AINIA

AINIA Technology Center

• ACTIVITY: technology Center.
• LOCATION: Valencia Technology Park. C/Benjamin Franklin, 5-11. 46980 Paterna (Valencia).
• CONSTITUTION DATE: 03/12/1987
• CATEGORY: private association.
• CONTACT: Begoña Ruiz.

• NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES: 220.
• INCOME: €14.8 M (2018).
• COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION: AINIA is a technology center established in 1987 as a private, non-profit association. With 30 years of experience, we work to boost the competitiveness of companies through innovation. We are one of the European technology centers with the largest social business base, with more than 700 associated companies and 1,300 clients. AINIA's mission is to provide value and cooperate with companies, leading innovation and technological development in a sustainable way. Our vision is aimed at “being an international benchmark in comprehensive innovation and technology solutions, cooperating with companies to promote their progress.”
• BUSINESS LINES: AINIA offers R&D services, technological assistance, training, analysis and industrial services in different areas:
  • Food and health
  • Food quality and safety
  • Industrial design and production
  • Sustainability
  • Market and consumer goods

• INFRASTRUCTURE: The facilities occupy several buildings with more than 13,000 m2 and have the latest technology infrastructure and equipment for carrying out R&D and other business support services. AINIA has reference laboratories equipped with the most current and sophisticated measuring instruments, as well as numerous techniques, providing rigorous analysis capacity. https://www.ainia.es/ainia/sobre-ainia/instalaciones-plantas-piloto-laboratorios/

The pilot plants related to the technological offer aimed at plant biotechnology include:

• Applied microbiology laboratory and biosafety laboratory. Equipment for carrying out various microbiological controls and physical-chemical analyses: microbiological counts, 16S and 26S metagenomics, western-blot, PCR, spectrophotometry, chromatography, enzymatic determinations, etc.
• Biotechnology pilot plant for the development, optimization and scaling of processes, equipped with 1L, 5L, 20L and 200L fermenters and equipment for downstream processing (centrifugation, tangential filtration, separative chromatography).
• We have authorization to operate with quarantine microorganisms such as Xylella fastidiosa.
• Microencapsulation pilot plant at laboratory and pilot scale.
• Biogas pilot plant: laboratory (2L) and pilot (30L) scale digesters, as well as a 2m3 semi-industrial pilot plant.
• Biorefinery pilot plant: pilot plants for the simulation of different physical-chemical and fermentative processes related to obtaining valuable compounds from organic waste.

TECHNOLOGICAL SUPPLY/DEMAND: AINIA's technological offer is designed to suit companies, developing solutions for their specific needs. Among our capabilities are the following:

Development of active ingredients to improve plant productivity and health based on microorganisms

• Biostimulants, bionutrients, biopesticides, phytohormones, defense inducers, bioinsecticides, antagonists, bacteriophages...
• Ability to isolate microorganisms (wild strains) and genetically engineer microorganisms to obtain super producers.
• Ability to develop and optimize the complete production and production process: isolation of microorganisms, characterization, evaluation of their effectiveness, development, optimization and scaling of the production process (up to 200L of fermentation) including the microorganism fermentation stage, downstream and microencapsulation in if necessary.
• Own collection of microorganisms with properties evaluated in vitro.

Development of biorefinery processes from organic waste (plant or other types), including the obtaining of fertilizer products and nutrient recycling, for example from anaerobic waste digestion processes.

DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS:

• 184 (2018).
  • 28% competitive public funds (regional, national, EU)
  • 72% private funds company

We highlight a European project in the area of plant biotechnology currently underway: XF-ACTORS: Xylella fastidiosa active containment through a multidisciplinary-oriented research strategy. https://www.xfactorsproject.eu/

COMPLETED PROJECTS