Continuing with the initiative “Innovation agents interviews” with the aim of inspiring the innovation ecosystem of the Port of Tarragona to continue innovating based on the experiences of its innovation agents, we invited Eduardo Sañudo, innovation agent and member of the Innovation Commission of Som-Inn Port.
Eduardo Sañudo is the General Manager of Vopak Terquimsa, S.A. He is an economist, has a master’s degree in financial management and has completed a PDD at IESE. He joined Terquimsa 20 years ago as controller of investment projects, later becoming CFO, HR and Systems Director until 2016 when he was appointed General Manager.
Vopak Terquimsa, S.A. is a logistics company member of the Innovation Ecosystem of the Port of Tarragona, Som-Inn Port. For more than 50 years, it has been dealing with the storage of essential products such as chemical and pharmaceutical products, oils, biofuels, food and petroleum products. They guarantee a safe, clean and efficient storage and handling of liquids and gases. It is a company highly committed to innovation.
Good morning, Eduardo. It is a pleasure for us to have you participating in this initiative and
we want to thank you for your willingness to do this interview:
-
Tell us what innovation is for Vopak Terquimsa?
Innovation is one of the pillars on which our strategy is based. Vopak Terquimsa is committed to innovation, and in a changing environment as the one we live in today, innovation is an essential element to remain relevant, whatever the sector of activity.
-
What innovative projects are you promoting?
We are working on many initiatives. Some of them are related to new ways of working and collaborating, which we have included in a Digital Office project, which has accelerated in recent months as a result of the exceptional situation we have experienced.
Other projects are more related to the digitalization and automation of our processes, in which we have recently introduced robotics, equipping our latest expansion with robotic loading arms that are unique in our sector worldwide.
We are also working on information management projects, which is undoubtedly key to our
company’s activity.
-
What challenges or future trends affect the company’s business?
The main challenges for the future are undoubtedly those related to the energy transition, the circular economy and the sustainability objectives set for 2050. Our sector is transforming, and now is the time to anticipate these changes, to be prepared for the new energies that are going to become fundamental for our production system in the coming years.
-
How do you plan to respond to this?
We actively participate in forums, platforms, consortiums, etc. related to different aspects such as hydrogen, CO2 capture, energy storage, circular economy projects, etc. We have had a New Energies department since 2016 that hasn’t stopped growing, and we want to position ourselves as a reference company in the sector in this type of new development.
-
What do you get from participating in the innovation ecosystem of Som-Inn Port? What would you highlight?
I think that a common mistake when thinking about innovation is to associate it with genius. Of course it has an influence, but innovation requires a structured process, with specific phases, such as prototypes, trials, etc. I think that the main difficulty today to innovate is to provide organizations with the spaces and structures to do so. You have to invest to be able to innovate, you have to do things differently. We have to stimulate our teams to challenge the “status quo”. Som-Inn Port has helped us to understand the innovation process, and above all, to understand
that collaborative innovation is the future.
Thank you very much for your time Eduardo as well as for sharing how you approach innovation from Vopak Terquimsa. Your role as members of Som-Inn Port is key to continue driving innovation throughout the ecosystem of the Port of Tarragona.
September 2021
