The management team

Benjamin Gonzalez

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer


Benjamin Gonzalez founded METabolic EXplorer in 1999 based on work done for his doctoral thesis. A driving force in the company's development, he is in charge of devising and implementing its strategy, particularly with regard to financial matters and business development. Under his leadership, the company has entered a phase of industrial and commercial development. Benjamin Gonzalez has an engineering degree and a PhD in biotechnology.

David Demeestere

Industrial Managing Director


David Demeestere has more than 30 years of experience in the management of industrial operations, holding production management, site management and general management positions in the sectors of fine custom chemicals, pharmaceutical industry, production of highly active ingredients in confined environments and biotechnology. He worked in the groups Synthelabo, Sanofi-synthelabo, Tessenderlo, Astrazeneca, Minakem and Ajinomoto, and spent 5 years of his career in Belgium. David Demeestere trained as an engineer in industrial chemistry.

Laurence Caron

Human Resources Director


Laurence Caron has 35 years of experience in industrial groups in the metallurgy, chemicals, dairy products, automotive and pharmaceutical sectors. She held operational positions in marketing, sales, production and then quality before specializing in Human Resources. For more than 25 years, she has structured the HR function in France and abroad, both in functions with operational responsibilities, and in defining and deploying the HR strategy in contexts of necessary organizational and cultural transformation. Laurence is an EDHEC graduate and holds a BA honors in Business Studies as well as a master's degree in ICG strategy.

Laurent Bastian

Chief Financial Officer


Laurent BASTIAN has nearly 20 years of experience in operational financial management in activities such as engineering and construction, renewable energies and utilities, services etc. He worked for about ten years in management control positions within industrial companies such as NAVAL GROUP or ALBIOMA where he set up management and control systems. He was also Financial Director at ESI Group, an internationally listed software company. He began his career as a civil engineer at Vinci. He graduated from the Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées and from the Ecole Normale Supérieure Ulm.

Philippe Soucaille

Chairman of the scientific committee


Philippe Soucaille joined METabolic EXplorer in 2002. He is an internationally renowned professor at the Institut National des Sciences Appliquées (INSA) in Toulouse, an engineering school recognised for its biotechnology programme. Previously he was senior scientist and project manager at Genencor International Inc. (USA), where he was in charge of an industrial collaboration programme with DuPont. His research has led to disruptive innovations for the production of chemical products from clean and renewable raw materials.

Autonomous and responsible teams

Under the leadership of the chairman and the management team, the company's management is autonomous and responsible. Autonomy and collaboration are encouraged in METabolic EXplorer's operational approach to promote creativity and initiative and to enable employees to carry out their projects in a responsible manner.

Industrial & Bio Sciences


Sébastien RIFFLARD

Industrial Property


Maud JUGUET

Business Development


Manuela FALEMPIN

Sustainable Development and Regulatory Affairs


Nicolas MARTIN

Finance


Stéphanie VITRANT

Communication


Emilie PLANE

Human Resources


Emilande CHAMBARD

Administrative Support


Nelly FAUCHEUX