/ Advanced Manufacturing

Barcelona, a new industrial model: efficient, sustainable and digital

Barcelona, thanks to its industrial tradition, is called to play a relevant role in the transition to a new
advanced manufacturing paradigm.

/ Longstanding tradition and solid industrial implantation
Sectors

/ Automotive
/ Pharma & Biotechnology
/ Food & Beverages
/ Fashion Retailers
/ Telecommunications
/ Energy & Utilities

/ Industrial activity
19.8% +534,000
GVA Employees
Catalonia has industrial specialization across various sectors, including the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, automotive, food, paper and graphic arts and waste treatment clusters.
/ Main industrial branches
/ Automotive
9.2%
Catalan GDP
+52,250
Employees
22.1%
Of the automotive companies in Spain
/ Pharma & Biotechnology
The Barcelona’s region is Europe’s densest pharma ecosystem.
+78,250,
Employees
/ Food & Beverages
20%
Catalan GDP
+175,600
Employees
48,231 M€
Turnover
/ Fashion Retailers
Barcelona has an excellent reputation in Europe in design education and are home to some of the most important schools.
/ A meeting point for semiconductors sector

Barcelona’s strategic position in the microelectronics and semiconductor sectors is unparalleled. Barcelona’s top-tier research centers in microelectronics, photonics, nanotechnology, and supercomputing, combined with its thriving ecosystem of global industry leaders and innovative startups, position the city as a powerhouse for technological innovation. The city is also home of groundbreaking startups in areas like medical devices, quantum technology, and photonics.

The region of Barcelona is incredibly research-intensive and with only 0.1% of the world’s population accounts for 1% of scientific production.
+ 100

Companies and research entities

+4,400

Employees
 

Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC)
It is building the fastest high-performance computer in the EU as well as 2 experimental quantum computers. It also is the headquarters of the Quantum Spain project.
Cutting-Edge research facilities
The city also hosts ICFO, one of the top 3 photonics institutes in the world as well as ones on nanotechnology, high energy physics and a 3rd generation of ALBA synchrotron, the largest scientific infrastructure in the country.
International presence
Companies such as Cisco and Intel have recognized these amazing assets and are setting up chips design centres in the city, their first in Europe.
/ A great place for the industry of tomorrow
DFactory

Created to concentrate companies and technologies from Industry 4.0

DFactory Barcelona aims to promote and develop industry 4.0 by fostering talent, new technologies and investment in an unrivalled space, where a new, much more sustainable way of producing materialises.

1st European system for automating the transport of automotive parts

SEAT (Volkswagen Group) is the first industrial manufacturer in Europe to have AGVs (Automated guided vehicles) with SLAM navigation (simultaneous localization and mapping) for the supply of spare parts.

Barcelona hosts one of the world’s advanced research and development facilities for next generation technologies in 3D

HP’s Digital Manufacturing Centre of Excellence in Barcelona employs over 1,600 people. It is a cutting-edge innovation space to transform the way the world designs and manufactures.

/ Barcelona’s advanced manufacturing ecosystem