A well-established partner of HostMilano, AFEHC- Asociación de fabricantes españoles exportadores de equipamientos para hostelería y colectividades is a non-profit organisation that brings together 75 companies whose aim is to increase the internationalisation of Spanish manufacturers of equipment for hotels, food service and catering. We asked them to tell us about trends in the Spanish hospitality market.

The focus is first and foremost on digitalisation and sustainability, the backbone of technological innovation in Spain’s hospitality equipment sector.

The Internet of Things (IoT) has driven the development of a generation of smart hospitality machinery. Machinery connected to the internet that can be accessed remotely and whose great advantage is obtaining information, both on consumption and performance to improve sales, as well as analysis for predictive maintenance, thus resulting in cost savings for the business and an increase in the useful life of the equipment.

Robotic solutions, equipped with artificial intelligence and making use of 5G, are also appearing the hospitality industry, in collaboration with start-ups, for the hospitality industry in order to free professionals from tasks with less added value and greater physical effort.

In terms of sustainability, Spanish manufacturers are increasingly committed to and aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, which is reflected in the development of machinery that consumes less, in the manufacture of products following eco-design criteria and in the adoption of circular economy strategies.

Achieving energy savings is a cross-cutting objective for all catering equipment. A great exponent of green technology is the commercial refrigeration sector, where the energy efficiency label is mandatory for certain equipment, and where machines incorporate the latest generation of environmentally friendly refrigerant gases.

The use of recyclable materials in the manufacture of the products is also common. In the textile or furniture sector, for example, products are made from recycled plastic, and in the field of single-use items made from plastic, alternative solutions are proposed, also using recyclable and biodegradable materials.