Photograph of the group participating in the project
From left to right, José Ramón Vázquez, head of the project, with another researcher during the AD13
Congress held last year in Santiago de Compostela where the company played an important role. The
Anammox pilot project which FCC Aqualia took to the stand and which was a great success is shown
in the photograph.
the efficiency of the treatment process, it is
also efficient. What all of us were able to
accomplish together was to achieve great
improvements with a simple modification at
the treatment plants.
Do you believe that FCC Aqualia is at the
forefront in R+D+i?
If we look at the growth in research activi-
ty at the company over the past few years,
the resources employed, personnel and the
number of projects that have been develo-
ped, the answer is certainly “yes”.
There are also other external criteria which
make us think that everything is going well.
One example of this is the increasingly acti-
ve participation of FCC Aqualia researchers
at international conferences. Another clear
indicator is the fact that administrations en-
trust us with their public resources so that
we can study new technologies. They also
commission us, as is the case with Guillarei
with the ELAN
®
technology, to implement
this development in a real scale. All of this
leads me to believe that FCC Aqualia is in-
creasingly associated with innovation in re-
search circles.
In your opinion, what do administrations
value the most in having FCC Aqualia as
a technological partner?
When you talk to administrations, they tell
you that they lack the direct resources to
be able to carry out real research activity.
This is why they are increasingly depending
on specialised companies, very involved in
day-to-day operations, such as our com-
pany that can offer them not just good
ideas but also the know-how and the pos-
sibility of applying and implementing these
projects (the small “i” in the equation).
I recently participated in a forum at the
University of Vigo on Cooperation among
Companies, Institutions, and Universi-
ties in Water Management and one of the
ideas put forth was the future evolution of
this cooperation between administrations
and operators so that both can share the
cost of innovation as well as the possible
profit that could result from its application.
In Spain, this model has not consolidated
in the majority of tender processes but it
could be very beneficial for stimulating the
innovative spirit of companies.
This is a small
step in research worldwi-
de, but a great step for FCC
Aqualia’s R+D+i.”
FCC Aqualia,
at the forefront
of R+D+i
n o w l e d g e
