QR-Patrol meets with Ferrovial in Madrid

On 27 and 28 November, QR-Patrol had the opportunity to present its vision and business model to Ferrovial at the Impact Hub Gobernador in Madrid, Spain.

The EIC pilot and Ferrovial partnered for a business acceleration event directed at companies working on sustainable approaches to urban mobility, user experience (airports and toll roads), energy efficiency and new technologies for the construction sector.After a tough selection process, 21 companies funded by the EIC pilot were selected to present their projects to an audience of Ferrovial representatives and key partners and engage in one-to-one meetings with relevant corporate stakeholders.

Ferrovial’s innovation strategy works on an open innovation model, based on cooperation with external partners who are capable of complementing company needs and capacities, with the aim of accelerating the deployment of new solutions and processes to the market. This is also one of the main objectives behind the Corporate Days promoted by the EIC pilot Business Acceleration Services.

At the event, Ciro Boria, Head of Open Innovation Ecosystem at Ferrovial, explained what Ferrovial expects to gain from working with external partners: “At Ferrovial’s Open Innovation department we believe that by working with startups and SMEs, we become more agile because these type of companies are more agile. But also, by collaborating with them, we are able to test new business models and new technologies that would be hard to test within the company.”

Manuel Martinez, Open Innovation Manager at Ferrovial, also had some advice for SMEs that are looking to work with large corporates: “First, try to understand how the corporate needs fit into the business model or the technology you’re trying to promote. The best way to go about it is to have a proof of concept on how your product or service can address a specific challenge within the corporate.”

“We’re very happy to be selected for this event promoted by the EIC pilot. We believe our solutions are aligned with the business of Ferrovial and at the event we hope to start a partnership that can help us scale-up our business.”