What S.A. Joly does

S.A. Joly is a privately held French industrial manufacturer founded in 1974 by Arthur Joly, specializing in custom-designed metal drums (bobines) and metal reels (tourets) for cable transportation and storage, plus the winding, unwinding, and pulling machinery used to handle them. The company operates two production sites in France, a headquarters in Aniche (Nord, 59) and a satellite factory in Gron (Yonne, 89) positioned near the Gron port for Southern European logistical reach, and runs with a headcount in the 11-50 range. Its product portfolio spans export drums for one-off shipping, high-resistance process drums, multi-way reusable drums, special drums (oversized dismantlable, collapsable-core, DIN/NFE-compliant), and offshore drums validated to third-party marine rules (Lloyd's, Bureau Veritas, DNV). The core proprietary asset is the metallic staving system covered by Patent 85.15222, granted in more than 14 countries and recognized by insurance companies as effective protection for cables and fragile fibers during transport.

The business is run on a sales-led, custom-engineering model. All drums and machines are made-to-measure against customer-specified dimensions (D1-D3, L1-L6), covering type, load capacity, and staving configuration, with quote-based pricing and dedicated price request forms on the company website. Distribution is direct from the two French sites, supplemented by a regional representative covering Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Beyond product sales, S.A. Joly generates service revenue from equipment rental (with delivery, on-site implementation, and technician intervention), preventive and curative industrial maintenance, and staving services performed on customer drums using Joly-manufactured plates. Accessory lines (lifting accessories, cradles, saddles, staving sets) complete the offering.

Ownership has stayed within the founding family: Arthur Joly created the business in 1974, ownership passed to his daughter Nicolle and son-in-law Philippe Depreux in 1988, and in 2012 Vincent Depreux became President/CEO with Sylvain Depreux as Technical Director. The company is pursuing ISO 9001 (2008) and ISO 14001 certifications, holds CE marking on its machinery, and has no disclosed venture capital, private equity backing, parent company, or subsidiaries. No revenue, funding, or M&A figures are publicly available.

Name

S.A. Joly

Legal name

SA JOLY

Website

https://sa-joly.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

S.A. Joly is a French family-owned industrial manufacturer, founded in 1974, that designs and produces custom metal drums, reels, and cable-handling machinery for cable manufacturers and offshore operators, operating from two French production sites.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Aniche

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Custom Metal Drums and Reels: Manufacture and sale of custom-designed metal drums (bobines) and metal reels (tourets) for cable transportation and storage. Products are made-to-measure according to customer specifications.
2. Industrial Machines: Design and manufacture of winding/unwinding machines, winches, pulling devices, and staving machines for drums.
3. Equipment Rental: Rental of equipment (machines designed by Joly) for customer work sites, including delivery, implementation, and technician intervention.
4. Maintenance Services: Preventive and curative industrial maintenance services with qualified technicians for mechanical and electrical optimization of production tools.
5. Staving Services: Technicians perform staving of customer drums with Joly-manufactured staving plates for reinforced cable protection during transport.
6. Accessories: Sale of lifting accessories, cradles, saddles, and staving games for drum handling and transport.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

S.A. Joly designs, manufactures, and sells custom-made metal drums (bobines) and metal reels (tourets) used for the transportation, storage, and processing of cables. The company also manufactures winding/unwinding machines, winches, pulling devices, and staving machines, and provides preventive/curative industrial maintenance services. All products are made to customer specifications and serve the cable and offshore industries.

Product overview

S.A. Joly is a French industrial manufacturer with over 40 years of experience specializing in the design and manufacture of metallic drums (bobines) and machines for the cable and offshore industries. The product portfolio comprises three main categories: (1) Drums including Export Drums for single-use transportation, Process Drums for intensive workshop use, Multi-Way Drums for repeated use, Special Drums for custom applications, and Offshore Drums for marine environments; (2) Machines including Winding/Unwinding Machines, Winches, Two and Three Track Pulling Devices, and Staving Machines for drum manufacturing and cable handling; (3) Accessories including Lifting Accessories, Cradle and Saddles, and Staving Accessories. All products are designed and manufactured to customer specifications with various coating options (anti-rust paint, Epoxy, polyurethane, hot galvanizing, neoprene) and materials (steel, stainless steel, aluminum). The company also provides turnkey solutions and industrial maintenance services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Export Drums (Bobine export) Drums reserved for cable transportation, designed for one-off single-use. Adapted for all types of shipping, road or maritime. Made to measure in dimensions and covering.
• Process Drums (Bobine atelier/process) High-resistance drums supporting intensive use with numerous handling actions, designed in close collaboration with customers for adaptation to receiving production machines.
• Multi-Way Drums (Bobine multi way) Drums designed for multi-use purposes with reinforced security coefficient, adapted for road or maritime shipping and tailor-made to customer dimensions and specifications.
• Special Drums (Bobines spéciales) Wide range including oversized dismantlable drums for transport with on-site reassembly, drums with collapsable core for coils, dismantlable tubular drums with adjustable elements, threader drums, and cable drums following DIN or NFE standards.
• Offshore Drums (Bobines offshore) Drums intended for one-off single use in offshore applications, designed according to customer specifications, meeting offshore marine rules or internal customer requirements with options for third-party validation (Lloyd's, Bureau Veritas, DNV).
• Winding/Unwinding Machines (Vireur, enrouleur) Machines composed of motorized winders or rollers allowing drums to rotate by adhesion. CE certified. Power options: electric, pneumatic, or hydraulic.
• Winches (Treuil) Machine for unwinding cable from drums by taking it from its axis and letting it rotate via cable guide. Used in workshop, on-site, or offshore environments. Power options: electric, pneumatic, or hydraulic.
• Two and Three Track Pulling Device (Bi et Trichenille) Machine enabling cable to be pulled at constant speed and force. Power options: electric or hydraulic motorization.
• Staving Machine (Douveuse) Machine allowing drum rotation via motorized roll and crimping of staving plates on the drum. Electric motorization with hydraulic crimping tools.
• Lifting Accessories (Accessoires de levage) Range of lifting accessories including beam trolleys enabling handling of drums. Controlled and sold with certifications.
• Cradle and Saddles (Berces et sabots) Accessories ensuring drum stability and holding during transport and storage.
• Staving Accessories (Jeux de douves) Metal staving sets (patent 85.15222) for drum protection. Optimized volume and mass for secured cable transport.
• Equipment Rental Rental of equipment (machines designed by Joly) for customer work sites, including delivery, implementation, and technician intervention.
• Maintenance Services Preventive and curative industrial maintenance services with qualified technicians for mechanical and electrical optimization of production tools.
• Staving Services Technicians perform staving of customer drums with Joly-manufactured staving plates for reinforced cable protection during transport.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Greif Inc: Global industrial packaging leader producing steel drums, among other packaging products. While not focused on cable drums specifically, Greif operates in the same metal drum/container manufacturing space and has significantly greater scale and geographic reach than S.A. Joly.
• Mauser Packaging Solutions: Global industrial packaging company manufacturing steel and plastic drums, intermediate bulk containers, and reconditioning services. Operates in the same metal drum manufacturing category as S.A. Joly but with a much broader product portfolio and global presence.

Direct peers

• Jacob GmbH: German manufacturer of cable drums and reels, directly competing with S.A. Joly in the European cable industry market. Both companies specialize in custom-made metal drums for cable transportation and storage.
• SCHÄFER Container Systems: European manufacturer of metal containers and drums including industrial packaging solutions. Comparable to S.A. Joly in metal drum manufacturing capabilities, though SCHÄFER has a broader product portfolio across multiple industrial segments.
• Karl H. Bartels GmbH & Co. KG: German cable drum and reel manufacturer serving the cable and wire industry. Directly comparable to S.A. Joly in product offering (steel drums for cable transport) and customer base (cable manufacturers and distributors).
• Balemaster: Manufacturer of drum and barrel handling equipment, balers, and compaction equipment. Adjacent to S.A. Joly's machinery business (winding, unwinding, staving machines) in serving industrial customers with material handling needs.

Emerging players

• HENEL Kablo Makaraları: Turkish manufacturer of cable drums and reels serving the cable industry. Directly comparable to S.A. Joly in product offering and target market, though operating primarily in Turkey and surrounding regions rather than Western Europe.

Regional players

• Kroma A/S: Scandinavian manufacturer of steel drums and packaging. Comparable to S.A. Joly in metal drum manufacturing capabilities, though serving primarily Northern European markets rather than the French/Germanic markets where S.A. Joly operates.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/joly-sa

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about S.A. Joly