An Engineering graduate from ENSIACET, Patrick GAGNIARD joined Saint-Gobain Recherche in 1981 as a Research Engineer. He participated in the PVB project for the Flat Glass Branch and several research projects for the Insulation Branch.

Transferred in 1984 to SEPR's Research Center (Refractories Division) at Le Pontet (Vaucluse, France), he was appointed, in 1990, as Manager of the General Technical Resources Department, then Manager of the Technical and Administrative Services for this Center of which he became Manager in January 1998. Starting in 1996, he was actively involved in the project to establish a new research center for the Ceramics & Plastics Branch, called the CREE (European Research and Engineering Center). In 1999, in addition to being Director of SEPR's Research Center, he was appointed Director of the CREE in Cavaillon, France, in April 2002.
Patrick Gagniard is currently Financial and Administrative Controller for High Performance Materials Sector R&D.