Printing complete homes in 3D; transforming sanitary waste into thermal insulation; manufacturing homes in series in a modular way; printing in concrete or automating construction processes with AI. Initiatives like these are called to revolutionize the construction sector, hand in hand with startups like Evocons, Sustein, Atom Modular, Aridditve, and SpeedyAI.
All of them, along with many others, work to incorporate technological innovation into construction processes and their management. Thus, the sector is transformed with advances ranging from sustainability to automation and robotics, passing through digitalization and industrialized construction, which manufactures offsite pieces that are later assembled in their final location.
To energize the entrepreneurial ecosystem linked to the field of Construction Technology (contech), the Barcelona Contech Hub has emerged from the Catalan capital, created in January 2024 to boost this field in the city and beyond, as explained by its hub leader, Paco Gómez Escofet, with extensive experience in entrepreneurship linked to construction.
"Barcelona and its architecture are recognized worldwide, and that adds up. We have a powerful construction ecosystem, and we are technological references," which contributes to boosting the contech field. With this objective, the hub promotes technological innovation applied to construction by energizing the entrepreneurial ecosystem, with initiatives such as the pitch day that 18 startups held before the Cambra de Contractistes d'Obres de Catalunya and Foment del Treball a little over a month ago.
Now, the hub takes a step forward with the opening of the Contech Space Lab in September, which stands as "the first coworking specialized in startups in the construction world." The space, which will be located at the Institut de Tecnologia de la Construcció de Catalunya (ITeC), seeks to attract emerging companies in the sector to give them a boost and connect them with large companies and investors, with the aim of attracting a maximum of approximately a dozen startups within the lab.
"Traditionally, innovation and construction were two concepts that didn't quite mesh," Gómez points out. However, the need to incorporate Industry 4.0 into construction became evident, especially considering that it is one of the most polluting sectors globally. It was in the early 2000s when technology began to firmly introduce itself into construction, and it has been making its way into all areas: from process digitalization to materials and construction systems.
While contech ecosystems were taking shape on an international scale, initiatives had emerged at the state level, but in a fragmented way. With the aim of grouping these projects to propel their growth, the hub began to materialize, now bringing together the value chain of the construction sector with technological innovation as its common thread. Created a year and a half ago, the hub was boosted by ITeC, which has nearly half a century of activity promoting technology applied to this field, and currently works with about twenty countries validating and approving products manufactured outside Europe that are intended to be sold in the EU.
Thus, the hub encompasses everything from construction companies to distributors, installers, manufacturers of construction materials, universities, investors, and public actors like Acció, along with the startups working to transform the sector. It currently brings together about 70 members, including large corporations such as Sorigué, Copcisa, and Procore. Among its members, there are also more than 40 startups, in a sector that "is growing very fast." In fact, five years ago Gómez prepared a report for the Contech Observatory that counted 50 startups at the state level; now, there are more than 200.
The Barcelona Contech Hub model is being replicated by other European regions"It's a good time for the sector, as many large companies that are not very digitized and have innovated little are now changing their mindset, and are starting to want to incorporate innovations," highlights the hub leader.Within this growth,"Catalonia is by far the region with the most startups within the construction world at the state level."
All of this, moreover, is driven by an international perspective. In fact, the Barcelona Contech Hub model is being replicated in other European regions, and the creation of a global confederation of contech initiatives is being promoted. It was precisely the Barcelona hub that launched the proposal recently at a meeting in Paris, and it now has 12 founding members, including international players from Europe to Asia and America. "It is the first international initiative to be launched, and that gives us a lot of visibility."
Driving the sector from this international vocation enriches the ecosystem also at a local level, since each region usually promotes different areas depending on its circumstances: "In Europe, startups look a lot at sustainability due in part to EU regulation; in the United States, they touch a lot on AI and robotics, while Nordic countries are very strong in industrialized construction, because when you work at 20 degrees below zero, there is no other option," illustrates Gómez.
Thus, the hub works to promote technological innovation in construction from Barcelona, with the aim of turning the ecosystem into an international benchmark and an epicenter of innovation in construction: "In Barcelona, we have the makings to achieve it: we have the ecosystem, the talent, and the entrepreneurial spirit."