Corporate

The Spanish Federation of Technology Centres currently includes 42 centres.

 

Last December, the 54th Ordinary General Assembly of the Spanish Federation of Technology Centres, Fedit, ratified the incorporation of seven new centres, including CIDETEC. Along with TECNALIA, CEIT and TEKNIKER from the Basque Country, CTC from Cantabria, TECNOVA from Andalusia and ITECAM from Castilla la Mancha, CIDETEC joins an institution that now has 42 members.

Founded in 1996, Fedit works to promote and support Innovation, Technological Development and private Research to increase companies’ competitiveness by strengthening Technology Centres.

Fedit belongs to various international associations and organisations in which it represents the interests of Spanish Technology Centres. Among others, it is a member of the Executive Committee of the European Association of Research and Technology Organisations (EARTO) and is also a founding member of the Executive Committee of the International Network for Small and Medium Enterprises (INSME).

The Assembly also provided the framework for the presentation of the Federation’s action plan for 2022, which has developed along several lines of work the strategic objective of working to increase the visibility of the relevant role that the Centres play in the Spanish economy through innovation.

During the Assembly, the increase of almost 10% in market revenue was highlighted. According to the President, “it illustrates the Technology Centres’ competitiveness to encourage business R&D&I, once again in such complex times”.

– Replacing Eduardo Junquera.
– The group’s new Strategic Plan includes investments of more than 30 million.

Donostia-San Sebastián, 22 December 2021. Cidetec has appointed its new Chairman, José Manuel Orcasitas, who is well known for his track record in senior management, including having served as CEO of IRIZAR S.Coop for a long period.
 Orcasitas replaces Eduardo Junquera, who after eight years is leaving the position, having served the maximum period established in Cidetec’s articles of association.
 The Board unanimously recognised Junquera’s great contribution as Chairman, during what has been the greatest period of growth for the Centre.

The appointment coincides with the presentation of the new 2021-2027 Strategic Plan, in which investments of more than 30 million euros are planned, with the aim of doubling the size and turnover of the group, which currently has nearly 200 employees, approximately half of whom hold doctorates.

These new objectives are based on the 2016-2020 Strategic Plan, which has involved a total investment of 21 million euros. This period is noteworthy for the launch of two new buildings for the surface engineering and battery testing divisions, with an overall growth of 40% in the workforce and revenues for the three centres that make up the group: Cidetec Energy Storage, Cidetec Surface Engineering and Cidetec Nanomedicine.

CIDETEC Surface Engineering and AIMPLAS will present the latest developments in composites and polymer materials in surface treatments at an online technical conference to be held on 15 October.

At the event, a dozen experts will discuss advances in sustainable coatings, with advanced or multifunctional properties, as well as legal measures that may affect you and how to implement them in your company.

On 15 October, a new edition of the conference on Coatings and Advanced Surface Treatment will be held, organised by CIDETEC Surface Engineering and AIMPLAS, Technological Institute of Plastics. On this occasion, and due to the current health situation, the event is consolidated with a second edition that will have an online format.

A dozen experts will gather at this meeting as speakers to present the latest developments in composites and polymer materials for surface treatment, from advances in sustainable coatings, with advanced or multifunctional properties as well as legislation that may affect companies and how to implement it.

Specifically, the conference will start with a presentation by Susana Otero, from AIMPLAS, on trends in sustainable coatings. She will be followed by Belén García, from CIDETEC, who will talk about electrophoresis as an alternative to conventional treatments, while Lola Gómez, from AIMPLAS, will address environmental decontamination using photocatalytic coatings based on MOFs for indoor spaces. Her colleague Anabel Crespo will present some success stories in advanced and multifunctional coatings and Jesús Palenzuela, from CIDETEC, will talk about omniphobic technology. Enrique Cortés, from QMC, will focus his presentation on composite material coatings with high physicochemical performance. After the break, Elena Moratalla, from AIMPLAS, will cover the part regarding validation and quality control of automotive coatings and Jorge Rodríguez, from CIDETEC, will talk about the effect the REACH regulation has on the surface treatment industry. Antonio Montoliu, from CHEMPLATE, will be responsible for addressing solutions for the elimination of Cr (VI) in the plating of plastics and Jezabel Santomé, from AIMPLAS, and José Miguel Ortega, from COMINDEX, will bring the day to a close by discussing alternative fillers and additives to replace TiO2.

This conference, in which the attendees can register at http://www.aimplas.es/plasticsacademy, has the collaboration of ASEFAPI, the Spanish Association of Paint and Printing Ink Manufacturers, and ICA Motor Ediciones.

The HARVEST Project Consortium celebrated its M24 meeting, last 14th and 15th October, organised by University of Ioannina (Greece) through videoconference, given the current situation and thus, avoiding any physical meeting for safety.

Representatives from all partners of the consortium attended, with Arrate Huegun representing CIDETEC, reviewed together the progress in each all work packages from M18 to M24 and achievements made on the development of Hierarchical multifunctional 3R composites with thermoelectrically powered autonomous structural health monitoring for the aviation industry.

Besides, the consortium presented future actions, and together discussed the work plan for next period. In times of safety concerns, the coordinating team to continue aiming for well organising work assessed possible delays in Work Packages.

In the frame of the HARVEST project (https://www.harvest-project.eu), CIDETEC addresses the development of smart 3R (Repairable, Reprocessable, Recyclable) nano-modified polymeric matrices with self-sensing and self-repairing capabilities.