In 2012 the Packaging Cluster with the aim of offering a tool that will promote the packaging sector in Catalonia, as well as the industry as a whole, and since then it has not stopped growing. Currently, the cluster is made up of 86 companies, knowledge centers and entities, coordinated by a work team of four people, which at a logistical level has led to the transfer of its headquarters to Sabadell, to Can Roqueta Industrial Business Center.
The new headquarters was inaugurated on March 9 and welcomed more than 60 professionals from the cluster's ecosystem. The day began with the first meeting of the year of the Board of Directors, which meets periodically to know the status of the cluster, approve future activities and budgets and take stock, providing a strategic orientation to promote the packaging sector. The meeting consisted of the Board of Directors, some partner company as listeners and two of the new partners of the cluster, Concentrol and Eurofins, who briefly introduced themselves in front of the attendees.
In the session, an economic summary was made that reviewed the movements carried out in the first quarter of the year, the activities planned for both the partner and the cluster were presented and the progress of the R & D & I projects that are in progress were evaluated. progress: Safe Smart Food, FoodPackLab and the sector study, financed 100% by ACCIÓ, in relation to Industry 4.0, in addition to taking stock of the impact of the Pick & Pack on the positioning and visibility of the cluster.
These meetings allow us to compare the current situation of the entity with that of last year and to follow clear indicators, according to the guidelines recommended in the audit to which Packaging Cluster was subjected at the end of the year, to achieve "Excellence" in the management of the cluster, at the European level. In this way, the KPIs set by the Cluster's Strategic Plan are constantly monitored and the results allow to activate casuistry, which otherwise would not happen.
After the meeting, institutional welcomes were offered to the more than 60 invited professionals. They began with the President of Packaging Cluster, Artur Costa, who presented the new challenges facing the cluster with the relocation of its headquarters and the future projection, as well as a tour of the evolution of the cluster in recent years. Later, Montse González, Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and Administrative Impulse of the Sabadell City Council, showed the City Council's willingness to actively participate in research and innovation in PIMES. For her part, the General Director of Industry of the Generalitat de Catalunya, Matilde Villarroya, pointed out the great potential of the packaging sector today, with an annual turnover of 7.100 billion euros and a key position on the road to sustainability.
Finally, as a special guest at the inauguration, the President of the Cecot Innovation and Technology Club, Enric Barba, made a presentation on "Executive leadership: a key factor in the success of innovation". In his speech, he gave some of the keys necessary to introduce innovation in one's own leadership and gave real examples that occurred in the Battle of Trafalgar, replicables to today. The inauguration ended with a joint toast with the attendees and a networking snack among the attendees.
