In October, the conference "Madrid's Defense and Security industry, internationalization as a strategy" was held in Madrid, hosted by IndustryTALKS at the headquarters of the Madrid College of Industrial Engineers (COIIM). The event, which was attended by, among other authorities, the heads of the Community of Madrid (CAM), Jaime Martínez Muñoz, General Director of Economic and Industrial Promotion of the CAM, Juan Manuel López Zafra, General Director of Economy of the CAM, and Rocío Albert López, Councilor of Economy, Finance, and Employment, as well as representatives of leading companies in the defense sector, focused on the various success stories in internationalization, as well as on the strengths of the industry in the region. 

GMV was represented by Begoña Rojo, member of the business development and institutional relations team of GMV's defense area, who spoke on the importance of secure cross-domain information transfer in both the defense and critical infrastructure sectors and the expected trends of demand in this sector at both national and international level due to the need for information exchange between EU and NATO members. In September GMV announced the full acquisition of Autek, a leading Spanish cross-domain systems company that, with 25 years' experience, has established itself as a reference in the development of cross-domain products, systems, and solutions, enabling the secure exchange of information between different domains on the basis of predetermined security policies, without compromising data security.

Autek is the first Spanish manufacturer of cross-domain products with its own technology and is certified by the National Cryptologic Center (CCN) and NATO, which guarantees compliance with the highest security standards. 

Begoña Rojo also used her speech to talk about defense SMEs and the value GMV gives them in the supply chain. Certain SMEs, Rojo explained, "are owners of total or partial knowledge of some strategic capability and some development, which is why they become key to a given defense system or program." GMV's representative stressed that SMEs are more vulnerable to changes in developments, strategies, financing agreements, etc. They therefore need to be protected against these changes. "Large companies have the responsibility to be the driving force behind SMEs," she concluded. 

Lastly, Begoña Rojo explained GMV's international experience, especially in the European market but without overlooking other markets in the rest of the world.