On Monday, IDEGA (the Galician Institute for Studies and Development) visited the facilities of FINSA to learn about the company’s work in innovation and sustainability, as well as its territorial integration within the Galician forestry and industrial ecosystem. The Rector of the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC), Rosa M. Crujeiras, also attended. They were received by Ana Figueiredo, Director of the Finsa Santiago factory; Miguel Mouzo, Head of Training; and Xosé Mera and Fernando Segade, members of Finsa’s executive committee.
The meeting, part of a series of institutional visits to leading companies in the USC’s area, was attended by the Rector, Vice-Rector for Innovation and Knowledge Transfer, Marcelo Maneiro, and a large delegation from IDEGA, given that FINSA is a member of the institute’s governing board.
Specifically, IDEGA representatives included its Director, Rubén Camilo Lois González; and its Secretary, Manuel Fernández Grela. The group included Scientific Council member Lourdes Mella Méndez; researcher María Dolores Riveiro García; predoctoral researchers Paula Noya Vázquez and Nerea Otero Vale; and research technician María Dolores Tuñas Riveiro.
During the tour, it was demonstrated how the integration of cutting-edge technology, work in the circular economy, and the valorization of local wood help to develop knowledge transfer and regional development projects, including within the academic sphere.
The rector emphasized the importance of these types of visits, as universities “are also defined by their capacity to transfer knowledge and collaborate with the business sector while promoting innovation in a sustainable way.” Rubén Lois echoed this sentiment, stating that “these visits provide us with valuable lessons; we learn about impressive technical and logistical processes. Furthermore, we must demonstrate that the university, through its research, can bring R&D closer to Galician businesses.”
