Bin\u00e9far, an Aragonese town of just over 10,000 inhabitants, located between Huesca and L\u00e9rida in northeastern Spain, is home to the largest military robotics plant in the country. This town in the Alto Aragon region designs and manufactures ground robots that are now used in war scenarios, explosive ordnance disposal operations and logistical support missions in more than 20 countries.<\/p>\n
The plant belongs to the EM&E Group (Escribano Mechanical & Engineering) and is one of the key players in the growth of the Spanish defence sector in a context marked by the war in Ukraine<\/strong><\/a> <\/a>and the rise of unmanned technologies.<\/p>\n Although it is now a European benchmark, the history of the Bin\u00e9far plant began far from the battlefield. As Rafael de Sol\u00eds, director of EM&E Group’s Robotics Unit, told Euronews, the factory was created in 1988 and was initially dedicated to bank security systems.<\/p>\n “The origin of the plant is completely local. It was founded by three local inventors with a lot of technical concerns,” he explained. “One of them is still linked to the company as engineering manager.”<\/p>\n The turning point came in 2001, in the midst of the ETA terrorist threat in Spain<\/strong><\/a>. “The National Police could not handle the explosives that ETA placed in vehicles because of their weight. They asked us to design a new robot, and that’s when our specialisation in robotics really began,” said De Sol\u00eds.<\/p>\n Since then, the plant has evolved to focus exclusively on robots for explosive ordnance disposal, nuclear, biological, radiological and chemical protection, and more recently on unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) for military use.<\/p>\n The use of robots in modern warfare<\/p>\n These systems, remotely controlled by human operators, can transport ammunition, supplies, fuel or evacuate wounded from the battlefield. They can also integrate self-developed weapons systems.<\/p>\n “The war in Ukraine has put the focus on aerial drones, but ground drones are gaining a lot of importance,” explains De Solis. “There are areas about 15 kilometres from the front line where moving troops is extremely dangerous because of the aerial threat, and there these robots can reduce casualties.<\/p>\n EM&E Group has been exporting for more than two decades and has customers in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and NATO countries. “We are present in more than 20 countries, especially in regions with a high terrorist risk<\/strong><\/a>,” he adds.<\/p>\n Unlike other European competitors, the Bin\u00e9far plant stands out for its scale, especially at the European level. “There is nothing comparable in France,” says De Sol\u00eds. “There was a major competitor in Germany, but it was taken over by an American company. Our main rivals today are American and Canadian,” he adds.<\/p>\n Technology and territory: a brake on depopulation<\/p>\n