The Catalan president, Artur Mas, attended the closing ceremony and also toured the factory where he saw the new Ecodryer production line, which began operating in January.

In his address to the workshop audience he described Girbau as a company that knows how to innovate and grow in a difficult economic environment.

He added: “Girbau represents the very best of the economic structure of our country. It is an industrial company with a traditional family base, yet at the same time it is innovative, connected with the university and open to foreign markets.”

Girbau Group co-president Pere Girbau Pous explained that the key to Girbau’s success is “investing in projects over the long term”. Co-president Mercè Girbau added: “We are working to strengthen our sales network worldwide, looking ahead and working hard to prepare ourselves for the future.” She said that Girbau’s professional team would prove a great advantage in achieving the group’s aims.