CETEM and the FITT-NESS project promote innovation and transition in the housing sector in Porto

From 25 to 27 February, Porto hosted the project’s first ‘Twinning Action’, an interregional cooperation space where eight entities and designers from Murcia began their journey towards the dual digital and green transition.

The European FITT-NESS project, focused on promoting innovation and digital and sustainable transition in the furniture and habitat sector, has successfully completed its first major twinning action, promoted by CETEM together with AMUEBLA and organised by the Portuguese Association of the Furniture and Related Industries, APIMA. The meeting, held in Porto (Portugal), served as a launch pad to connect companies from the Region of Murcia with their counterparts in Northern Portugal and Sicily (Italy), under the leadership of the Italian region of Lombardy.

FITT-NESS Twinning Actions were created as a strategic response to the challenges facing the sector, offering SMEs and intermediary entities mentoring services, online advice and, fundamentally, three face-to-face meetings for the exchange of good practices, with Porto being the first of these.

Among the participants were representatives from Colchones Gomarco, Ecus Sleep, Frances y Bañon, Feria del Mueble de Yecla, Grupo SIM and freelance designers such as Carlos Soriano, Juan Ibañez and Pedro García, who took part in this meeting alongside other Portuguese and Italian companies.

The agenda for the meeting included a visit to the Portuguese company ARTNOVION, which specialises in innovative solutions for the sector in the field of interior acoustic conditioning.

In addition, the programme included participation in the international inPROJECTA fair, where the consortium carried out various activities to increase its visibility and showcase the quality of design and manufacturing in the Region of Murcia:

• Training workshops: Specialised sessions on the development of new business models and financial management for innovation projects.
• Digital Solutions: Presentation of technological tools specifically applied to the housing sector.
• Networking: Spaces dedicated to generating strategic alliances and investment initiatives between companies from the three participating regions.

This meeting in Portugal is just the beginning of a journey of cooperation. Following the excellent results achieved, the programme will continue with the following face-to-face meetings in Yecla, coinciding with the Furniture Fair, and finally in Palermo (Italy).

With these actions, CETEM and the FITT-NESS consortium reaffirm their commitment to modernising the sector, demonstrating that interregional collaboration is the key to a more sustainable and inclusive habitat.

Further information about the project can be found on  its websites or on the  CETEM website