To consolidate itself as a true Industry 4.0 district of global reach. This is the objective with which DFactory has launched the first phase of its expansion, with which it will gain 30,000 square meters in two new buildings. With this first expansion, the center will reach 47,000 square meters of floor space, which will be dedicated to industry innovations and are expected to be operational by the end of 2026. Currently, it has 17,000 square meters.
This expansion of DFactory, now in the bidding phase, will have a cost of between 50 and 70 million euros, which will translate into two new buildings on the plot that extends in front of the current entrance to the property. The expansion, however, will not stop here: the center of the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona (CZFB) plans to continue expanding in a second phase until it reaches 100,000 square meters. This future phase, for now without a timetable, will be launched as DFactory occupies its available spaces and attracts interest from the sector to continue growing.
DFactory, which opened in 2021 promoted by the CZFB on the grounds of the old Seat factory, now hosts about 30 companies and generates 500 direct jobs, which could also triple to 1,500 with this first phase of expansion. To this end, the center will house both industrial startups in early or growth stages, as well as large companies that choose DFactory to open new global hubs.
To reach these companies, the CZFB has undertaken an "international road show" in which it has gathered the interest of large global companies: "These are companies that are debating between opening in Barcelona or cities like Hong Kong or San Francisco," illustrated the general director of the CZFB, Blanca Sorigué, alongside the special delegate of the State in the CZFB, Pere Navarro.
The three buildings will be located along a large avenue into which what is Calle Número 27 of the Zona Franca will be transformed. It will be culminated by one of the buildings, with a glazed cube shape, where activities and demonstrations will be organized, as Navarro explained. In addition, in the future it will include elements such as a large monolith that will symbolize knowledge, as a cinematic nod to 2001: A Space Odyssey.
All of this is proposed in an "industrial park that is now isolated," something the consortium wants to reverse. To achieve this, they are committed to promoting measures to facilitate mobility, with more bike lanes and more public transport, Navarro advanced: "We want it to be much more friendly and more open to the city and the metropolitan region, from both a physical and psychological point of view."
The promotion of this urban integration is part of the CZFB's Strategic Plan for 2025-2029, which the consortium has updated with its objectives for the coming years. Among them are also continuing to promote the Incubator 3D, as well as continuing to boost its Logistics 4.0 Incubator, which has hosted 46 companies and which at the end of January will launch a call to welcome new logistics startups.
In addition, the consortium will convert three of the streets in the Zona Franca into a test laboratory for electric and connected vehicles. To test new technologies in circulation, the streets will remain open for their usual use in this new "proving ground" that the consortium will open to automotive companies. This year, the technological architecture that will enable this circuit will be implemented, to allow real-time connectivity of the vehicles to be tested.
Another of the consortium's objectives is to continue bringing Industry 4.0 closer to citizens and, above all, to awaken vocations at early ages. To do this, it takes its projects to schools and, in addition, has taken it out of the classrooms, with visits by children to centers such as factories and chemical plants. The consortium, which wants to export this program to reach more areas of Catalonia, focuses especially on girls, in its strategy to promote equality and give visibility to women in the sector.
The Zona Franca will also host another test, and that is that the OECD and the CZFB have agreed to launch a pilot project that will serve to certify free zones around the world that guarantee commercial security in their territory. In this context, the Zona Franca de Barcelona expects to become "the first in the world to obtain this certification" this year, Navarro highlighted.
The Zona Franca considers growing upwards
To continue positioning the Free Trade Zone internationally as a hub for industry 4.0, the consortium encourages companies operating from its industrial park to embrace innovative technologies. "The goal is to generate density, and for the 4.0 district to become a reality. And it will only be so if its 6,000 square kilometers in block become a world reference," Navarro emphasized.
Currently, the industrial park has an occupancy of more than 90% and, although it cannot be expanded due to its natural borders, it plans to expand spaces: the consortium is considering making it grow by maximizing the use of the plots. In a joint effort with the municipal company Barcelona Regional, the plots are being sectorized to study the possibility of increasing their buildability and erecting upper floors, with the aim of expanding the capacity of the industrial park.
In addition, the consortium also wants to make the most of the roofs of the industrial park's warehouses, and is carrying out a study to promote a massive installation of solar panels. The energy generated could go beyond the Free Trade Zone and be taken to the port and the Marina del Prat Vermell. This measure is included in a strategic plan that also prioritizes CSR commitments, which include the agreement to cede land to the City Council to build almost 2,000 homes.
Among the objectives of the CZFB is also its commitment to convert the Correos building on Via Laietana into a digital innovation center, with a 50 million euro renovation. However, the project remains stalled due to the disparate valuation of the historic building: one values it at 50 million, but the one the consortium considers valid places the figure at around 20 million. The difference lies in that one only considers the surface and location, while the 20 million one takes into account that the use of the building is restricted only to postal services, and that it will only change if it is to be managed by the consortium, and not any other operator.