Rafael Pla / President
As president of INNOVALL, National Cluster of Innovation and Sustainability located in Ontinyent and integrated in FENAEIC (Spanish Federation of Innovating Companies and Clusters), that act as a coordinator of the internationalization commission on statewide, I want to present our organization as an institution that adds value to its associated companies because it was born to point to innovation, business cooperation and internationalization. This force the companies of the cluster, to be open-minded about those three goals and, his managers, to work on that way regardless of company size, its location or the sector it belongs to.
Our key points are:
* We consider companies our direct partners, and we count with technological partners such as: Universities (Politecnic University of Valencia, University of Valencia, University of Alicante), IBV (Biomechanic Institute), Iberdrola, TelefÛnica.
* we count on the minimum structure, we do not need nor want physical infrastructures that are hard to mantain, the structure are the companies themselves.
* The work procedure is clear, simple and dynamic: innovation applied to a good or service, a process and management systems.
* Make easier growing business for companies, by value added, from the application of innovation and the environmental and economical sustainability, gaining market share all over the world.
* Not getting afraid of being wrong, but rectify on time.
In order to achieve it, INNOVALL cluster have direct representation in events and commercial missions related with innovation, being an important promoter of innovation and competitiveness among companies and territories, recognized as excellent cluster by the Ministry of Industry and being a leading figure for the development of the european policies defined in the strategy Horizont 2020.
INNOVALL cluster is available for all those companies, wherever they are located, which are interested in strengthen mutually and create a powerful innovative network of excited people, dynamic companies and sustainable cities.
That is the reason why having this strong platfrom is so important, and by strong I don't mean the amount of companies (it is better less and united than many and separated), but the foundation they have been created with and which have allowed the cluster's companies sell, jointly, under the same brand, "INNOVALL", something that by themselves would turn out harder. We have gained in size and power, and nowadays we are managing new cooperation-innovation projects, both nationals and internationals.
We must leave behind localist messages, the Valencian Community and Spain need structuring and development without repeating the same projects. We must complement, choose and cooperate to create new sustainable projects.
1. Effective inter-cluster collaboration as well as between cluster partners to strengthen project lines on projects being developed and to diversify the activity of INNOVALL’s business network
2. Attract private and public investment for R+D+i activities within the Group.
3. Adoption of advanced management and production systems to improve the competitiveness of our partners.
4. Increase the technological intensity of the developments undertaken by INNOVALL’s partners
Innovall work. Innovall lines of work are summarized in 10 priorities.
Diversify the product range of established manufacturers in order to gain an opening into new high added-value markets.
Promote and strengthen advanced R+D+i and collaboration.
Support the creation of new high-technology companies.
Strengthen and retain highly-qualified and fully-trained human capital.
Adopt new organisational formulae, production methods and more-advanced management techniques.
Increase competitiveness to compete in international markets.
Attract private and public investment to enable large-scale projects to be undertaken.
Promote clean energy, emission reductions and efficient waste treatment.
Increase the incorporation of new technologies and promote the development of new materials.
Human capital and its proper management is one of the pillars of a knowledge-based company. Human Resources play a vital role in improving a company and in its evolution towards a new, flexible way of operating, which is better-adapted to the needs of the client. Advanced human resources training is an integral part of this process of improvement.
INNOVALL has grown from the roots of an initiative suggested from within COEVAL, (Confederación Empresarial de La Vall d’Albaida), to drive innovation and cooperation between the different agencies that comprise the economic and industrial fabric of the area.
Its philosophy, based on sustainability and open innovation imprints a particular character on the group, and has lead to the creation of a new work model designed to orient business processes towards a reduction in the consumption of raw materials and energy and constant innovation in processes and products, empowered by highly trained and capable human capital. Its multi-sector nature enriches the potential of the initiatives which are beginning to emerge from the cluster.
The alignment of Regional strategies in environmental protection and reductions in dependence on raw materials by increasing recycling activity has also been a key factor in the birth of INNOVALL.
Attracting information to the Group and creating the right mechanisms to convert it into useful knowledge.
Building bonds between companies to create synergies that will improve the competitiveness of Regional companies and exploit the inherent capabilities of local companies and businessmen. This will in turn diversify business activities towards industries with greater added value.
Enabling the transfer of new business models to other regions, promoting the Region and establishing it as a model of sustainability and innovation for other clusters and Regions both nationally and internationally.
The traditional industrial agglomeration in the region provided a solid foundation, sometimes no too much diversified, for industrial activities and industrial services which operate both within the so-called traditional manufacturing sectors.
The increasingly open global markets related to the traditional manufacturing has generated a strong impact on the competitiveness of these companies, in many cases are undergoing transformations. But it has also given rise to emerging activities, which are characterized by high innovative approach compared to the pre-existing business network, such as technical textiles, housing, and building automation, renewable energy, recycling, mechanical engineering, electronics, advanced management of human resources , etc.
These factors also have driven the diversification of the activities that these companies have traditionally been performing as well as the emergence of new companies with a high-tech base.