FAGOR ARRASATE S COOP

Their core work

Fagor Arrasate is a major Spanish manufacturer of metal forming and pressing machinery, part of the Mondragon cooperative group in the Basque Country. In H2020, they contributed industrial use cases and shop-floor expertise to projects digitizing manufacturing — from zero-defect quality control and predictive maintenance to equipment refurbishment and cyber-physical production systems. Their role across projects is consistently that of an end-user manufacturer validating digital tools in real factory environments, making them a credible testbed for Industry 4.0 technologies applied to heavy capital equipment.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their early H2020 period (2015–2018), Fagor Arrasate focused on physical manufacturing processes — material hybridization, metal-composite forming, and cloud-based production — reflecting their traditional machinery business. From 2019 onward, their portfolio shifted decisively toward digitalization: Industry 4.0, cyber-physical systems, digital twins, cognitive manufacturing, and OT cybersecurity dominate their recent keywords. This trajectory shows a traditional heavy equipment manufacturer actively transforming itself into a digitally-enabled industrial player.

Fagor Arrasate is moving toward secure, AI-driven smart factories — their latest projects combine industrial IoT, cybersecurity, and autonomous manufacturing, signaling readiness for next-generation digital production partnerships.

How they like to work

Fagor Arrasate consistently participates as a partner rather than leading consortia — zero coordinator roles across 9 projects. They operate in large consortia (266 unique partners across 26 countries), indicating they serve as an industrial end-user and validation partner rather than a research driver. This makes them an attractive consortium member for technology developers who need a real factory environment to demonstrate and test their solutions.

With 266 unique consortium partners spread across 26 countries, Fagor Arrasate has built one of the broader collaboration networks among industrial manufacturers in H2020. Their partnerships span research institutes, technology providers, and fellow manufacturers across Europe, with particularly strong connections in the ECSEL and Factories of the Future communities.

What sets them apart

Fagor Arrasate brings something rare to EU consortia: they are a large-scale manufacturer of heavy capital equipment (presses, forming lines) who also actively engages with digital transformation research. Unlike pure technology companies, they offer real production environments where Industry 4.0 tools can be validated at industrial scale. Their cooperative structure (Mondragon group) also gives them long-term stability and a collaborative culture unusual among private companies of their size.

Highlights from their portfolio

• LAY2FORM
  Their largest funded project (EUR 978K) and most directly tied to core business — advanced metal-composite forming with laser processing and cognitive automation.
• QU4LITY
  Flagship zero-defect manufacturing project combining digital platforms with quality control — a key Industry 4.0 demonstrator with strong industrial relevance.
• IDUNN
  Represents their newest strategic direction — cybersecurity for operational technology using AI and distributed ledgers, an emerging concern for all connected factories.