In the “Innovation Ecosystem and Industry 4.0” event organized by FEI there was a consensus view that Spain’s industrial fabric stands in need of transformation and modernization

The “Innovation Ecosystem and Industry 4.0” event (“Industria 4.0 y Ecosistema de Innovación"), organized by the Innovating Companies Forum (Foro de Empresas Innovadoras: FEI), was opened by Juan M. Vázquez, Secretary General of Science and Innovation at Spain’s Economics Ministry, Francisco Marín, Director General of Spain’s Industrial Technology Development Center (Centro para el Desarrollo Tecnológico Industrial: CDTI) and Luis Fernando Álvarez-Gascón, CEO of GMV Secure e-Solutions and Vice President of FEI.

Luis Fernando Álvarez-Gascón pinpointed the sheer speed of change as the main feature of the Industry 4.0 transformation. He therefore argued that Spain needed to make a special effort to keep up a high rate of change to enable the country to reach the 4.0 welfare level.

Pursuit of the top welfare level calls for a reinvention of itself by Spain’s industrial sector, accepting the need for taking on a reindustrialization process to boost the sector’s GDP contribution. This should be done, moreover, not only by developing technology-based companies but also by taking the 4.0 revolution even into the primary sector.

The FEI Vice President and CEO of GMV Secure e-Solutions also argued that Spain had to increase its R&D investment level on the strength of bigger contributions from both the public and private sectors. He went on to advocate, “an accompanying debate about the policies and instruments best suited to optimize the results of Spain’s investments”.

For his part Juan M. Vázquez, Secretary General of Science and Innovation at Spain’s Ministry of Economics, Industry and Competitiveness, expressed his conviction that a bigger R&D allotment and an increase in company investment will boost the industrial sector’s GDP contribution.