Located in a highly industrialized region (Upper Deba), the project will encourage the search for industrial solutions that can meet environmental objectives and, at the same time, create jobs and improve the socio-economic situation of the region. It inherits the spirit of the pioneers of cooperativism and becomes a key element of the regional knowledge ecosystem, as well as its scalability in Gipuzkoa, the Basque Country and Spain.

Specifically, the Ministry of Science and Innovation has recently approved a nominal grant of 700,000 euros for the Mondragon Higher Polytechnic School project. It is a subsidy foreseen in the General State Budget for 2021 and was proposed by the Basque parliamentary group EAJ-PNV.

Project challenges

•  Catalyze the necessary technological-energy transition in the industrial sector towards a more competitive economy based on a sustainable high value-added industry.
• Promoting sustainable and cohesive development in the region through private-public cooperation projects.

Under the guidance of the Mondragon Higher Polytechnic School, the project will promote interdisciplinary collaboration between companies, entrepreneurs and technological agents in internal and entrepreneurial actions to make the necessary transition to a sustainable and fair industry.

Several companies and entrepreneurs will share industrial-scale projects, spaces and equipment with the university and technology centers. It is an innovative proposal that aims to be an international benchmark; in fact, there is currently no center that brings all of these components together for a shared purpose.

Maintaining employment and the creation of activity in the territory, according to the following premises:

• Sustainability and digitization in industrial sectors (Industry 4.0): Manufacturing, automotive, machine tools and capital goods, renewable energy, bioengineering.
• Multidisciplinary, with the participation of different areas of knowledge: Engineering, business management, humanities, entrepreneurship.
•  Inter-sectoral and intergenerational, with the participation of industry, technology centers, academia, administrations and society in general, with the collaboration of young talent and experts with extensive experience in industry.
• With a dual approach to industrial orientation: Towards diversification and internal entrepreneurship, in direct collaboration with R&D companies and units. Towards entrepreneurship, giving freedom to entrepreneurial creativity.
• Project shared by regional actors: From the moment of its creation, planning, implementation and management, connected to society.

The center will have several spaces: differential industrial space (depending on height and seismic bases), other plant spaces that do not meet these needs, co-creation spaces and spaces for experimenting with sustainable business models, counting and simulation rooms, workshops with generic prototyping equipment , etc.