What Grenoble INP-Pagora does

Grenoble INP-Pagora is a French public engineering school (école publique d'ingénieurs) founded in 1907 as the École Française de Papeterie et des Arts Graphiques (EFPG), the world's first institution dedicated to paper science and printing arts. Located in Saint Martin d'Hères within the Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA) federation, the school operates under the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research and currently trades as Grenoble INP - Pagora, UGA. Vivien Quéma serves as Director General (Administrateur général) of Grenoble INP - UGA. The institution focuses exclusively on paper, printed communication, and biomaterials.

The school's core product is a three-year engineering degree (Ingénieur) in Paper, Printed Communication, and Biobased Materials, offered with two specialisations — Fiber and Biomaterials Engineering, and Printed Communication Engineering — across both student and apprenticeship (alternance) pathways. This is supplemented by two master's programs (Biorefinery and Biobased Materials; Sustainable Printed and Integrated Electronics), international exchange semesters taught in English, winter/summer schools, continuing education and VAE, and doctoral training via the ED I-MEP² school linked to the LGP2 research laboratory. The LGP2 laboratory underpins research in paper engineering, printed communication, and biomaterials, and is supported by two industry-sponsored chairs of excellence: Cellulose Valley (cellulose valorization) and MINT (printed electronics).

Funding flows from French state allocation through UGA, regulated tuition fees, corporate sponsorship/mécénat (named partners include DS Smith, Albéa, Smurfit Westrock, Fedrigoni, and VPK), commissioned industry R&D through LGP2, and professional continuing-education programmes. The school counts approximately 60 direct staff, ~200 engineering and master's students representing around 10 nationalities, and approximately 240 partner companies. It holds CTI and EUR-ACE engineering accreditations, Qualiopi certification for continuing education, and ISO 9001/14001/45001 certifications.

Name

Grenoble INP-Pagora

Legal name

Grenoble INP, Institut polytechnique de Grenoble

Website

https://pagora.grenoble-inp.fr

Company type

Public

Founded year

1907

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Grenoble INP-Pagora is a French public engineering school, founded in 1907, dedicated to paper, printed communication, and biomaterials. It serves prospective engineers, master's students, and ~240 industry partners via CTI/EUR-ACE-accredited programmes and LGP2 research.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Martin d'Hères

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Grenoble INP-Pagora is a French public engineering school that delivers higher-education programs (engineering diploma, master's, doctoral) and conducts applied research focused on paper, printed communication, and biomaterials. Its activities are organized around teaching, doctoral training, continuing education, and the LGP2 research laboratory.

Product overview

Grenoble INP-Pagora is a public engineering school forming part of Grenoble INP within Université Grenoble Alpes. The institution operates as a single unified school offering engineering degree programs and master's programs focused on paper, printed communication, and biomaterials. Its core product is the three-year Ingénieur program with two specializations (Fiber and Biomaterials Engineering; Printed Communication Engineering), supplemented by two master's programs (Biorefinery and Bio-based Materials; Sustainable Printed Electronics), international semester offerings, winter/summer schools, continuing education, and research through the LGP2 laboratory and doctoral school ED I-MEP². The institution also partners with industry through excellence chairs and equipment/pilot facilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Engineering diploma (Diplôme d'ingénieur)
• Master's programs
• Doctoral programs
• Continuing education (formation continue)

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• LGP2 (Laboratoire de Génie des Procédés Papetiers)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociated research laboratory that serves as the primary research entity for Grenoble INP-Pagora. The LGP2 conducts research in paper engineering, printed communication, and biomaterials. Students can pursue doctoral studies through the ED I-MEP² doctoral school associated with LGP2.
• DS SmithminorOthersCorporate sponsor (mécène) of Grenoble INP-Pagora. DS Smith is a leading packaging company specializing in sustainable packaging solutions.
• AlbéaminorOthersCorporate sponsor (mécène) of Grenoble INP-Pagora. Albéa is a packaging manufacturer specializing in tubes and cosmetic packaging.
• Smurfit WestrockminorOthersCorporate sponsor (mécène) of Grenoble INP-Pagora. Smurfit Westrock is a global leader in sustainable packaging and paper solutions.
• FedrigoniminorOthersCorporate sponsor (mécène) of Grenoble INP-Pagora. Fedrigoni is a specialty paper manufacturer for packaging, publishing, and labels.
• VPKminorOthersCorporate sponsor (mécène) of Grenoble INP-Pagora. VPK is a corrugated packaging and core board solutions provider.
• Ambition GraphiqueminorOthersProfessional organization supporting the printing industry, providing backing for Grenoble INP-Pagora programs.
• ATIP (Association Technique des Industries des Pulpes, Papiers et Cartons)minorOthersProfessional association for pulp, paper, and cardboard industries supporting Grenoble INP-Pagora.
• COPACELminorOthersProfessional union representing French pulp and paper industries, providing industry backing for the school.
• GMIminorOthersProfessional organization for graphic industries supporting Grenoble INP-Pagora.
• Industrie Papier CartonminorOthersIndustry organization representing paper and cardboard sectors, supporting the school.
• UNIDISminorOthersProfessional union representing paper distributors supporting the school's industry partnerships.
• UNIICminorOthersProfessional organization representing printing industry companies supporting the school.
• Chaire Cellulose ValleycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChair of excellence focused on cellulose valorization and biobased materials development, enabling industry-academia collaboration on sustainable materials research.
• Chaire MINTcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChair of excellence focused on printed electronics and functional printing technologies, enabling industry-academia collaboration on electronic materials innovation.
• Unite! (University Network for Innovation, Technology and Engineering)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean university alliance providing international mobility and collaboration opportunities including joint winter schools.
• Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent university structure containing Grenoble INP-Pagora as a component school, providing administrative support, research framework, and international visibility through the UGA banner.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Western Michigan University: U.S. public university historically running one of the few paper-engineering programs globally. Comparable as a small, specialized paper-engineering school within a broader public university, with similar niche focus and industry-sponsored research model.
• Aalto University: Finnish university with a School of Chemical Engineering active in biobased materials, forest products, and biorefinery research. Comparable as a European institution bridging traditional forest-products industry with bioeconomy and printed-electronics-adjacent materials research.
• KTH Royal Institute of Technology: Leading Scandinavian technical university with research strength in fibre and polymer technology, biorefinery, and biomaterials. Comparable as one of the few European institutions with paper-and-biomaterials engineering programs at scale, competing for international exchange students in the same niche.
• University of British Columbia: Major Canadian research university with a BioProducts Institute covering pulp, paper, and biomaterials. Comparable for graduate-level research collaboration and competing for international students interested in fibre and biomaterials science.
• NC State University: U.S. public university home to one of the world's few remaining dedicated Paper Science and Engineering programs (Department of Forest Biomaterials). Closest international peer in the specific paper-engineering specialty, competing for global recognition in pulp, paper, and biomaterials education.

Direct peers

• INSA Lyon: Major French public engineering school within the INSA network. Comparable as a competing grande école offering multi-disciplinary engineering programs, sharing the same French public higher-education funding and accreditation framework (CTI, EUR-ACE).
• Grenoble INP - Phelma: Sister engineering school within the Grenoble INP group sharing the same UGA parent, governance, and student services infrastructure. Directly comparable as a French public école d'ingénieurs operating under identical regulatory and funding frameworks.
• Grenoble INP - Ense3: Another sister school within Grenoble INP focused on energy, water, and environmental engineering. Comparable as a co-located public école d'ingénieurs sharing UGA affiliation, CTI/EUR-ACE accreditation, and corporate partner networks.

Broad incumbents

• Politecnico di Milano: Top Italian technical university with materials engineering programs and applied research relevant to printed electronics and biomaterials. Comparable as a European public institution participating in the Unite! alliance and competing for international master's students in adjacent specialties.
• Arts et Métiers ParisTech: Large French public engineering school network with multiple campuses. Comparable as a French grande école operating under the same CTI/EUR-ACE framework, but with a much broader mechanical/manufacturing focus and no dedicated paper/biomaterials specialization.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xpagora.grenoble-inp.fr/fr/facebook
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCd6EX-PitGkOf6KJ9kBiXzA
• Facebookpagora.grenoble-inp.fr/fr/facebook
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/grenoble-inp-pagora
• Instagrampagora.grenoble-inp.fr/fr/instagram

Compliance9 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Grenoble INP-Pagora