AIDIMA is the Technology Institute on Furniture, Wood, Packaging and related industries, a non-for-profit association with national and international scope that was founded in 1984. AIDIMA’s technical capacity and skills guarantees the companies development with one of the best European Technology Institutes. AIDIMA is in constant renovation and actually counts with more than 5 million € worth of technical equipment. Working more than 150.000 hours/year on its sectors of interest provides AIDIMA with new opportunities to set and propose new research lines, traning plans and other activities to increase the companies competitiveness. AIDIMA has the most modern equipment that can be found worldwide, a unique technology infrastructure with advanced laboratories that perform more than 30,000.- tests/year.

AIDIMA’s labs are accredited by ENAC (Spanish Certification Agency) and by others such as ISTA (International Safe Transit Association). AIDIMA has a solid base of knowledge, information and technology transfer skills provided by our long experience working, doing developments and researching on and for the wood, furniture and packaging industries.

AIDIMA performs very efficient and high level research, technological development and innovation work coordinating and participating in national and European projects. AIDIMA’s mission consists on increase the competitiveness of the furniture, wood, packaging and transport industries, whereas the vision goes through improve the management and business of the mentioned industries in aspects such as quality, technology innovation, training and coaching, information, safety and security, environment, design, production, commercialization, and export boosting.
Nowadays, AIDIMA is the scientific umbrella organization for more than 600 associated companies throughout Spain. Most of them are SMEs, so AIDIMA influences a significantly in this kind of companies trying to improve their competitiveness as they rely on AIDIMA. Besides its condition of industry association, AIDIMA is a technology institute and among its competences it is the knowledge transfer for most of the Spanish furniture-related companies

AIDIMA’s staff is divided into research groups that create synergies to develop research projects. A short description of some of them is provided below:

The Raw Materials Research Group is composed by a multi-disciplinary technical team that includes chemists, biologist, chemical engineers, forestry engineers and physicists. Since 20 years ago the group is closely linked with the furniture and wood related industry focusing its activities in responding their needs and helping the industry to be more competitive and technological. There group have carried out research in every material from the mentioned sectors: furniture, wood based panels, resins, coatings, foams, fabrics, fittings, metallic parts, plastics… Additionally the group is actively involved in standardisation activities, having expert members and coordinators in CTN (Spanish committees), CEN (European committees) and ISO (international committees).
Some examples of research activities carried out by this group in the last five years are:
- Development of fire-resistant and damp-resistant materials and products
- Improvement of adhesive and resin properties
- Reduction of formaldehyde emission in wooden components.
- Development of biodegradation resistant materials and products
- Improvement of solid wood and wood based boards by different techniques
- Optimisation of paints and varnishes used in different sectors
- Development of innovative technologies for the surface treatment and finishing of wooden composites

AIDIMA has experience in recycling processes to introduce waste materials in panel manufacturing (see LIFE Woodrub project www.woodrub.com) and in the reduction of formaldehyde emissions. AIDIMA has also long experience in the development and application of powder or water based coatings with lower environmental impact.

The Nanotechnology Research Group centres its activities in the effect of nanoparticles and nanomaterials on surfaces and bulk materials on wood related proucts and furniture industries. The group uses nanotechnology in order to obtain multifunctional or high physical-chemical-biological properties to products. As a results of ten years of research the scientific staff has proven expertise in:
- Superhydrophobicity and Oleophobicity of surfaces
- Improvement of mechanical properties of resin, coatings and other polymers, by the adition of metallic nanoparticles or organic-inorganic hybrid materials
- Improved resistance to fire
- Photocatytic oxidation for wastewater treatment and self-cleaning surfaces
- Nanosafety, including toxicity of combustion or incineration fumes
- Improved IR and UV filters for furniture coatings
- Encapsulated Nanobiocides
- Conductive polymers
- Nanocellulose and Natural nanocompounds



The Environmental Area is already 25 years contributing to the sustainable development and management as well as increasing the competitiveness of companies. This is achieved through the reduction of the environmental impact of companies’ products and productive processes by means of several eco-innovation strategies:
 Environmental management systems and projects to improve:
 environmental performance of the company,
 energy efficiency,
 ecodesign.
 Energy efficiency (audit and feasibility studies)
 Waste valorisation projects:
 Energy valorisation
 Recycling (design and development of new recycled materials).
 Clean technologies.
 Water and atmospheric pollution and solid wastes characterization and improvement of their treatment processes.
 Identification of tracing pollutants in products.
 Indoor Air Quality: Measure of volatile organic compounds emission from products and materials.
 Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and eco-efficiency analysis of products and processes
 To establish improvement strategies and/or
 To verify those already achieved in new developments.
 Eco-labelling, carbon footprint and Green Public Procurement.



The Wood Technology and Biotechnology Group has been working in timber protection and innovation in timber architecture since 2005. In these fields, AIDIMA has collaborated with centres and institutions such as University of Göttingen (Germany), Technical University of Munich (Germany), University of Freiburg (Germany), UFV Bois (France), Brunel University (UK), BOKU University Vienna (Austria), and University of West Hungary (Hungary).
Our expertise includes
• Research on wood protection (remote monitoring, new wood treatments and modifications) on both timber constructions and on the whole forestry value chain: forest certification, forest and agricultural biomass, forest management systems.
• Non-destructive evaluation of timber in construction: wooden beams and columns, structures, monumental trees and historical heritage.
• Testing of wood and wood-based products against termites, xylophages, moisture damages and others wood deteriorating agents.
• Quality control during building and structure execution.
• Innovation on timber architecture: organic structures, parametric architecture, new materials (reinforced timber, lightweight panels, etc.), temporary structures, and joints.
On the other hand, AIDIMA is working since more than 10 years in biotechnology for wood protection. We can perform all kind of test on biocide efficacy on wood preservatives. We do have a microbiology laboratory and an entomology laboratory fully equipped will all type of chambers and impregnation autoclaves, etc.
We do have experience on the detection and handling of xylophagous fungy and insects as well as in termites’ detection and handling since we are located on an area with high activity of those insects. We have different termites colonies (Reticulitermes spp.) kept in laboratory conditions for its studies and research.
We also have an environmental laboratory fully equipped and personnel capable of doing formulations to get product improvements that are later tested on our facilities to check those improvements under different conditions and products.

The Packaging and Goods Transport Group provides the companies global solutions in the field of transport, logistics and packaging and thereby increases their competitiveness. As a result of more than 18 years of experience the Department staff has proven expertise in:
 Optimisation of logistics and transport operations
 Analysis of distribution routes
 Packaging, transport, logistics and environment
 Training and advising
 Suitability and/or conformity of products, packaging and unit loads through transport simulation (testing & certification)
 UN-homologation of packaging for dangerous goods
 Integrating the packaging in the design process and development of products– Packaging culture
 Research and evaluation of packaging materials
The Packaging and Goods Transport Department is actively involved in standardisation activities, having expert members and coordinators in CTN (Spanish committees), CEN (European committees) and ISO (international committees). Other merits are the ISTA (International Safety Transit Association) membership being a ISTA certified laboratory as well, the IAPRI (International Association of Packaging Research Institutes) membership, the recognition from the Spanish Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Commerce of Official Laboratory for the Testing of Packages for the Transport of Dangerous Goods and the ENAC (Spanish Accreditation Body) accreditation of the laboratories.

The Market Research and Business Strategy Group has been working in strategic foresight and business strategy since 2005.
 In the field of foresight research, AIDIMA has collaborated with leading foresight centres Worldwide: LIPSOR (Paris), Swinburne University (Melbourne), Australian Foresight Centre, Stanford University (USA) and recently Oxford Scenario University-Programs (UK).
The field of expertise in strategic foresight encompasses both scenario building (with use of foresight quantitative and qualitative techniques: Delphi panel, morphological analysis, players analysis, structural analysis, FAR…) and scenario tracking (development of scenario indicators, creation of on-line scenario surveillance tools).
Moreover, our expertise includes
 Research and consultancy projects in strategic renewal and management innovation on the basis of competitive scenarios.
 Business innovation and strategic resilience as practical fields or work with companies.
 Other related expertise fields are the creation of industrial Competitive Intelligence Systems (Market Observatory, Trends Observatory, Consumption Annual Survey, Centre for Strategic Foresight in the Wood and Furniture Industry -CEFFOR®-), new product development, and market orientation (with specific high-tech infrastructure: Living Space Lab and Retail Innovation Lab). For this purposes AIDIMA usually collaborates with Spanish (Universidad de Valencia, Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, Universidad Jaume I de Castellón) and international universities (Stanford University, USA; University of Oxford, UK; University of Turku, Finland; Swinburne University, Melbourne).

Country: Spain

Organization Type: R+D institute

City: Paterna 46980,Av. Benjamín Franklin 13 Google map

Areas of Activities