in the French navy's engineering division. At this time, the dockyards broke away from the Navy, creating the opportunity for the diversification of their activities in the 1970s. A single DCAN covered all the mainland and overseas naval dockyards, reporting to the Direction Technique des Constructions Navales (DTCN). In turn, the DTCN was answerable to the Délégation Ministérielle pour l’Armement (DMA), set up by Michel Debré. In 1977, la DMA became the Délégation Générale de l’Armement (DGA). The purpose of this reform was to centralise all the armed forces' design and construction capacities in a single inter-armed forces delegation operating under the government's authority. In 1958, the official launch by General de Gaulle of the French military nuclear programme and deterrent policy prompted the restructuring of the defence industry and defence technology. The Cœlacanthe project brought together the DTCN and the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission, and in 1971, , the first French missile-launching nuclear submarine, came into service. Transformation into a company The international economic climate and decolonisation in the 1970s lead the DCAN to venture into new markets. The loss of the overseas naval dockyards was compounded by the French Navy's reduced needs for vessels and the increased difficulty in obtaining funding. This trend gathered more pace after the end of the Cold War, despite the diversification of the DCAN activities, which now included maintaining the electric power network and clearing mines from the coastline. Some sites also specialised in civilian projects: Brest built trucks, Guérigny made agricultural machinery and Toulon produced civilian vessels (yachts, liners). But, looking beyond the order books, it was the public status of the DCAN that was gradually called into question, and it came to be considered as an administrative obstacle to the development of the potential of France's naval dockyards. This transformation occurred in several stages. In 1991, the DCAN was christened the DCN (Direction des Construction Navales). In the same year, DCN International was created. The mission of this PLC was to promote the activities of the DCN on an international scale and to facilitate the export of its products. In 1992, the DCN's activities for the state were attached to the Naval Programmes department (SPN), which was the contracting authority for vessels for the French navy. Since then, the DCN has only been responsible for industrial activities, while remaining part of the DGA. This change of status has