After heading up the Arts et Métiers campus Arts et Métiers and the Laval Institute from 2022 to 2024, Catherine Davy took over as director of the Lille campus on July 15. This is a new commitment for this woman who trained as a general engineer, holds a degree in mechanics, has a doctorate in materials mechanics, and is a university professor.
Catherine Davy takes charge of the Lille campus
With nearly 30 years of experience in higher education and research, Catherine Davy has remained attentive to the needs of businesses, societal changes, and younger generations in particular. After becoming the first woman to head an Arts et Métiers campus, she took over as director of the Lille campus on July 15.
Catherine Davy intends to put her commitment to transition (energy, ecological, societal) to work for the Lille campus, the city where she worked for 18 years as a professor at the École Centrale. She is particularly keen to roll out the institution's structuring project across the region with the development of an Evolutive Learning Factory ELF) on campus, featuring production lines representative of the industry of the future, fully digitized and backed up by digital twins, as well as the school's corporate social responsibility (CSR) commitments.
Today, we are preparing to welcome a new academic year with optimism and determination. My primary goal is to maintain the commitment and motivation of our teams, so that the entireArts et Métiers communityArts et Métiers including staff, students, partners, campus users, and visitors—can continue to thrive in a pleasant, stable, and meaningful work environment.
The Lille campus has seen the emergence of some great successes driven by students with the support of teaching staff and administrative personnel, as well as our partners and alumni. Research projects have progressed, making significant contributions in various scientific and technological fields.
New programs and collaborations are being developed to enrich the student experience and strengthen the campus's ties with the professional world. With over a century of history, the Lille campus stands out as a hub of knowledge and expertise, both in the field of engineering sciences and in terms of human and social interactions.
The development of the Evolutive Learning Factories ELF) project, which aims to bring together all stakeholders in the school and position it as a benchmark for industries in the Hauts-de-France region, is part of this dynamic.
Furthermore, I attach great importance to supporting our students throughout their academic journey. This journey, characterized by its uniqueness and richness, is distinguished by its sustainability, the solidarity between graduating classes, and the intergenerational bond it fosters through constantly evolving projects. With their Arts et Métiers experience under their belts, our students are well prepared to become responsible engineers for the industry of the future.
As we approach the campus's 125th anniversary, our guiding principle is to highlight the spirit of innovation and creativity that characterizes Arts et Métiers the Lille ecosystem, and more broadly across the region, promising all of its stakeholders a future rich in discoveries and opportunities. "
His career
Catherine Davy is a general engineer who graduated from École Centrale de Nantes in 1996. She is also a graduate of École Normale Supérieure, an associate professor of mechanics (since 1997), and a doctor of École Normale Supérieure (ENS) de Cachan since 2001. After completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Cambridge (Great Britain), followed by a second postdoctoral fellowship at the Faculty of Dental Surgery in Nantes, she was a lecturer and then professor at the École Centrale de Lille for 18 years. Catherine Davy holds a qualification to supervise research (HDR) from the University of Lille and has spent most of her career as a teacher-researcher in engineering sciences and materials mechanics. From 2022 to 2024, she headed the Arts et Métiers campus Arts et Métiers and the Laval Institute.
