ambitious objective: to make energy cleaner and better wherever we operate.

E.ON Group highlights
EUR in millions	2014	2013	+/- %
Electricity sales (billion kWh)	735.9	696.9	+6
Gas sales (billion kWh)	1,161.0	1,219.3	-5
Sales	111,556	119,688	-7
EBITDA 2)	8,337	9,191	-9
EBIT 2)	4,664	5,624	-17
Underlying net income 2)	1,612	2,126	-24
Investments	4,633	7,992	-42
Employees (at year-end)	58,503	61,327	-5

E.ON Global Commodities is the energy trading business of one of Europe's largest investor-owned power and gas companies. As the commercial interface between E.ON and the world's dynamic wholesale energy markets, our trading desks buy and sell electricity, emissions certificates, natural gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG), coal and freight. Furthermore E.ON Global Commodities provides tailored solutions to manage earnings risks caused by variable weather.

What they do to be successful:

E.ON`s primary objective is to maximise the value of E.ON's power and gas portfolio by operating as the company's centre of expertise for asset optimisation, commodity price risk management, and wholesale market access. They also own and manage a gas infrastructure business, which has stakes in more than 2,000 kilometres of gas pipelines, and one of Europe's leading gas storage businesses.

The 12 members of the E.ON Supervisory Board bring together expertise and experience from many sectors of the economy: seasoned executives, union officials, works council representatives, and employees. The Supervisory Board consists of six shareholder and six employee representatives. It monitors and advises the E.ON Board of Management and is directly involved in all important decisions about E.ON's future.

Structure

E.ON is a global provider of specialized energy solutions. Their setup ensures that roles and responsibilities are clearly defined across our organization so that we can achieve our objectives in the most efficient way possible.

E.ON SE in Dьsseldorf serves as Group Management. It oversees and coordinates the operations of the entire Group. These operations are segmented into global units (by function) and regional units (by country). We have five global units: Exploration & Production, Generation, New Build & Technology , Global Commodities and Renewables. Eleven regional units in Europe manage our sales operations, regional energy networks, and distributed-generation businesses in their respective countries. Russia is a special focus country. Support like IT, procurement, insurance, consulting and business processes will be organized functionally.

Global Units

Four of their global units are reportable segments: Generation, Renewables, Global Commodities, and Exploration & Production.

Another global unit called Technology brings together comprehensive project-development, project-delivery, and engineering expertise to support the construction of new assets and the operation of existing assets across the Group. This unit also coordinates our Group-wide research and development projects for the E.ON Innovation Centers. Regional Units

Currently, ten regional units manage their national sales operations, regional energy networks, and distributed-generation businesses in Europe. They are also close partners of the global units operating in their respective region, for which they provide a broad range of important functions, such as HR management and accounting. In addition, they share with all units their deep expertise about their market and its policy and regulatory environment. Against the background of E.ON's new strategy, also the set-up of our regional units will change as we have decided to focus on renewables, distribution networks, and customer solutions and to spin off the majority of a new, publicly listed company specializing in power generation, global energy trading, and exploration and production. Until this new set up is in place, E.ONs regional units remain unchanged



The development of technologies and regulatory boundary conditions as well as the changes in customer behaviour are main drivers for a sustainable transformation of the energy system. It is still unclear how the future energy system might look like, but E.ON assumes the following trends:

Changes in power generation

Increasing additions in renewable capacity, decrease in generation and increase in flexibility for conventional power plants.

"Decarbonization" of heating and transport

Operation of electrical components which are supplied by increasingly CO2 free generated electricity (e-vehicles, heat pumps)

Decoupling of generation and consumption

The consumption of electricity will be synchronized with generation to some extent via storage and demand side management.

Distributed energy

The share of distributed generation will grow, e.g. photovoltaics, microCHP (combined heat and power), which can even serve as reserve margin in times of low renewable electricity production.

Integrated infrastructure

An integrated infrastructure for information and communication will be the backbone of such a distributed energy system and links together the various components in residential areas, offices and industry.

1.5 E.ON `s Work Program 2012-2015

Since 2005 E.ON have produced binding, Group-wide Sustainability Work Programs every four years. These give a clear overview of our targets and the measures we intend to use to achieve them.

With their current Sustainability Work Program 2012-2015 they are building on the previous program, which has now been completed. The results of the dialogs with internal and external stakeholders have provided us with key ideas in this process. The establishment of their Sustainability Governance Council (SGC) in 2013 gave us cause to look into our Work Program once again. While we already achieved some objectives such as in the area of health and safety in the past two years, we no longer see others as being ambitious enough. This is why it is necessary for them to update these elements by making them more focused and set ourselves new goals.

Foresighted and Systematic Risk Management

Operating at a global level always entails risks. Besides market developments they are also affected by megatrends and global developments such as climate change, the shortage of resources, and urbanization. These strike at the heart of our business activities and entail risks, but at the same time they bring us new opportunities. E.ON is confronted with challenges when conducting analyses and making decisions. If we do not incorporate developments or if we evaluate them incorrectly, they may pose serious business risks.

Comprehensive Risk Management System

Their risk management system is embedded in our organizational and operational structure. As a result, it is an integral part of our business processes and corporate decisions. Ther risk management system encompasses all fully consolidated E.ON Group companies, and all companies accounted for at-equity whose book value exceeds EUR 50 million. It additionally includes our stakes in Brazil, Turkey, and upstream joint ventures in the areas of oil and gas exploration and production. Consequently, our risk management system also covers risks relating to dam breaks as well as accidents at nuclear plants and offshore platforms.

The key components of their risk management system include Group-wide policies and reporting systems, our standardized Group-wide strategy, planning, and controlling processes, internal auditing activities, specific Group-wide risk reporting based on the German Corporate Sector Control and Transparency Act (KonTraG), and our Risk Committee. This committee, to which two members of the Board of Management, three E.ON SE Department Heads and the Head of the Risk Committee of our trading subsidiary E.ON Global Commodities belong, ensures the strategy agreed by the Board of Management in relation to the risk policy covering commodity and credit risks is implemented and complied with.



2. Metal Processing/Manufacturing sector

Manufacturing industry refers to those industries which involve in the manufacturing and processing of items and indulge in either creation of new commodities or in value addition. The manufacturing industry accounts for a significant share of the industrial sector in developed countries. The final products can either serve as a finished good for sale to customers or as intermediate goods used in the production process.

Manufacturing industries are important for an economy as they employ a huge share of the labor force and produce materials required by sectors of strategic importance such as national infrastructure and defense.

Now we will consider the leading companies of the European Metal Processing/Manufacturing sector.

2.1 ArcelorMittal S.A.

ArcelorMittal S.A. is a multinational steel manufacturing corporation headquartered in Luxembourg. It was formed in 2006 from the takeover and merger of Arcelor by Mittal Steel. ArcelorMittal is the world's largest steel producer, with an annual crude steel production of 93.6 million tones as of 2012.[2] It is ranked 91st in the 2013 Fortune Global 500 ranking of the world's biggest corporations.

ArcelorMittal is the world's leading steel and mining company. Guided by a philosophy to produce safe, sustainable steel, it is the leading supplier of quality steel products in all major markets including automotive, construction, household appliances and packaging. ArcelorMittal is present in more than 60 countries and has an industrial footprint in over 20 countries.

What they do to be successful:

Since its inception, ArcelorMittal has rapidly grown through a successful consolidation strategy with a number of significant acquisitions.

ArcelorMittal is the successor to Mittal Steel, a business originally set up in 1976 by

Mr Lakshmi N Mittal, chief executive officer and chairman of the board of directors. ArcelorMittal was created through the merger of Arcelor and Mittal Steel in 2006.

Mittal Steel's rapid growth since 1989 has been the result of combining a successful consolidation strategy with a number of significant acquisitions.

Arcelor was created in February 2002 through the merger of Arbed (Luxembourg) founded in 1911, Aceralia (Spain) and Usinor (France). Arcelor also had major steel production facilities in Belgium, Germany, Italy, Brazil and Argentina.

At the time of the merger with Mittal Steel, Arcelor was the second largest steel producer in the world.

In 2007 the newly merged ArcelorMittal continued to pursue an expansive growth strategy, with 35 transactions announced worldwide.

At the beginning of 2008 ArcelorMittal continued to make investments, with significant transactions announced in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, France, Russia, South Africa, Sweden, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the US and Venezuela, the majority of which were completed. But in light of the deteriorating economic situation during 2008, ArcelorMittal suspended most investment activity by the end of the year.

Post-crisis, ArcelorMittal has cautiously restarted certain projects to capture growth in key emerging markets and mining.

Methods of foresight and technology forecast

Innovative thinking is encouraged across the company, thanks to the influence of ArcelorMittal's research and development team.

Research and development (R&D) helps us to realise ArcelorMittal's ambitions in technological innovation, to support its sustainability goals as well as ensuring future growth. Its influence permeates all parts of the business, with the result that innovative thinking is encouraged across the business - at all levels.

ArcelorMittal's mission is to:

* develop products that create value for customers and expand the use of ArcelorMittal's steels worldwide;

* improve ArcelorMittal's competitiveness by developing new industrial processes - and optimising existing ones - to reduce cost and improve quality;

* contribute to sustainable development by reducing the environmental impact of products and processes; and

* continuously upgrade ArcelorMittal's scientific knowledge and attract technical talent.

With 1,300 full-time researchers in 11 research centres across the globe, our R&D is highly business oriented, ensuring a shorter time to market and improved competitiveness in a variety of sectors.

2.2 ThyssenKrupp

2) ThyssenKrupp AG is a German multinational conglomerate corporation based in Duisburg and Essen, Germany. The corporation consists of 670 companies worldwide. While ThyssenKrupp is one of the world's largest steel producers, the company also provides components and systems for the automotive industry, elevators, escalators, material trading and industrial services.

What they do to be successful:

ThyssenKrupp is a diversified industrial group with traditional strengths in materials and a growing share of capital goods and services businesses. Around 155,000 employees in nearly 80 countries work with passion and technological expertise to develop high-quality products and intelligent industrial processes and services for sustainable progress. Their skills and commitment are the basis of our success. In fiscal year 2013/2014 ThyssenKrupp generated sales of around €41 billion.

For ThyssenKrupp, sustainability means strengthening our ability to manage future challenges and to seize the opportunities. It is therefore a key driver for innovation which leads to continuous improvement of the economic, environmental and social performance of the company. Since 200 years, sustainable and responsible business practice is an inherent part of ThyssenKrupp's corporate culture.

Methods of foresight and technology forecast

With their engineering expertise in the areas Mechanical, Plant and Materials they enable customers to gain an edge in the global market and manufacture innovative products in a cost- and resource-friendly way. For us, technical progress and innovations, allied with the combined strength of the Group, are key factors enabling us to follow the development trends on the global sales markets, grow on the markets of the future, and generate strong and stable earnings, cash flows and value growth.

Having committed to its strategic way forward, ThyssenKrupp is increasingly focused on addressing key growth markets and global challenges of the future. Together with our customers and suppliers, we develop solutions for innovative, sustainable and environmentally friendly products and processes. Cooperating closely and in the spirit of partnership with strategically selected suppliers, we strive to secure crucial competitive advantages for our international business operations. While pursuing our procurement activities worldwide, compliance and sustainability in supplier management are of utmost importance to ThyssenKrupp, with a “zero tolerance“ policy firmly in place.

2.3 ThyssenKrupp House of Innovation

The framework and structure for innovations and technology in the Group is the ThyssenKrupp House of Innovation, whose five virtual building blocks stand for key areas of our development work:



Five buildings blocks to strengthen innovation and technology

· The first building block is aimed at defining and continually refining their technology strategy. For this they have identified key technology trends that guide their main development efforts and in turn are based on key global trends - from materials and energy to the environment, resources and mobility.

· The second building block involves consolidating their expertise, connecting our experts and focusing their expertise. For this, the exchanges between their subsidiaries need to be further intensified. They have therefore launched the "Innovation and Technology Competency Network," in which managers and experts from the areas of research and development, innovation, and technology discuss cross-cutting topics.

· The third building block stands for what is commonly known as "Open Innovation": Growing their partnerships with universities, research institutes, and other companies.

· The fourth building block is about identifying better innovation management structures, processes and methods; here we support the Group- wide use of best practices.

· The fifth building block of the House of Innovation is about innovation culture and involves top management supporting innovations and providing creative space for their engineers and developers.

2.4 Acerinox

Acerinox, S.A. is a stainless steel manufacturing conglomerate group based in Spain. ACERINOX is known worldwide as the one of the most competitive group in the world in stainless steel manufacturing. What they do to be successful:

From its constitution, it has carried out a continuous program of investments, with development of own technological innovations that, in some cases, has constituted a true landmark in the technology of stainless steel. Thanks to the extensive commercial network, with companies in 36 countries, ACERINOX achieves a worldwide active presence, selling in more than 80 countries.

Well aware of the role that the academic and research worlds have to play, Acerinox and its subsidiaries have established various agreements with universities near its factories and professional colleges for the dual purpose of entrusting these important centers of learning with support tasks in pure and applied research projects, as well as encouraging the desire of university students to complete their training and, with a little luck, fostering their passion for stainless steel.

Agreements have been signed or renewed with the Universities of Cбdiz (the Acerinox University Chair), Mбlaga and Seville, and further afield with the University of Pretoria and the Louisville School of Engineering (USA). 70 During 2012, the collaboration with the various universities has not only enabled great individual academic achievements, but also has fostered the cooperation and synergy between the Company and the University, channelling and acting as a catalyst for the development of a diverse range of Engineering degree end-of-course projects, from which both parties benefit mutually.

Research, development and innovation

The current period of excess demand and lack of liquidity cannot and must not be used as an excuse to stop thinking progressively about stainless steel. Acerinox is committed to new and innovative projects in order to fulfill the expectations of a market that displays ever-increasing demand for this great material. Part of the Company's competitive strategic is specifically taking care of the good reputation that it has achieved through many years of effort and improvement, maintaining the level of technology required to respond to the new demands faced by the stainless steel sector. This has been a permanent commitment of Acerinox for over four decades and one that the Company shall continue to uphold in the future.

In the Group's various factories, specific and multidisciplinary working teams have been set up with the participation of the different production departments and the significant involvement of the Commercial Department. These teams continually strive to improve the qualities, properties and appearance of the product. The R&D Departments are formed of professionals with previous experience in the production departments. In the case of the Campo de Gibraltar factory, a total of 14 professionals completely devote their efforts to the tasks of the projects underway and the projects that are being run in the Group's other factories.

The main lines of work which form the activity of the Department of Research, Development and Innovation are set within the framework of the following topics:

- Optimization of manufacturing processes and final properties of steels.

- Research into new manufacturing technologies.

- Technical support and consultancy for clients.

- Research into new applications for stainless steel.

- Development and dissemination of the features and main applications of our wide product range, in collaboration with CEDINOX.

- Monitoring and participation in the project to update European regulations on stainless steels.

- Technological surveillance.

In addition, in cooperation with other national and European companies and technological centres, Acerinox Europa participates in research projects of great interest for our sector. These projects are set within the framework of the European RFCS Programme and the Spanish INNPRONTA Programme, which focus on strategic actions designed in collaboration with the authorities.



3. Agro-food sector

Agro-food industries include the large scale production, processing, and packaging of food using modern equipment and methods.

The industrialization of the transformation of basic agricultural foods was realized by means of new techniques (preservation, concentration (condensing) and extraction, substitution, etc.) and of a double shift from agricultural and domestic activities into agro-food industries. In 1804, Nicolas Appert (1749-1841) invented a new way of preserving food by sterilization; the first preserve factory was built in France in 1860. Pasteur gave a scientific basis to sterilization, and a new process called « pasteurization » was applied to various fields. At the end of the 19th century, Nestlй invented condensed milk, and Liebig developed beef extracts and dry concentrated soups ; in 1869, Mege-Mouriиs mastered the process of producing margarine.

Little by little, agro-industrial products replaced agricultural products (e.g., industrial butter replaced dairy butter), and, more recently, ready-made food-products helped reduce domestic activities (fast-foods, pre-cooked and ready-made meals). Agro-food industries now is fully expanded.

3.1 Danone

1) Groupe Danone S.A. is a multinational food-products corporation based in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. It has four business lines: Fresh Dairy products, Waters, Early Life Nutrition and Medical Nutrition. In 2014, Fresh dairy products represent 52% of the group's total sales, Early Life Nutrition 21%, Waters 20% and Medical Nutrition 7%.

What they do to be successful:

Danone adopted an Environmental Charter in 1996 and defined a ten-year plan and objectives in 2000. The group boosted its efforts in 2008 by setting the goal of reducing the greenhouse gas emissions in its direct scope of responsibility by 30% in five years, a goal that was surpassed at the end of 2012.

Danone has today identified four key focus areas for their engagements looking ahead to 2020: climate, water, packaging and agriculture.

At Danone, governance is an integral part of our corporate structure and operations -- a long-term commitment rooted in shared responsibility. It organises the relationships between the various company bodies. Governance includes all of the procedures, rules and structures that are used to ensure the transparency of the company's operations and the balance of power between shareholders, Directors, executives, employees, suppliers and customers.

Governance is vital to sound management and its role is strategic, ensuring not only regulatory compliance but also the vitality of the business model, its vision and its ambitions. For Danone, governance is based on the implementation of an effective decision-making process, on steering involving all of the company's stakeholders and on a system of assessment.

It is structured around three basic principles:

1) Efficient corporate governance through an expert, independent and diverse Board of Directors;

2) Health and nutrition governance that reflects Danone's priorities and ambitions in these areas, andsocial governance that firmly places Danone's social and societal responsibility at the heart of its management and strategy.

3) The global economy is transitioning from a period of abundance to a period of resource scarcity, which will ultimately drive up costs.

These major environmental and food security challenges are core concerns for Danone. Preserving our resources and sustainably managing strategic raw materials (in particular water and milk) are the foundation of the company's sustainable model within its ecosystem.

Methods of foresight and technology forecast

Innovation means supporting Danone's Fresh Dairy Products division in its commitment to producing high quality products. Whether in terms of nutritional benefits, taste, flavour or convenience, Danone's Fresh Dairy Products wishes to be the item of choice for consumers. This means that innovation is possible in many areas, in order to offer a unique product experience. From the quality of the milk and other ingredients, the search for sustainable industrial techniques through to the aesthetics of the product itself, innovation has a role to play. For decades now, Danone has been convinced of the benefits of yogurt in particular and Fresh Dairy Products in general, and the company has continued to innovate so that these remain a healthy pleasure to be shared by all.

In each country, Danone uses the know-how of its teams to find innovations that correspond to the tastes, habits and nutritional needs of consumers.

To better identify these local specificities, Danone has developed a programme called NutriPlanet: a comprehensive analysis of data on attitudes to food and nutrition, including cultural and sociological issues. Thanks to this complete evaluation, Danone adapts and designs "the" product that best suits the local situation.

Activia succeeded in winning over consumers from Japan to Mexico and from Russia to the United States by tailoring its products to each nation: offering vegetable flavours in Japan, cactus in Mexico, kefir in Russia and “Greek-style” in the US.

Since 2010, the “Au lait de nos йleveurs” programme (the milk of our farmers) has allowed Danone to forge links with dairy farmers to ensure they receive a stable income, help them to become more competitive and to ensure consumers get the best quality milk.

« Progress » is building bridges between science and nutrition to contribute to people's health. As a consumers, we want to discover each day the source of benefits of food to bring new nutritional solutions.

To address these critical issues our R&D teams constantly deepen and renew their expertise by relying on the world's top experts and their knowledge of the impact a diet has on the human body at any age.

The mission of our Research teams is to translate this knowledge and these discoveries into daily improvements and developments in Danone products. This requires a multidisciplinary approach to more specifically understand the human body's physiological functions (digestion, cognition, renal function, immune system, cardiovascular system, etc.) and the influence diet has on these functions. R&D has developed scientific expertise in increasing knowledge about intestinal physiology and microbiota, as well as lactic acid bacteria, probiotics and prebiotics.

3.2 Nestlй

3) Nestlй S.A. is a Swiss multinational food and beverage company headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland. It is the largest food company in the world measured by revenues.

Nestlй was formed in 1905 by the merger of the Anglo-Swiss Milk Company, established in 1866 by brothers George Page and Charles Page, and Farine Lactйe Henri Nestlй, founded in 1866 by Henri Nestlй.

What they do to be successful:

The company grew significantly during the First World War and again following the Second World War, expanding its offerings beyond its early condensed milk and infant formula products. The company has made a number of corporate acquisitions, including Crosse & Blackwell in 1950,Findus in 1963, Libby's in 1971, Rowntree Mackintosh in 1988, and Gerber in 2007.

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