How industrial estates are governed, how the services they need are funded and how modernisation and sustainability challenges are tackled are issues shared by business areas everywhere, beyond national borders. Learning about other management models and comparing experiences can help identify new solutions and strengthen the capacity of the organisations working to improve these spaces.
To move forward in these areas, CEDAES and Réseau PALME have formalised a memorandum of understanding to establish a framework for cooperation and knowledge exchange. The signing took place at UPIC’s headquarters in Barcelona, which hosted the meeting. CEDAES represents and promotes the improvement of industrial estates and economic activity areas in Spain, while Réseau PALME works on the management of business territories in France and other territories of the French-speaking world.
The agreement provides for sharing good practices and experiences in key areas for managing these areas, such as governance models, funding, service provision, energy and environmental sustainability, the circular economy, mobility, accessibility and digitalisation. It also covers the professionalisation of management, exchanges between professionals and the organisation of technical visits to learn about different experiences first-hand.
One of the planned lines of work is a comparative study of management, governance, funding and service models. The memorandum also aims to identify shared tools and opportunities to develop joint projects, especially within the framework of European programmes.
These areas of cooperation connect directly with some of the major challenges facing industrial estates: having suitable management structures, guaranteeing services tailored to companies’ needs and moving forward with the modernisation of these spaces.
The memorandum was signed by Pablo García-Vigón, president of CEDAES, and Marc Denale and Beatriz Barbero, on behalf of Réseau PALME. Carles Guilera, president of UPIC, welcomed the attendees. The meeting was also attended by Rob ten Bok, from the Dutch organisation KG ParkManagement.
The meeting hosted by UPIC highlights the value of cooperation between organisations working to improve the management of business areas. Sharing governance models, comparing experiences and identifying good practices broadens the perspective from which common challenges are addressed and opens up new avenues of work. Cooperation between CEDAES and Réseau PALME opens a space to move in this direction, with a view to more professional management, better-articulated services and industrial estates prepared to meet the present and future needs of companies.