The Centre Tecnològic de Telecomunicacions de Catalunya (CTTC) is a non-profit research institution based in Castelldefels (Barcelona), resulting from a public initiative of the Regional Government of Catalonia (Generalitat de Catalunya).
Research activities at the CTTC, both fundamental and applied, mainly focus on technologies related to the physical, data-link and network layers of communication systems, and to the Geomatics.
Started in 2001 with young graduates, with engineering or PhD degrees, it is currently the only research institution where research and technology development are combined to provide response in the range of precompetitive research and engineering demonstration models.
During the last twenty years we have managed to transform enthusiasm and capability, as the dominant skills, into competence, yet preserving the initial motivation for advanced research and innovation.
With respect to technology, CTTC offers confidence and competence as demonstrated by several international partnerships with companies in US, Canada, Australia, France, Qatar and UK, among others.
Our technology development and transfer program is formed by nine research units, covering all the different aspects of terrestrial telecommunication, from the physical, access, and networking layers.
Space, satellite communications, navigation, and geomatics are also addressed, hybridized with the terrestrial systems whenever is required. Artificial Intelligence and function virtualization are core and common tools that are shared by the research units.
Passion for engineering and technology is our major motivation surrounded by a creative and dynamic social environment, which invites to convey along the same line professional development, quality of life and international exposure. Aiming at more competence than competition, we mix enthusiasm and discipline to include communications engineering as another asset of Catalonia.
Mission and vision
CTTC’s core activity is the conception, design, implementation and experimentation of research and development projects in telecommunications and geomatics, which must produce innovative results in their different development phases, both in scientific and in engineering terms.
Of outmost importance is to establish durable links with the industrial and business sectors, reinforcing CTTC’s position as a player of innovation process through its research with industry. CTTC’s ultimate mission is to be an Excellence flagship Center that serves as a bridge between academia and industry. A center that influences the future paths of communication technologies, systems, networks, and geomatics. Started in 2001 with young graduates, with engineering or PhD degrees. Currently CTTC staff has achieved a level of maturity that favors developing research in future emerging fields and reinforcing areas of expertise.
It is our vision that research and technology development in communications, although starting from a public initiative, can be integrated in the competitive R&D market to rely on the private initiative in the long term (20-30 years). This vision implies to “interact with local but offer global” both in terms of research and engineering and to select partners heading for international R&D markets.
Our model consists in starting new activities both in research and engineering from young graduates really committed with research and development in engineering. The institution provides an adaptive and flexible environment, where personal position, responsibilities and rewards are strongly related with research and engineering reputation. Resources are dynamically associated to new projects in a structured scheme, i.e. AENOR UNE 166002:2014 Quality on R&D. The institution checks yearly personnel’s motivation for R&D with an anonymous poll.
Our main objective is to create the maximum number of new permanent jobs on R&D in communications engineering, with the best tradeoff between quantity and quality of our funding resources. We are convinced that, in this kind of initiatives, people are what configures the international reputation of the institution and not vice versa. A highly motivated staff, working at the cutting edge of research, are the key factor for CTTC success. CTTC is a CERCA center and, as such, it promotes research with scientific integrity and professional ethics.These dynamics must allow to lead the future CTTC course towards an institution that outstands in the green economy and open science, always meeting the needs of the end users, in Catalunya, Spain and worldwide.
R&D Policy
CTTC establishes an R&D policy aiming at promoting the R&D activities as a differential factor of competitiveness in the related sectors. This Policy establishes guidelines for the development and efficient management of R&D activities with the aim of guaranteeing an alignment of all the members of the organization towards the Policy objectives.
In order to carry out this policy, the CTTC is committed to implement an R&D Management System, based on the UNE 166002 standard, which complies with the requirements of current legislation, and its continuous improvement.
To this end, the organization will foster an innovative culture and provide the necessary resources and tools to create the infrastructures that support the R&D activities and ensure that appropriate projects are carried out in an appropriate manner. The organization will involve in this process and its results all the interested parties, both inside and outside the CTTC.