Specializing in the manufacture and maintenance of armored vehicles, the Arquus group heritage foundation inaugurated on June 17 at its Garchizy (Nièvre) site a “Military Vehicle Conservatory”. A place to safeguard and enhance the industrial know-how of the Army.
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The military vehicle conservatory, in Garchizy, brings together a wide range of vehicles from industrial workshops which today are part of the Arquus group but which were formerly known by other names.
These are prestigious historical brands, such as Panhard or Berliet. The oldest vehicle in this exhibition is a Berliet CBA from 1916, made available by the Berliet Foundation.
This military truck was used during the 1914-1918 war, especially between Bar-le-Duc and Verdun.
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© France Télévisions / S. Hémar
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Arquus Heritage Director, Grégoire Verdon presents the Berliet CBA in these terms : “This truck was born at the start of the Second World War. He was the hero of the Sacred Way which made it possible to supply the troops in Verdun.”
The site presents devices that we remember having seen in action on war reportage images or in news magazines. Used on the operating grounds, they are now collector’s items.
Grégoire Verdon explains that “these are vehicles that have served a lot in the French army, much overseas, but also in many African armies, such as the V.L.R.A.”
The VLRA, light reconnaissance and support vehicle (VLRA) is an all-terrain, air-transportable and parachutable road vehicle, intended for the transport of personnel or material in overseas units. (Ministry of the Armed Forces)
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© France Télévisions / S. Hémar
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A fund of various origins
Donations and loans from collectors and museums form part of the fund. The rest comes directly from the Arquus group, heir to several major manufacturers in the defense sector.
“We realized that we had wheeled armored vehicles in our factory car parks (since we have four production plants) that could have been destroyed if we had not done something.“, adds Grégoire Verdon.
However, these machines, these vehicles, are the culmination of thousands of hours of work by engineers for their design, as well as the teams who participated in their construction in the factory. It is part of the industrial history of Land Defense.
The existing equipment was saved, then machines from the post World War II period (period 1945-2020), and finally older machines (period 1918-1945).
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© France Télévisions / S. Hémar
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Garchizy was not chosen at random
Arquus provides maintenance for military vehicles, manages spare parts for the French army, all over the world. These are 400 jobs that embody the present and the future of the site, resulting from this heritage.
The Director of the Arquus Garchizy site, Thierry Bitschnau specifies that “there is a very strong attachment to the past. There are new vehicles being manufactured on the site, but also old vehicles that need to be maintained. This attachment shows the involvement of the staff and all the know-how that we have within Arquus.”
The site of the industrialist Arquus supplies vehicles and spare parts to the Army.
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© France Télévisions / S. Hémar
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The military vehicle conservatory will undoubtedly be able to make the Arquus group better known to the general public and will also be of interest to enthusiasts.
The place should welcome visitors for events. It can be opened by appointment, while waiting for it to become a museum accessible to the public in the coming years.
Report in Garchizy (Nièvre)
Team: R. Chidaine – S. Hemar – C. Frèrebeau
Speakers:
Grégoire Verdon: Director of Arquus Heritage
Thierry Biitschnau: Director of the Arquus Garchizy site
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