InCUBE Zaragoza General Assembly

This May, the InCUBE consortium gathered in Zaragoza for a General Assembly – three days of intensive collaboration, site visits, and strategy-setting across all of the project’s work packages. 

Hosted by metro7, ZAVI, and KOVER Siglo XXI, the meeting brought together partners from across Europe to review progress, align next steps, and reinforce the project’s mission: accelerating and smartening deep renovation through inclusive, replicable innovation. 

On the Ground at the Zaragoza Demo Site 

The first day began with an on-site visit to the Balsas de Ebro Viejo district, where the Zaragoza demonstration building is located. Partners got to see the renovation in action, with the pre-fabricated lift and staircase installation happening during the visit! Partners were also led on a tour of the district, seeing how other renovation projects uplift the district and the potential for replication of InCUBE strategies. 

Partners then explored project execution updates, discussed reopened tasks across various work packages, and dove deep into demosite progress in Trento, Zaragoza, and Groningen. Afternoon sessions focused on InCUBE’s renovation passports, digital logbook, and the business models and energy systems that will support long-term scalability and financing. 

The day concluded with a social dinner featuring local dishes, fostering informal collaboration and connection among partners. 

Workshops, Training, and External Engagement 

Day two began at the metro7 factory, where participants observed the prefabrication processes shaping building components used in Zaragoza’s pilot. This was followed by a dedicated training session on the P-Guide resource to planning renovation projects and updates on communication, exploitation, standardisation, and policy integration. 

In the afternoon, external stakeholders joined for a training and interactive workshop at the Official College of Architects of Aragon focused on the Lean construction project management framework. Participants got hands-on, collaborative exercises on how to approach and plan construction works. The day wrapped up with a matchmaking and networking drinks session aimed at strengthening cross-sector partnerships, where InCUBE partners and external attendees were paired in groups according to interests within the sector. 

Inclusion and Upskilling: A Key Focus 

The final day took place at the KOVER factory, where participants learned more about sustainable material systems and industrial renovation processes. Conversations then turned to gender inclusion and local coalition-building, with a dedicated internal workshop on the Gender Impact Matrix – one of InCUBE’s tools for ensuring inclusive impact in the renovation workforce. Partners were separated into two groups, male and female, to assess the applicability of different InCUBE innovations to gender mainstreaming efforts. The results showed strong alignment in the opinions of the male and female analyses, which is encouraging for implementation potential.