Catalonia, 103 companies devoted to IoT and 90 to 3D printing employ 2,900 people

• Companies related to IoT employ almost 1,700 workers
• 90 companies from the 3D printing sector employ 1,200 workers and have a turnover of €239M

A report from the Departament d’Empresa i Coneixement prepared by ACCIÓ (Agency for Business Competitiveness) states that Catalonia currently has 103 companies devoted to the IoT and 90 to 3D printing.  This report was made public at the same time as the recent celebration of the IoT Solutions World Congress, Blockchain Solutions World and the In(3D)ustry congresses within the Barcelona Industry Week.

According to the report La Internet de les Coses a Catalunya, Catalonian companies related to IoT have a turnover of €215M. Most of these companies are Solution Providers, software developers, hardware manufacturers and integrators (consulting firms and engineers) which are responsible for 1,700 jobs. Most of them (92%) are highly internationalised SMEs.  This sector is made up by start-ups and mature companies with an IoT business line.

The report highlights the importance of IoT in a context of digital transformation. This technology is already being used in sectors where a high potential of connection is paramount such as at smart homes or smart cities, autonomous driving, advanced manufacturing, energy, circular economy, smart farming and wearables, mainly.

On the other hand, according to the 3D Printing a Catalunya report, companies related to 3D printing employ 1,200 workers in total and have a turnover of €239M. 90% of Catalonian companies from this sector are SMEs; 25.5% among them are exporters, and 47.7% are less than 10 years old. They are, mainly, manufacturers of printers and other materials, integrators and service providers.

Nowadays, 3D printing allows for innovation using new materials, and eases manufacturing anywhere on Earth as is the design and not the final product what is exported. As to the future, the report underlines those new applications of 3D printing emerging in the short term as bio-printing, the manufacturing of aerospace components, prefab housing or clothing.

[11/21/2018]