The Catalonian government in Barcelona, Spain, is to invest €28 million (The equivalent of over $30m USD) into a Global 3D Printing Hub at the city’s Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya/BarcelonaTech (UPC). The investment will be fed to the Diagonal Besòs campus for technical engineering, and its expected completion is 2020.
Leading 3D printing on a European and Global scale
HP’s 3D printing headquarters has been located in Catalonia’s capital since 2014 and supports the investment. The project also receives additional support from companies including Renishaw, Catalonia’s Institute of Bioengineering (Ibec) and the trade fair institution Fira de Barcelona.
Carles Puigdemont President of the Generalitat of Catalonia has voiced his support of the project, marking it as a strong move toward preparing the region for Industry 4.0.
The money will be invested through Acció, an agency set up to promote Catalan business and encourage startups. The first €5million will be contributed to the center this year.
Barcelona’s 3D printing scene
The Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC) is also located in Barcelona. As previously reported on 3D Printing Industry, the IAAC is a driver of 3D printing in architecture though projects such as Terra Performa and On Site Robotics, for construction with site based materials, and the Gaudi-inspired bridge.
The Poblenou Neighbourhood of Barcelona also became the first testbed for the Fab City concept. Launched in 2011, Fab City created a community centric ecosystem in the area connecting material sourcing, local produce, consumers, FabLab fabrication and recycling. Poblenou is also now connected to over 15 Fab City locations around the world, including areas of Paris, Boston and Shenzhen.
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Featured image: One of the windows of Casa Milà designed by Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí. Photo by Hernán Piñera, hernanpc on Flickr
