News
Parc de l’Alba in a WHO publication on the redevelopment of contaminated sites
The publication is the result of a project in which Parc de l’Alba (whose business area is known as Barcelona Synchrotron Park) was involved. This study is part of the Health and Environmental Impact Assessment Program of the WHO European Centre for Environment and Health.
The project focuses on the study of scientific evidence, the review of practical cases and the analysis of the impact assessment processes (SEA, EIA, HIA, HHRA, HBM*) in relation to the remediation and subsequent reuse of contaminated sites. The aim of the project is to provide tools and knowledge for local and regional administrations to improve the management of old polluted sites redevelopment, rehabilitating these soils, which are an opportunity for sustainable urban development by reducing the use of natural or unaltered spaces.
In this WHO project, the Parc de l’Alba has contributed its experience with the restoration of Àrids Catalunya, an old 4 ha clay quarry located within the Park's perimeter. Exploited until the 1970s and subsequently filled with various types of waste, basically construction debris, including asbestos, this quarry, transformed by the way into an uncontrolled landfill, represented a problem for the environment and health.
In 2010, this cuvette was restored and later redeveloped. The site is now fully restored and reforested with a viewpoint and new paths marked for public use, and since 2012 it has been officially part of the Parc de l'Alba green corridor.
* (SEA, Strategic Environmental Assessment; EIA, Environmental Impact Assessment; HIA, Health Impact Assessment; HHRA, Human Health Risk Assessment; HBM, Health Biomonitoring)
Natura Bissé: when architecture reflects the brand identity
“This work carried out by TdB Arquitectura, the firm headed by Juan Trias de Bes, shows that the industrial typology, often predictable, ordinary and soulless, is not at all at odds with good architecture. It also shows that architecture can subtly reflect —without mimicry or direct quotes— the defining features of a brand's identity. In that case, betting on values such as fluidity, transparency or space quality, in addition to seeking and finding the balance between the building’s practical function and its representative function."
This singular building praised by Moix, with 13,000 sqm of floor space, hosts the research centre, the marketing and logistics departments, the factory and an area dedicated to training and innovation.
Natura Bissé, currently led by Verónica Fisas, is strongly committed to R&D. Its global turnover was 84.7 million euros in 2019 with 87% generated in international markets (30% in China) with more than 2,500 sale points. Since 2005, products and treatments of the Catalan company are used in preparing stars for the Oscars Ceremony.
The setting up of Natura Bissé in the Barcelona Synchrotron Park, 40 years after its foundation, has been a privilege for us, and the distinctiveness and beauty of its headquarters, a great pride.
ASTIP, the future hub for advanced research in the Barcelona Synchrotron Park
More specifically, it will be an interdisciplinary hub for complex materials and biological systems that blends a unique combination of characterization and imaging tools, big data, material growth and device fabrication facilities. It will establish an ecosystem where scientific research, technology development and industrial innovation are merged to create a resilient, resource-efficient and competitive economy, focused on green energy, the digital transition and health.
ASTIP brings together the capabilities of ALBA synchrotron with the existing research, innovation and business ecosystem: Eurecat, the Technology Centre of Catalonia; IBMB, the Molecular Biology Institute of Barcelona (CSIC); ICMAB, the Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona (CSIC); ICN2, the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (CERCA); IFAE, the Institute for High Energy Physics (CERCA); UAB, the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; and the Barcelona Synchrotron Park. All of them members of the project.
The ASTIP project is one of the proposals of the Government of Catalonia to apply for the funds of the European Recovery Plan and it includes: the ALBA II program, that will transform ALBA synchrotron into a 4th generation synchrotron, and three new structures: the Complex Materials and Technologies Center (COMTEC), the Advanced Multiscale Bio Imaging Center (AMBIC) and an innovation hub (SYNDUSTRY) that will help to strengthen the relationship between basic research and companies.
4th anniversary of the setting up of Stradivarius headquarter in the Barcelona Synchrotron Park
The Inditex Group’s young fashion brand chose our park for its proximity and good connection with Barcelona, for its facilities, for being a location that highlights the building’s design and offers an inspiring framework for designers and all its staff of about 300 people.
The building, designed by Batlle i Roig Arquitectura, consists of 33,000 m2 of offices developed over 3 levels and a parking space with capacity for about 300 vehicles. Sustainability is the driving force of the design, with facades that are characterized by an interactive system of vertical fins that, not only act as an aesthetic purpose, but provide high value functionalities that guarantee energy efficiency. This fact, together with the reduction of water consumption, the selection of recyclable materials while keeping in mind their proximities, and the connection to the District Heating and Cooling network of the Barcelona Synchrotron Park, enables the building to become Leed certified.
Stradivarius is a creative company that offers its collections to around 1,000 stores in almost 70 countries around the world and it reported a turnover of €1.75 billion in 2019 (€1.28 billion in 2020, due to the pandemic). As part of the Inditex Group's strategy, Stradivarius will optimize the number of stores to conform to its growing digitalization and the development of online sales.
T-Systems, a leading IT service provider with a Data Centre in the Barcelona Synchrotron Park
T-Systems, a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom that provides all important building blocks for innovative information technology and digitalization, has a Data Centre in the Barcelona Synchrotron Park since the end of 2013.
T-Systems has been recognized by leading technology consulting firms (Whitelane, Quint, Penteo) as one of the most important IT providers based in Europe, in particular of public cloud services and technology of data centres and managed infrastructure.
The company has been awarded big deals with a total volume of more than two billion euros at the end of 2020 with companies such as Shell, Deutsche Post DHL Group or Heineken. In 2021, RCI Bank and Services, a RENAULT Group enterprise and the financial company of the Renault, Nissan, Infinity and Dacia brands, has also chosen T-Systems to make the leap to the cloud.
Locally, the City Council of Barcelona and the Port of Barcelona trust in the company: on the one hand, the City Council bases on T-Systems the consolidation of its Data Centre, the provision of ICT infrastructures and professional services necessary for the maintenance and management of the council's systems and applications. On the other hand, the Port of Barcelona has chosen the IT company to increase its digitization and to offer its customers, by means of artificial intelligence, real-time information on the access times to the terminals within the port, allowing them to increase efficiency in merchandise management and to reduce the impact of the port activity in CO2 emissions.
SENER participates in the Perseverance rover which is landing on Mars today
SENER Aerospace is the division of the multinational engineering and technology group SENER (more than 2,300 people in 21 countries) with Catalan headquarters in the Barcelona Synchrotron Park where a strong aerospace activity takes place.
SENER Aerospace is news due to its important participation in the Perseverance rover, which is landing today at 10:00 p.m. (Barcelona time) on Mars, starting the exploration of the Red Planet as part of the Mars2020 NASA mission.
This company has designed, manufactured, tested and integrated the pointing mechanism for the high gain antenna that allows direct two-way communication between the Perseverance rover and tracking stations on Earth. SENER was also responsible for the hold down and release mechanism that provides a mechanical connection during launch and allows the subsequent operation of the antenna in Mars.
The Perseverance's extensive instrumentation will allow to search for signs of life on the Martian soil, collect data from the geological past, and also record sounds of the Red Planet surface.
Save landing!
home