Weez-U Welding: industrial innovation serving welders

Weez-U Welding is today a young industrial company based in Nantes, an exporter, manufacturing in France and recruiting. This example is rare enough to be highlighted. Above all, it carries a simple message: technology is never an end in itself. What matters is usage, feedback, and anchoring it in the reality of the field.

"We can manufacture in France, we can innovate in France, and we can sell internationally. But to do this, we must agree to start from the real need, move forward step by step, and prove our credibility in the field," summarizes Benoît Tavernier, director and co-founder of Weez-U Welding.

This initial observation, shared by many manufacturers, guided the creation of Weez-U Welding in 2020. Based in Nantes, the company's mission is to make robotic welding accessible everywhere, including in shipyards, maintenance sites or confined environments – where conventional robots cannot go.

The WeezLight robotic arm: 8 kg of ingenuity

The company's technological solution can be summed up in one name: WeezLight, a 6-axis robotic arm entirely designed, assembled, and calibrated in France, weighing only 8 kg. This feat was made possible by five years of research and development, perfect mastery of the production chain, and a deliberate commitment to industrial independence.

"WeezLight is our first proprietary robot. We designed it to be carried by hand, installed in minutes, and operational in locations where traditional, heavy, and rigid industrial robots are unsuitable," explains Benoît Tavernier.

To design this ultra-lightweight arm, the team made strong technical choices: compact aeronautical-grade motors, high-precision torque sensors, custom gearboxes, an aluminum structure, and composite materials. Each component is sourced and validated according to a logic of industrial sovereignty. Everything is assembled in Nantes, in a workshop on a human scale but with high standards.

A solution designed on the ground, for the ground

At Weez-U Welding, innovation can't be decreed. It must be observed, listened to, and built step by step. The team spent months alongside welders in the workshops to understand their actions, constraints, and challenges. "Before marketing anything, we took the time to listen to their comments, their constraints, and their needs. This user feedback guided each stage of development," explains Benoît Tavernier.

The result: a simple and effective lighting assistance system that helps welders improve the consistency of their work without compromising their expertise. WeezLight acts as an intelligent companion, providing comfort, reliability, and repeatability without complicating operations.

An agile organization, at the heart of an ecosystem of excellence

To successfully complete this project, Benoît Tavernier opted for a compact and agile organization: "We put together a fairly small team, with a few very bright minds, and we really relied on technical expertise, which is plentiful in France."

The Pays de la Loire region is home to an exceptional industrial ecosystem. "There are technical centers and laboratories that understand the technological challenges and are able to support entrepreneurs to move more quickly toward the right technical solutions," he explains. Among the partners involved are CETIM (Centre for Technical Studies in Mechanical Industries), the Welding Institute, the EMC2 competitiveness cluster, and Wenetwork, a center specializing in electronics. "A valuable partner, with real industrial expertise to make the right technical choices," emphasizes Benoît Tavernier.

A realistic and exportable industrial model

Weez-U Welding proves that it's possible to innovate in France, produce locally, and aim for international growth. The company quickly found its first customers abroad while managing its growth. The business model is clear, the industrial tool remains agile, and WeezLight's return on investment makes it a credible solution in a context of high pressure on the welding professions.

"What makes the difference is not promising a revolution, but providing a reliable, simple, and useful solution. That's what we strive to do every day," concludes Benoît Tavernier.