LOGROO, 12 (EUROPA PRESS)
The President of the Government of La Rioja, Concha Andreu, presented this Monday at the Ideal Theater in Calahorra the architectural proposal for the National Center for Packaging Technologies, which will be located in the El Recuenco industrial estate in the town. Andreu recalled that this research, development and industrialization center, the core of the Ciudad del Envase y el Embalaje project, has an initial investment of 40 million euros, “an unprecedented figure in La Rioja”, co-financed by the Government of La Rioja and the Government of Spain.
“We are going to have in Calahorra, in La Rioja, a leading national center in an area in which we are a reference and an example, with the involvement of four ministries that allocate their own funds to the National Center from their budgets, which shows their commitment to the project”, pointed out Andreu. “This is a firm commitment by the Government of La Rioja and the Government of Spain for science, for research and for knowledge applied to the productive sector”, he added.
As the president pointed out, the challenges of the container and packaging sector are going to be resolved at the National Center with the direct involvement of the industries, in order to “have packaging suitable for the needs and demands of both client companies and end consumers.” , which are marked by the new regulations, but also by the interests of citizens, who are increasingly making clearer demands and are more aware of the environment”.
The head of the La Rioja Executive has stressed that public investment will not only be allocated to the construction of “an avant-garde and benchmark center”, but also “to the provision of the best resources and the hiring of the best professionals for its implementation at full capacity”, which includes technicians, researchers and expert staff in the areas in which the center will work.
“It is, therefore, a public investment that will create jobs directly related to R+D+i and that will energize and stimulate private agents so that they in turn generate employment and wealth”, he defined. Along these lines, he explained that “the research, development and industrialization that will be carried out in the center will modernize the sector and boost its competitiveness”, which will result in the competitiveness of its value chain, which includes the agri-food, wine, footwear or the automotive sector, and, in short, “from all of La Rioja”.
For her part, the Government delegate in La Rioja, Beatriz Arraiz, stated that the Spanish Government has made it a priority to promote actions to achieve solutions against climate change and move towards a greener, more competitive, more prosperous and more cohesive.
“For this, it is necessary to have the will and promote specific actions, such as the promotion of the National Center for Packaging Technologies, which will promote the transformation of the sector through a strategic project in accordance with the objectives of the European Green Pact”, he added. In addition, Arraiz Nalda has highlighted the importance that social and territorial cohesion acquires for the Government of Spain. “The commitment and construction of the City of Containers and Packaging in Calahorra denotes the indisputable strength of all the regions that make up our country”, he assured.
The mayoress of Calahorra, Elisa Garrido, has pointed out the importance of the Ciudad del Envase y el Embalaje project for the town, since it will “strengthen and promote the growth of the industry, which has always been the growth engine of Calahorra and its surroundings “. “We must continue betting on it as a way of fixing the population through qualified and well-paid jobs that allow young people to build their vital project in the city”, she has summarized.
A REFERENT CENTER AT ARCHITECTURAL LEVEL
In the presentation, which was attended by institutional representatives and business managers from the sector and its value chain, Oriol Ribas, Gustavo Figueira and Diego Díaz also participated, representing the joint venture made up of Sog Design and vi17 Arquitectura, responsible for the project architecture of the National Center. His proposal has been the winner of the contest launched by the Ciudad del Envase y el Embalaje Foundation for the construction of the center and for this he will obtain a prize of 20,000 euros and the preferential right to opt for the award of the service contract for the drafting of the project. basic and execution and construction management.
The architectural project seeks to make the National Center for Packaging Technologies an architectural, technological and sustainability benchmark and an icon of the Ciudad del Envase y el Embalaje project. With an estimated budget of 12 million euros for project and construction, the proposal will be located on a plot of 94,054 square meters and includes a natural environment with large green spaces, rest areas, outreach and complementary services for workers and users and a complex of 8,000 square meters with a replicable and expandable modular structure.
THREE AREAS OF WORK AND EXHIBITIONS IN CALAHORRA AND LOGROO
The center will have three work areas:
-Innovation Hub: It has already started its activity with the ‘Activa Startups: Packaging and Packaging Challenges of La Rioja’ program and in this space startups and innovative companies will work in collaboration with industries and R&D departments. -R&D Center: It will be in charge of development and scientific research to evolve, refine and mature innovative proposals in its own laboratories and thus achieve the best results in each case. -Industrialization and Prototyping Plant: Space where the developments will be tested in conditions similar to a real context so that they are not only innovative and functional, but also industrializable, which will allow the developments to be transferred to the industry with full guarantee.
The winning proposal, as well as the three finalists (who obtain prizes of 10,000, 8,000 and 7,000 euros, respectively), can be seen from December 20 in two simultaneous exhibitions in Calahorra and Logroo.
