The Generalitat formalized this Monday the creation of the board of trustees of the InnoFAB Foundation, a non-profit entity attached to the Ministry of Research and Universities, whose mission will be to launch the new infrastructure for the prototyping of advanced semiconductors in Catalonia.
According to the Government in a statement, the project contemplates an investment close to 400 million euros and will be built in the Parc de l'Alba in Barcelona, next to the Synchrotron. The initiative aims to boost the generation of talent, entrepreneurs and high-tech 'start-ups', as well as the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises linked to the field of micro and nanotechnologies.
The board is made up of the councilors of Presidency, Albert Dalmau; of Economy and Finance, Alícia Romero; of Business and Labor, Miquel Sàmper, and of Research and Universities, Núria Montserrat.
The governance structure will be organized around an executive commission made up of five trustees appointed by the board of trustees, to which the figures responsible for management and administration will be added. Likewise, an advisory council composed of researchers of recognized prestige and competence will be established.
A "key piece" for the innovation ecosystem
InnoFAB aims to consolidate itself as a "key piece" of the Catalan knowledge system, by configuring itself as the first center for the development and prototyping of micro and nanotechnologies based on advanced semiconductors in Catalonia. The technical project has been led so far by ICN2 and foresees an investment of around 400 million euros, with European financing through the NextGenerationEU funds.
The future center will have a clean room of 2,000 square meters intended for the manufacturing of prototypes and small series of advanced semiconductors, which will have applications in strategic sectors such as electronics, health, or energy. The complex will be completed with three other buildings: the FAB, an office and laboratory building, and an auxiliary services building, which together will add up to a built area of nearly 22,000 square meters.
The Government specifies that InnoFAB's activity will focus mainly on Catalonia, although its collaborations and impact will be projected at a state, European, and international level. The objective is to cover the entire 'Lab-to-Fab' process and facilitate the transformation of innovations generated in laboratories into industrial products.
Furthermore, it is estimated that the center will create 200 direct jobs and consolidate itself as a reference player in the field of semiconductors. InnoFAB is integrated into the Trident Innovador planned in the Pla Catalunya Lidera, with the purpose of reinforcing Catalonia's positioning as a European benchmark in technological and industrial innovation, with special attention to the semiconductor sector.