The Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona (CZFB) has brought together 30 international consulates at DFactory Barcelona with the aim of strengthening bilateral relations to attract foreign direct investment, promote Barcelona as a logistics and industry hub linked to innovation, sustainability and 4.0 technologies, present DFactory Barcelona as an ecosystem that wants to lead the digital transformation of the industry and generate synergies between consulates and the local business ecosystem to create opportunities abroad.
During the event, the diplomatic representatives had the opportunity to learn first-hand about the DFactory Barcelona expansion project, which will grow from its current 17,000 m² to a total of 60,000 m² by the end of next year. This expansion will allow it to host more innovative companies and research centers, consolidating Barcelona as an international benchmark in industry 4.0 and digitalization.
The consulates present represented countries from Europe, Asia, America and Africa, including Germany, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, South Korea, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Slovenia, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Israel, Jamaica, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mali, Morocco, Mexico, Moldova, Montenegro, Peru, Portugal, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine and Uruguay.
District 4.0
The special state delegate at the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona, Pere Navarro, stated that “this meeting with representatives of the consular corps in Barcelona has been an exceptional opportunity to share the strategic vision of the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona and reinforce our vocation, which is global. We have presented District 4.0, which is not something we are going to do, but which already exists with the presence of more than 300 companies that incorporate 4.0 technologies in their production processes to lead the digital transformation of the industry from Barcelona”. Navarro added that “this District 4.0 is located between Barcelona’s airport and port, next to the city of Barcelona, so we are talking about a unique location in the world. And our proposal is to create a collaboration network so that we can all move forward in a world full of uncertainties”.
For her part, Blanca Sorigué, general director of the CZFB, stated that “the interest we have received in today’s meeting confirms that our commitment to digital transformation, sustainability and talent attraction has great international projection. We are convinced that this interaction with the consular corps will contribute to strengthening strategic alliances with countries in Europe, Asia, America and Africa and to attracting new companies that share our vision of the future”.
