Every time I walk past the supermarket shelf and see it, I can´t help but smile. At CARTIF, we are incredibly proud to share with you that the result of the KOMFIBRA project has made its way to the market. Once again, a product developed by CARTIF has become a reality and is now available for everyone to enjoy. This achievement was made possible thanks to the collaborative efforts with our friends at KOMVIDA.
The product? Kombucha enriched with fiber- a fermented tea containing probiotics and prebiotics, with a refreshing lime-lemon flvaor and light natural bubbles, unpasteurized. A healthy and delicious drink that everyone is talking about.
What was our challenge?
This project has been a true scientific and technological challenge, but every step along the way brought us closer to our goal: creating a functional product that is healthy, innovative and accessible to all.
During the first phase, we evaluated various types of fiber based on their solubility and their ability to preserve the sensory characteristics or original kombucha. We also consducted multiple tests to determine the best time to add the fiber during the production process to ensure its stability and flavor.
In the second phase, it was time to move from the laboratory to the industrial plant. The result? A drink with perfect bubbles, a delicious flavor, and a natural sewwtness enhanced by the added fiber, making it even more enjoyable.
Finally, the clinical study. We wanted this kombucha to taste great, but we also needed to confirm its health benefits. In a study with 60 healthy volunteers, we observed:
A reduction in blood triglyceride levels compared to the control group.
An increase in beneficial bacteria such as Bifidobacterium, essential for a healthy hut microbiota.
A decrease in a microorganism associated with intestinal issues.
Kombucha, a product for everyone
The best part? This kombucha is proof that innovation and great taste can go hand in hand. We´ve ensured it´s safe, well-tolerated, and has exceeded consumer satisfaction expectations during the study.
We want to thank KOMVIDA for trusting in CARTIF´s innovation and for the amazing teamwork that brought this challenge to the shelves, Seeing, touching, and tasting the result of our work is an incredible source of pride.
Try it!
Komvida Fibra is more than just a drink; it´s an ally for your well-being. It´s already available on the market, and we´re confident you´ll love it as much as we do.
Thank you to everyone who has been part of this excting journey!
In 2020, Spain took a firm step towards decarbonisation with the publication of the National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC). Among the measures highlighted, renewable hydrogen or green hydrogen, i.e., hydrogen generated in electrolysers powered by renewable energy, emerged as a key solution to reduce emissions in various sectors.
One of these measures was the publication of a Hydrogen Roadmap, which sets out concrete strategies to avoid CO2 emissions through hydrogen, replacing fossil fuels in uses such as heat generation for industry or housing, or as fuel in means of transport such as lorries or ships. It also sets targets for hydrogen use by 2030, including having 4 GW of installed capacity of electrolysers and replacing 25% of the hydrogen consumed in industry with green hydrogen.
Fig.1. Objectives of the Hydrogen Roadmap. Source: Hydrogen Roadmap
Thanks to these policies, both both local and international companies will start to invest in hydrogen, proposing projects with electrolysers of up to 100 MW to supply peninsular consumers. European programmes will help finance these projects, although they will also depend to a large extent on private investment.
European Union policies on hydrogen
The European Comission adopted its hydrogen strategy in July 2020, calling for a total of 40 GW of electrolyser capacity for the whole region by 2030, and hydrogen consumption accounting for 24% of all final energy by 2050. In addition, through other policies such as the “Fit for 55” package or RePowerEU, it will set an objective of 10 Mt of hydrogen generation and 20 Mt of consumption; 75% substitution of fossil fuels with renewables (including hydrogen) in industry and 5% in transport; and construction of up to 28,000km of hydrogen exchange pipelines, all by 2030.
Programmes are also being created to finance the installation of hydrogen infrastructure, such as “Hy2Tech” or “Hy2Infra”, which, between different calls for public and private funding, have raised more than 38 billion euros; as well as institutions designed to vridge the price gap that green hydrogen currently has, such as the European Hydrogen Bank.
Figure 2 shows the installation objectives of the different EU countries, which together manage to exceed the overall target for the region. Countries such as France and the Netherlands plan to reach up to 6GW of national capacity, followed by Germany, Italy and Denmark with 5 GW, or Romania and Spain with 4 GW.
Fig.2. Targets for installed capacity of electrolysers in EU countries by 2030. Source: Own elaboration for HYDRA project
According to the 2024 Global Hydrogen Review published by the International Energy Agency, the current installed capacity in Europe is 2 GW, leaving the 40 GW target a long way off. The challenges of financing for large infrastructure, electrolyser manufacturing capacity and connecting hydrogen producers and consumers need to be overcome to boost this growth.
Hydrogen policies in the rest of the world
At a global level, goverments´ concern for the energy and environmental situation has drivenpolicies and strategies for decarbonisation using renewable hydrogen. Not only large hydrogen producing and consuming countries, but also countries that see hydrogen as a great opportunity for development and economic growth, thinking about the posibility of international trade.
Figure 3 shows the electrolysers installation targets of other countries compared to the EU, together reaching more than 250 GW. Regions such as Europe, Russia and USA will try to reach more than 40 GW of generation, but also countries such as Chile, India or Canada are planning large investments, taking advantage of the opportunity to trade with hydrogen.
Fig.3. Global installed power targets for 2030. Source: own elaboration for HYDRA project.
Achieving the proposed targets, especially considering that we are halfway through many of them, is a considerable challenge. Of the 520 GW of projects announced for 2024, only 20 GW have reached the final financing decision, making this the biggest challenge to hydrogen penetration. As for electrolyser manufacturing capacity, it currently stands at 5 GW, although it has increased ninefold since 2021. The challenges are great, however, the global commitment and the desire to lead this energy revolution keep the commitment to hydrogen as a transformational solution alive.
The future of hydrogen in Spain
Spain updated the PNIEC in 2023, increasing the objective for electrolysers capacity to 12 GW by 2030, more than a quarter of the total European Union target. Spain currently has an installed electrolyser capacity of 35 MW, and has the largest industrial electrolyser in Europe: a 20 MW electrolyser located in Puertollano, Ciudad Real. However, for the time being it depends on external electrolyser manufacturers.
“Spain has the largest industrial electrolyser in Europe. 20 MW located in Puertollano, Ciudad Real”
This commitment reinforces the need to careful planning to maximise the economic, environmental and social benefits of this revolution. Despite progress in funding and project approval, further analysis of the impacts of hydrogen on the economy, land use and society is still needed.
Thanks to the use of Integrated Assesment Models, we can simulate complex scenarios and assess the effects of this transition, ensuring data-driven planning with a holistic sustainability perspective. At CARTIF, we work to understand and optimise the role of hydrogen in the energy transition. Through HYDRA project (no. GA 101137758), we have analysed hydrogen policies at European and global level, using Integrated Assesment Models (IAMs) to explore how this technology can be sustainably integrated into different sectors.
The implementation of policies such as RePowerEU and support for “hydrogen valleys” demonstrate a strong commitment to the development of this technology. However, international collaboration and strategic planning will remain essential to maximise its positive impact.
Renewable hydrogen represents a unique opportunity to transform our energy model and move towards a cleaner and more sustainable economy. At CARTIF, we continue to research and developsolutions that makes this vision a reality.
The future of hydrogen is now! Join the revolution and discover how this technology is changing the world.
In a geo-political and socio-economic environment such as ours, in which the industrial and business environment requires liquid managers with the ability to make decisions that adapt to the environment like water to the container that holds it, in which unlearning and relearning is worth more than the knowledge acquired so far, in which action plans must consider exploitation and exploration activities at the same level of importance. In this fast-paced world, the rest of agents in the innovation ecosystem -technology centres and research agents, public administrations, and society-, need to introduce routine actions that balance the objective risk-return ratio for each entity. Routine actions repeated by each one of them, reinforcing the role of each one of them. The role of each agent is a subject I dealt with in the post “Every stick hold its own”
We need routines that reduce the level of uncertainty in the environment in which we move, routines that allow us to make quick decisions with the addequate risk to the rentability we want to achieve, routines that respond to how, what, who, where and why of each value proposition.
These routines begin in the formation of universities, where the seed must be sown so that the routines begin to take root and the ecosystem allows it to grow in fertile soil and reproduce itself and leave a legacy.
These routines, although they may seem antonyms of innovation because of their repetitive and predictable nature, are in in fact the pillars that support the possibility of exploring the unknown. In a dynamic innovation ecosystem, routines are not simply inert habits; they are the scaffolding that allows us to experiment, learn and evolve with purpose. Like the musician who rehearses the same scales day after day to improvise masterfully in concert, routines in innovation are the disciplined rehearsal that precedes disruptive genius.
“Routines in innovation are the disciplined rehearsal that precedes disruptive genius”
In this context, routines should not be confused with rigidity. Rather, they are organisational patterns that provide stability without sacrificing the flexibility needed to adapt to change. For example, design thinking processes or agile methodologies, while structured, leave room for creativity and iteration. These practices demonstrate that innovation doesn´t emerge from absolute chaos, but from a balance between order and freedom.
In addition, routines play a crucial role in knowledge transfer. Universities and technology centres, especially, can structure training programmes for individuals and companies, as well as collaborative projects as the request of CIOS (Chief Innovation Officer) that turn exploration activity into practical and scalable aplications in a systematic way. In this sense, the routine becomes the mechanism that facilitates the cross-fertilisation of ideas and the market.
On the other hand, in a world that demands quick responses and effecetive solutions, routines help to reduce the friction between creativity and implementation. These routines not only clarify the steps needed to execute an idea by answering to how, what, who, where and why, but also align all actors involved, from companies and public administrations to researchers and technologists, in a common direction.
The key lies in designing routines that encourage continuous learning and systematic experimentation. This means unlearning what no longer works and developing new habits that incorporate diversity, technology and sustainability as core principles. In this way, the innovation ecosystem will be consistent with its purpose and will not only be able to adapt to the challenges of the present, but also to anticipate the opportunities of the future.
Ultimately, routines in innovation are not an end in themselves, but the means to generate sustainable impact. Routines reinforce the role of each agent, balance the risk-return trade-off and promote the establishment of a culture of collaboration and growth. These repetitive practices become the engine that drives transformational change. Because, paradoxically, true innovation is born of constancy: the constancy to do, to try, to fail and to try again.
Innovate for you, innovate for me, innovate for all of us.
The term eco-design is rather known nowadays, but you’ve probably heard little about eco-manufacturing, especially since it’s not a term widely recognized in technical or academic literature. However, it is a concept that has recently started to be used to describe manufacturing practices that centrally incorporate environmental aspects. Well, I’ll go even further, and try to explain what “metal-eco-additive manufacturing” is, a term I just invented to title this.
Forty years ago, Charles Hull’s invention of stereolithography (SLA) gave rise to what we now know as 3D printing – or additive manufacturing. Going one step further, the concept of metal 3D printing emerged after decades of development and experimentation, though its ideation can be attributed to Carl Deckard, a pioneer in Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) about 30 years ago at the University of Texas. Far from its industrial application at the time, its development went hand in hand with advances in new materials and high-power lasers in the 2000s. Although many have heard of processes for metal 3D printing, such as Selective Laser Melting (SLM) or Electron Beam Melting (EBM), it’s worth noting that the technology took 10 more years to reach large-scale industrial production – not just prototypes, as was done during the development phase for sectors like aerospace, automotive, or medical (which had the money for such “toys”).
Over the past 15 years, metal 3D printing processes have significantly improved (in precision, resolution, speed, physical properties, quality control, etc.), largely due to the emergence of new materials and their characteristics. On the other hand, methodologies have been created to analyze the efficiency of manufacturing processes themselves, parametric control, automation, and robotics, which directly impact costs, thus enabling the expansion of metal 3D printing applications to other sectors. Currently, these enhanced processes include, for example, Powder Bed Fusion (PBF), Direct Energy Deposition (DED), and metal Binder Jetting.
Well, the thing with additive manufacturing is like any technological process – progress is unstoppable: we don’t make airplanes the same way we did 120 years ago, right? 120 years ago, flying was already a reality (12 seconds and 36.5 meters), but I doubt we would agree to define “flying” the way the Wright brothers did in 1903. Their goal was “simply” to fly and survive. I don’t think they could have imagined that their scientific curiosity would become a key pillar of the global economy, nor did they think about 600-passenger airplanes, certifications governing the industry, or the pervasive existence of spaces for takeoff and landing.
In the same way, Carl Deckard, beyond his scientific interest in mechanical engineering, probably didn’t envision changing the world with his invention. However, just as air transport did, the additive manufacturing of metal parts has had, has, and will continue to have a massive impact globally. We now have new rules of the game and manufacturing possibilities for designs that were impossible until recently (generative designs), as their economic and environmental costs were prohibitive and bordering on madness. For example, if you don’t know how an airplane turbine is made (at least what it’s made from or how long it takes!!), you can’t appreciate the madness I’m referring to… and there are more and more airplanes every day!
Ecological awareness (so necessary today), the challenge ahead, and the transition to sustainability, will drive the circular economy in the use of metal additive manufacturing (or 3D printing). Or could it be additive manufacturing that will foster environmental sustainability? Or maybe a “virtuous loop” could be created where both fields will feed back into each other, by means of new concepts such as the one that I am coining here as metal-eco-additive manufacturing?
Simulation with lego of a metal-eco-additive-manufacturing laboratory. Author: Norberto Ibán Lorenzana
The thing is that everything evolves and new challenges arise; it won’t be enough just to design landing gears that fulfill their mission: apart from ensuring no one dies, they must be competitive. We must (and will be required to) know they were created in the most sustainable way possible and under circularity criteria. How? Well, looking towards the future, let’s imagine that the manufacturing conditions for a structurally responsible part could combine several manufacturing processes, not just one (machining) or the other (additive). Let’s also imagine that we could make parts that, although they could have inadequate finishes due to faster processes, these could be corrected in later treatments with techniques that require less effort. Or even, imagine that, if a part fails, we could refurbish it directly: that is, print what is missing on the same part so that the company using it can repair it in their own facilities. We wouldn’t have to throw away the part! Nor make a new one! We would avoid inventories of parts, storage, or transport of those spare parts, which is highly undesirable…
Well, the combination of additive manufacturing and circularity has a synergy point that will be researched and implemented over the next 4 years through a European project called DIAMETER, which involves more than 20 prestigious entities from 4 different continents.CARTIFis just one of these privileged entities that have already started working to build a bridge between metal additive manufacturing and the circular economy.
This bridge will be a framework where a series of metal parts used in critical cases across various production sectors will be analyzed, manufactured by different additive manufacturing processes. In DIAMETER, experimental physical results from the manufacturing processes will be compared with computational simulations of the parts in these processes to predict how the parts will respond to different process modifications. These responses (in terms of stress/deformation, among others) will provide mechanical knowledge about the parts and processes in terms of failures, waste, quality, or the need to integrate post-processing (hybrid manufacturing combining additive and subtractive). In short, a combination of possible scenarios and results that must be transformed into quantifiable outcomes under a sustainability approach to feed into an artificial intelligence system that will provide automated, optimal decisions on procedures and configurations in metal additive manufacturing of parts.
“Feed into an artificial intelligence system that will provide automated, optimal decisions”
“One moment, this is crazy!”
Well, yes, it’s as crazy as machining a 3m³ block of stainless steel on a 6-axis lathe for a week to get an airplane turbine or a hydraulic turbine. Or, seen another way, 500K€ for a week, with the possibility that, if there are errors, the turbine might need to be thrown away and start over from scratch.
But let’s take it step by step. The first thing will be to characterize these manufacturing processes, see how the parts are generated and whether they suffer deviations, inaccuracies, or analyze the quality of the surface itself. For this, artificial vision technology for geometric verification of parts during the manufacturing process will be used, which are technologies in which CARTIF has been working 30 years… and we have much ahead to go in the future!
Co-author
Iñaki Fernández Pérez. PhD in Artificial Intelligence. Researcher at the Health and Wellnes area at CARTIF. He is currently collaborating on several projects that seek to apply cutting-edge technologies (AI, IoT, Edge Computing…).
Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer the stuff of futuristic fantasy; it has become a tangible part of our everyday lives. From personalised recommendations on streaming platforms to optimising logistics processes in a factory, AI is everywhere. What’s interesting is that it’s not just making our lives easier, it’s also transforming industry.
In the HUMAIN project, where we are working with companies such as BAMA and CENTUM, we are taking AI to the next level. Imagine a factory that can anticipate problems before they happen, thanks to data-driven predictive systems. Or robots working alongside humans to efficiently pack and palletise products, even if the boxes are of different sizes. It’s like switching from a manual to an automatic car!
But this is not science fiction. We are researching and developing artificial intelligence algorithms that turn vast amounts of data into intelligent decisions, computer vision systems that see beyond what the human eye can see, and machine learning-based predictive maintenance solutions that save time and money. AI acts as a strategic brain that optimises every aspect of the process, from production to logistics. The result? More sustainable operations, less waste and smarter factories.
These kinds of projects don’t just benefit large companies. They also have a direct impact on our lives. Think about it: every time you buy something online and it arrives on your doorstep in record time, there is probably an AI system behind it that has optimised every step of the process. From packaging to delivery.
In the HUMAIN project consortium, we are excited to be part of this revolution. It’s not just about making machines work faster, it’s about integrating disruptive technologies that put people at the centre of the process. After all, AI is a tool: it’s how we use it to improve our everyday lives that matters.
Are we ready to embrace this industrial revolution? The answer lies in every click, every purchase, and every robot working hand in hand with us.
The Statute of Autonomy of Castilla y León, in its preamble and several articles, emphasize the importance of Cultural Heritage as an essential part of the identity of this Community and as an asset to protect and promote, due to its unique richness and the recognition it brings beyond our borders. This Heritage includes not only movable and immovable goods but intangible assets. Understanding and managing these elements is crucial for their protection, conservation, and transmission to future generations, areas in whichCARTIF has been working for 25 years, making it an international benchmark.
The figures are overwhelming: Castilla y León has specifically protected more than 2,500 Assets of Cultural Interest (BIC), of which 11 are listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, among which are three of the nine capitals of the region: Ávila, Salamanca and Segovia. Additionally, to date, it has cataloged more than 23,000 archaeological sites, over 500 castles, 12 cathedrals, one of the largest concentrations of Romanesque art in the world, and more than 200,000 movable assets of the Catholic Church have been inventoried.
Much of this immense Cultural Heritage of Castilla y León is located in the rural areas of the Community, as:
The 2,564 protected BICs are distributed among 878 municipalities, of which 94% are in populations of fewer than 5,000 inhabitants.
The 1% of municipalitieswith more than 10,000 inhabitants, which group almost half of the population of Castilla y León, only account for 18% of the goods.
2,564 protected BICs distributed among 878 municipalities
1% municipalities account for 18% of the goods
These numbers highlight that we are facing a resource as irreplaceable as it is essential for our future, with an unquestionable educational and social value, even more so in rural areas. It also has considerable economic potential, with the advantage of being endogenous and non-relocatable. Slowly, but inexorably, it is seen as an undeniable opportunity for development and not as an economic burden at all.
In the estimation carried out based on the study by the Association of Cultural Heritage Entities (AEPC -comprising 27 community companies employing 600 workers-), it was assessed that the heritage sector in Castilla y León generates 225 total jobs per million Euros of investment, which are distributed among 8% direct jobs (17), 8% indirect jobs (18), 50% induced in other industries (113), and 33% derived in tourism (77). To top it off, every euro invested quintuples the return on investment.
In a Europe that is becoming more of a large museum than a large factory, will we finally commit to the vein that Heritage represents for us?
