Barcelona adds a new factory, but not just any factory. Unlike those that were installed at the end of the 19th and 20th centuries -and which gradually moved to the outskirts or disappeared-, it does not have a smoking chimney. On the contrary, it is designed to minimize your carbon footprint and that others do it. It is called DFactory Barcelona and although it is not a conventional factory, its mission is: to generate an ecosystem that promotes the development of the digital industry in Europe.
Promoted by the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona, DFactory Barcelona is a totally innovative and differential project that acts as a tool to transform the Spanish productive fabric and accompany companies in their digitization process. It is not a factory, but it is "the factory" of a technological, transversal and resilient society. The place where the changes and the so-called fourth industrial revolution are cooked and which will generate 1,500 direct jobs and up to 5,000 indirect jobs.
Unlike other factories, DFactory Barcelona will not be dedicated to one activity or production exclusively, but to several. Specifically, robotics, sensors, Artificial Intelligence, cybersecurity, 3D printing or advanced manufacturing, among other areas, sectors that are already transforming the industrial paradigm and to which it owes the nickname "factory of the future".
Its implementation will not only provide great added value to the city and its metropolitan area, but will also mark a turning point in the way in which the new production chains are defined. In fact, DFactory Barcelona wants to materialize a new way of producing, closer to the final consumer, thus reducing the footprint of the supply chain.
Inside, a management model will be carried out based on the coordination and collaboration of projects between multinationals, local companies and start-ups to generate joint technology and new business models. As explained by the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona (CZFB), the companies that settle in DFactory will be generators of reference technologies, providing digital solutions in their fields of expertise.
They will not be alone: they will coexist with other companies that implement digital solutions in the process of transformation. In fact, the design of the building, in which the connection between the spaces will prevail, is intended to blur the barriers between the different companies in the ecosystem and have shared access to laboratories, meeting rooms and common areas so that they can grow , feed back and consolidate.
"DFactory Barcelona has all the potential to become the main node of industry 4.0 in southern Europe, a project that will attract investment and talent to the country and that will help transform the Spanish productive fabric", summarizes Pere Navarro, special delegate of the Status in the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona, an entity that foresees a global investment of 100 million euros to carry it out.
DFactory Barcelona, which will occupy an area of nearly 100,000m2 in the Zona Franca industrial estate, will be developed in two phases. In the first, the CZFB has injected nearly 30 million euros into a 17,000m2 building in a privileged space. Just 15 minutes from the center of Barcelona, 5 minutes from the port and 10 minutes from the airport. In addition, it will be connected by public transport with its own metro stop (L10) named “Commercial Port / La Factoria” in his honour.
The project, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda, wants to add a new lever for the ecological transition of the city, promoting the circular economy and promoting new sustainable production and advanced manufacturing systems. In addition, the building itself has been built following high energy performance design criteria, based on both the limitation of energy demand and the design of efficient facilities.
Among the companies that are already part of the ecosystem are PICVISA, Robotnik, On Robot, Alisys, Windforce, AsorCAD, Mastertec 3D, Ferrovial Servicios Medioambiente (Cespa), Imhoit, HP, NTT Data, Leitat, Dow Chemical, Nexiona, Girbau, Simon , e-Miles Company, Oryon Universal, Innovae or Amphos21.
