Producer
Lynred S.A.S.
Veurey-Voroize, Isère, France-based infrared detector manufacturer; formed July 2019 by merger of Sofradir and its ULIS subsidiary. Ownership: **50/50 joint venture between Thales and Safran** — two French defense conglomerates that together dominate French defense electronics. Sofradir was created in 1986 by Thales, Sagem (now Safran), and CEA-Leti; CEA-Leti transferred FPA production technology in 1994. ULIS was spun off in 2002 focused on uncooled VOx microbolometers. Combined entity (~1,050 employees) produces both cooled (InSb, MCT) and uncooled (VOx) IR focal plane arrays. US subsidiary: Lynred USA, Fairfield, New Jersey (formerly Sofradir EC). In April 2023, CEA-Leti transferred additional record-breaking IR sensing technology to Lynred. Invested EUR 85M in capacity expansion to double European VOx output (~2024). Explicitly markets its products as "ITAR-free" — European-component-based detectors can be exported without US ITAR licenses, making Lynred the primary alternative for European allies who want IR capability without US export control dependency.
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Lynred – Palaiseau (Île-de-France, France) →
FRÎle-de-France
Palaiseau, Essonne (Paris south suburb) — former Sofradir site; heritage of cooled IR detector (InSb, MCT) production. Lynred Palaiseau is the primary site for cooled FPAs (used in military surveillance, guided missiles) while Veurey-Voroize focuses on uncooled VOx. Thales and Safran (joint owners of Lynred 50/50) are both headquartered in the Paris region. Palaiseau is in the Plateau de Saclay technology cluster, home to CEA, Polytechnique, Supélec, and French defense R&D.
Lynred – Veurey-Voroize, Isère (France) →
FRAuvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Primary Lynred manufacturing site for uncooled VOx microbolometer FPAs; located in Veurey-Voroize, Isère, in the Grenoble tech valley. Former ULIS facility (spun off from CEA-Leti in 2002); merged into Lynred July 2019. EUR 85M capacity expansion completed ~2024 to double European VOx output. Deliberately positioned as "ITAR-free" alternative to US-controlled Teledyne FLIR detectors — enabling European defense procurement without US export control dependency. April 2023: CEA-Leti transferred additional record-breaking IR sensing technology to Lynred from this Grenoble-area R&D pipeline. Lynred Veurey-Voroize is the linchpin of European IR detector production independence.
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Uncooled IR Detectors (VOx Microbolometers)
50%Cooled IR Detectors (MCT & InSb)
35%Advanced Sensing & Custom Solutions
15%
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Did you know2024
Lynred (Veurey-Voroize, France) explicitly markets its IR detectors as "ITAR-free" — a deliberate strategic positioning in response to European allies' desire for infrared capability without US export control dependency. The logic: since Teledyne FLIR's high-performance VOx FPAs are subject to US ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations), European NATO allies that buy FLIR-based thermal cameras theoretically need US government permission to re-export them. Lynred offers the same performance (or close to it) without that constraint. France's Thales and Safran created a captive "ITAR-free" IR detector supply for European defense procurement — the phrase "ITAR-free" is a marketing term written into Lynred's own product analysis documents. It reflects a deliberate European choice to not be dependent on the United States for one of the most strategically sensitive components in modern military equipment.
Lynred ↗Origin2023
Lynred is the product of a 40-year French state-driven technology transfer strategy. In 1986, Thales (then Thomson), Sagem (now Safran), and CEA-Leti (France's atomic energy and advanced research agency) created Sofradir to commercialize military infrared detector technology developed at CEA. CEA-Leti transferred focal plane array production technology to Sofradir in 1994 -- moving what was state R&D into a commercial entity owned by France's defense conglomerates. CEA-Leti spinoff ULIS (2002) focused on uncooled detectors for civilian thermal cameras. In 2019, Sofradir and ULIS merged into Lynred under the 50/50 Thales-Safran ownership structure. CEA-Leti transferred additional record-breaking IR sensing technology to Lynred in April 2023 -- the French state continuing to seed technology into its national IR detector champion 37 years after Sofradir was founded. Lynred represents what deliberate industrial policy produces: a national champion IR detector manufacturer that France's defense establishment controls as a 50/50 owned asset.
Lynred S.A.S. ↗