Focus on the Spanish Node – Interview with Pablo Carbonell from the Valencia Biofoundry
In this interview, we turn the spotlight on the Spanish Node of IBISBA through a conversation with Pablo Carbonell from the Valencia Biofoundry. This exchange offers an opportunity for the wider IBISBA community and our readers to better understand the activities, expertise, and capabilities of this unique initiative at the interface of synthetic biology and industrial biotechnology.
Valencia Biofoundry at I2SysBio – Pablo Carbonell, Irene Otero Muras, and Agustín Aranda
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Could you introduce the Valencia Biofoundry and explain its main activities?
P. Carbonell: The Valencia Biofoundry is an initiative that aims to integrate the entire Design–Build–Test–Learn (DBTL) cycle with bioprocess scale-up and manufacturing capabilities. Rather than being a single facility, it brings together complementary partners and infrastructures to provide a comprehensive platform for industrial biotechnology and synthetic biology.
Our expertise spans several areas, including strain engineering, metabolic pathway modelling, enzyme design, and the modelling of genetic and regulatory circuits. We are also developing capabilities to better understand population-level behaviour and microbial robustness, which are essential for industrial fermentation processes.
On the experimental side, we are incorporating machine learning approaches and advanced laboratory automation technologies. Our infrastructure includes liquid-handling platforms such as Opentrons systems, microbioreactors, and other automated tools that enable rapid prototyping and testing of engineered strains.
We work primarily with microbial fermentation platforms, including bacteria and yeasts, while also exploring other biological production systems, such as plant-based biofactories. In addition, through the consortium, we have access to scale-up facilities and pilot-plant capabilities, allowing us to support projects across different technology readiness levels and facilitate the transition from laboratory research to industrial implementation.
- Could you tell us more about the implementation of the Valencia Biofoundry, particularly regarding the technological choices and lab automation setup?
P. Carbonell: One of the key principles behind the implementation of the Valencia Biofoundry has been the integration of complementary technological capabilities within the DBTL cycle. The objective is not simply to automate laboratory tasks, but to create a coordinated workflow that connects modelling, design, construction, testing, and data analysis.
The biofoundry operates as a consortium in which different partners contribute specialised expertise and technological assets. Automation plays a central role in accelerating experimental workflows and improving reproducibility. Our laboratory setup combines liquid-handling robotics, automated cultivation systems, microbioreactors, and computational tools that support both experimental design and data-driven optimisation.
This integrated approach enables us to provide users with a coherent service that covers multiple stages of the innovation process, from biological design to process development and scale-up.
- Securing funding for such infrastructures can be challenging in Spain. Could you share some insights into how this process was approached for the Valencia Biofoundry?
P. Carbonell: Developing the Valencia Biofoundry required first establishing a clear vision of its role within the future bioeconomy and industrial biomanufacturing landscape. The experience gained through European initiatives and collaborations has been extremely valuable in shaping this vision and demonstrating its relevance.
A key factor has been the support of BioVal, the association representing biotechnology companies in the Valencia region. From the beginning, BioVal strongly supported the initiative and helped create the conditions needed to start consolidating the biofoundry at the regional level.
Our strategy is to progressively strengthen the infrastructure while participating in both infrastructure-focused funding programmes and European research and innovation projects. We see the biofoundry as a long-term investment that must serve a diverse community of users, including research institutes, universities, technology centres, start-ups, and industrial companies.
The Valencia region benefits from a dynamic biotechnology ecosystem, and the biofoundry can act as a bridge between fundamental research and industrial application. It can be particularly valuable for small and medium-sized companies and start-ups that may not have direct access to advanced automation or scale-up facilities.
- How do you envision the development of the biofoundry as an open research infrastructure within the Spanish node and the broader European ecosystem?
P. Carbonell: From the outset, the Valencia Biofoundry has been conceived as an open infrastructure built upon a balanced consortium of academic and industrial partners. Our ambition is to establish a national-scale facility that can contribute to the development of biotechnology infrastructure in Spain while remaining strongly connected to the European ecosystem.
In Spain, large-scale research infrastructures are often associated with major scientific facilities in fields such as physics or particle research. Biofoundries represent a newer and less explored type of infrastructure, but one that can play an equally important role in supporting innovation, sustainability, and industrial transformation.
We see the Valencia Biofoundry as part of a broader European network of biofoundries and biotechnology infrastructures. Collaboration through initiatives such as IBISBA is essential to coordinate capabilities, share expertise, and create synergies across countries. By working together, European biofoundries can help accelerate the transition towards a circular and sustainable bioeconomy while strengthening Europe’s competitiveness in biotechnology.