THE LEHENDAKARI INAUGURATES THE TWENTIETH MACHINE-TOOL CONGRESS

The mayor of San Sebastian, Juan Karlos Izagirre and the Secretary General for Science, Technology and Innovation, Mª Luisa Poncela also participated in the opening ceremony.

More than 300 people come to San Sebastian to discover the latest trends in advanced manufacturing.

Terry Wohlers, the North American guru of additive manufacturing, was the star of the opening session.

Antxon Lopez Usoz, President of AFM, asks for effort and support to strengthen the industry.

Iñigo Urkullu, the Lehendakari, presided the opening ceremony of the 20 Machine-Tool and Manufacturing Technologies Congress that was held in the Science and Technology Estate of Guipuzcoa in San Sebastian from 10 until 12 June and which was organised by AFM, the association of machine-tool, accessory, component and tool manufacturers. During his intervention, the Lehendakari congratulated AFM on the twentieth anniversary of the congress, stating that “the Basque country is an industrial country that looks to the future" and that “industry 4.0 is a challenge for a Basque Country that wishes to be at the cutting edge”.

Both the mayor of San Sebastian, Juan Karlos Izagirre and the Secretary General for Science, Technology and Innovation, Mª Luisa Poncela also intervened during the inauguration of the congress, which was attended by the members of the Basque Government, Angel Toña, minister for Employment and Social Policies, and Arantxa Tapia, minister for Economic Development and Competitiveness. T

he mayor, Juan Karlos Izagirre, highlighted the excellent technological and industrial environment that hosts the congress, comprised of four outstanding universities, advanced technology centres, as well as powerful enterprises.

On her part, the Secretary General for Science, Technology and Innovation, Mª Luisa Poncela stated that the machine-tool sector plays an essential role in the necessary re-industrialisation of Spain. And she underscored that the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness is going to commit to a new industrial leadership line based on strategic innovative fields, which include advanced manufacturing technologies.

Additive manufacturing, industry 4.0 robotics and flexible manufacturing, industrial laser applications or the needs of the aerospace sector were a few of the main topics to be addressed at this Congress. Over the three days that the congress lasted, manufacturing companies and users of advanced manufacturing systems attended the sessions, together with professionals from the technology centres and universities specialised in advanced manufacturing technologies.

The keynote speech was given by Terry Wohlers, a world expert in additive manufacturing. Wohlers is the author of the Wohlers Report. Trends. Analysis. Forecast. 3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing State of the Industry”, considered to be the main source of information on this technology.

The opening ceremony of the congress was also attended by the deputy minister for Innovation and Technology, Estíbaliz Hernáez, the Director of Technology and Strategy of the Basque Government, Leyre Bilbao, the CEO of Tecnalia, Joseba Jaureguizar and the deputy CEO, Iñaki San Sebastián as well as representatives from associate companies of AFM, such as Iñaki Torrecilla, Koldo Arandia, Pedro Ruiz de Agirre, Javier Martínez de Aldama, Jorge Caballé, Juan Andueza, Andoitz Korta, Cesar Garbalena ,Juan Francisco Puigjaner or Juan Solano, among others.