Eurecat, the largest technology center in Catalonia, is making the jump to Malaga and Madrid leading a unique movement in the world of business innovation.
“We were born in 2015 to support industrial SMEs that cannot afford to have an R&D department and now we are growing outside Catalonia to respond to their increasingly ambitious needs”, comments Daniel Altimiras, new president of ‘ Eurecat after the departure of Xavier Torra last year.
The foundation has chosen to settle in Madrid because of the city’s economic influence. “We wanted to be close to our clients who have a presence in the capital and we have landed with the help of the Spanish Logistics Centre, which belongs to a sector with many opportunities in R&D”, comments Xavier López, corporate general director of the foundation.
In Málaga, the landing of Eurecat responds to a need of the local business community. “The technological ecosystem is being born and that’s why it needs the support of entities with experience like ours”, says Miquel Rey, Eurecat’s general business manager, who has ruled out opening centers in the Basque Country or Valencia because in these communities already there is a strong presence of technology centers. In Malaga, Eurecat has also landed through an alliance with a local partner, called the Ricardo Valle Institute.
The Catalan foundation made a similar move in 2020 by opening a center in Santiago de Chile with the aim of supporting exporting companies. “It is a strategy that has already been developed by other European centers of reference and that we hope to continue implementing whenever an opportunity arises with a local center”, say those in charge.
In Catalonia, Eurecat is committed to decentralizing the activity through offices and laboratories in the demarcations of Tarragona, Lleida and Girona. The organization currently has eleven centers spread throughout Catalonia and does not rule out new openings in the coming years. “Weaving a capillary network of centers is key so that SMEs do not fall behind in matters of innovation. R&D is precisely the added value that Catalan companies can offer against the low prices of foreign companies”, they point out.
Eurecat’s activity is diverse, but it mainly consists of developing private R&D projects and being part of European innovation consortia. “We have a transversal vocation, which goes from the various technologies we develop to the different sectors we serve”, they comment. Those in charge also emphasize its presence in the training field, where Eurecat teaches courses in industrial trades that are not usually covered by FP.
With this activity, Eurecat has received a total of 61 million euros in 2023. Two-thirds of this income comes from the services already mentioned, while another third corresponds to the aid that Eurecat receives from the Generalitat (through ‘ Action) to carry out its innovative work.
Despite the fact that Eurecat claims to be a support center for SMEs, 30% of the income comes from projects for large companies, from sectors such as automotive or health. Also, the global vocation of the technological center has caused 10% of the income to come from foreign companies with links to Catalonia.
Altimiras is convinced of Eurecat’s future potential. “In 2023, revenue grew by 11% and this year we plan to grow by 15%. Demand from SMEs is strong; there is a desire to reindustrialize the territory”, they point out. With these growth figures, Eurecat no longer needs resources from its employers. Among them are companies such as Cellnex, HP, Noel, Repsol, Hartmann, Andrés Pintaluba, Hallotex, Metalic and universities such as the URV or the UPC.
