The machine tool sector gathered yesterday in Elgoibar to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the sector’s training centre, a reference point for professional training in the metallurgy sector. The event was presided by Patxi López and also attended by the President of the Gipuzkoa Regional Government, Markel Olano, the Regional Minister of Industry, Bernabé Unda, the Regional Minister of Employment and Social Affairs, Gemma Zabaleta, the Mayor of Elgoibar, Alfredo Etxeberria, the President of the IMH, Xabier Ortueta, and its Manager, Joxean Egaña.

Numerous representatives from public institutions, business associations and machine tool manufacturing companies linked to the centre's development took part in the event, which was also attended by the former Basque Government President José Antonio Ardanza and by José Ramón Recalde and José Ramón Arrieta, who were the respective Regional Ministers of Education and Labour when the IMH was founded.

Over 200 people turned their thoughts to 21 December 1989, when representatives from the Basque Government, the Gipuzkoa Regional Government and the Elgoibar Town Council together with AFM, Adegi, unions and financial institutions met in the Throne Room of the Regional Government headquarters to found the promotion of a project that originated as a bid for innovation and experimentation.

A moving tribute was also paid to Alberto Ortueta, the man behind the project and the IMH’s President from its foundation in 1989 until his death in February last year. His widow, María Jesús Mendía, together with the President of the Basque Government Patxi López, unveiled a plaque at the entrance to the IMH conference hall, on which Alberto Ortueta’s name now figures.

In his speech as the President of the IMH, Xabier Ortueta, who is also the Managing Director of AFM, presented the sector’s new training scheme, ASMAOLA. This consists of the creation of an innovation centre specialising in manufacturing processes for industrial SMEs. The centre’s mission is to aid small enterprises undertaking short-duration practical innovation projects with a limited budget and to collaborate with the technology centres, and it offers unique added value, as its closeness to the IMH means it can give back to industry the knowledge acquired working for companies or through training, courses, etc.