KNDS

KNDS France, originally set up in 1973 as GIAT Industries and renamed Nexter Systems from 2006 to April 2024, is headquartered in Versailles, France. A core division of KNDS (formed by the 2015 merger with Krauss-Maffei Wegmann), it is a leading European manufacturer of military land systems, such as the Leclerc XLR tank, CAESAR® artillery, and VBMR Griffon vehicles. With 4,500 employees and 2,500+ patents, KNDS France serves 100+ armies globally, investing 13% of its turnover in R&D for robotics, AI, and battlefield digitization. ISO 9001:2015 certified, it leads the SCORPION program and MGCS tank project, deploying systems like STRADOT conveyor robots for vehicle logistics and CENTURIO for combat. In 2025, it opened a Kiev subsidiary for equipment maintenance and plans 155mm shell production. Recent contracts include 109 CAESAR MkII units (€400M) and 100 Leclerc XLR renovations by 2035.