Our CATEC headquarters in Seville welcomed a visit from Daniel Escacena Ortega, Secretary General for Research and Innovation at the Regional Ministry of Universities, Research and Innovation of the Regional Government of Andalusia, and the Director-General for Entrepreneurship Promotion and Continuing Education, Francisco Javier González Navarro, from the same department, who were able to see first-hand the facilities and technological capabilities of our centre across its various areas of activity.
During the visit, both officials were accompanied by our CEO, Joaquín Rodríguez Grau, as well as our Scientific Director, Anibal Ollero; our Director of Avionics and Systems, Antidio Viguria; and our Director of Smart Industry, Jesús Boby Alcaide. In addition to touring our main facilities, Daniel Escacena and Francisco Javier González were able to attend several specially arranged technology demonstrations and learn about some of the most significant innovation projects in which CATEC is currently involved.
In the Additive Manufacturing and Low Observability sections, they examined in detail various parts manufactured using PBF (Powder Bed Fusion) and white cube parts, whilst also attending demonstrations of a robotic cell, an autonomous quadruped system, the Liptacon weld inspection system and Smart Workplace. Finally, they were introduced to the most notable projects in Avionics and Systems, and attended a demonstration in our indoor testbed of the European BEEYONDERS project, consisting of an autonomous drone capable of localisation without LIDAR, mapping, and obstacle detection and avoidance.
During the visit, the Secretary General for Research and Innovation, Daniel Escacena, emphasised that CATEC has established itself as the key driver of aerospace innovation in Andalusia and that its contribution has been crucial in keeping the region at the technological forefront in a sector considered strategic for the economy, both due to the volume of employment, turnover and exports it generates, and because of the high-specialisation technology it drives across other sectors.
Daniel Escacena also highlighted the intense activity in knowledge generation carried out by our technology centre through public-private partnerships in the aeronautics, space and defence industries, which has enabled it to forge alliances with companies and organisations at regional, national and European level. “CATEC carries out highly significant initiatives as a technology partner in European consortia, and its experience and expertise have also enabled it to become a European and global leader in the development of technologies for medium, small and light UAVs, as well as establishing itself as an international benchmark in collaborative and aerial robotics, having carried out the world’s first complex aerial robotic manipulation tasks,” he stated.
