Our approach to innovation
The growth of the Controlar group has been largely based on the strong commitment to Innovation practices and on its sustained investment in Research and Development.
Our areas of activity require constant technological evolution, with a thorough surveillance of our main players’ innovations in the automotive sector, in order to anticipate the needs of this market and offer innovative and excellent solutions.
We seek to diversify the markets in which we operate, having so far invested in other sectors, which are also demanding in terms of cutting-edge technology: health, space and defence.
”The integration of technologies to support the digitization of the industry and the mobility of the future has been explored by the development of R&D+I projects, according to certified guidelines and in coordination with strategic partners. Our goal is to to reach the highest potential for technological innovation.
Carla PereiraR&D Manager

Our R&D+I team
Our R&D+I department has highly qualified employees, 100% dedicated to the promotion and execution of innovation initiatives.
The diversity of skills, the collaboration of different teams in the company and in the group, together with the continuous acquisition of new knowledge, has allowed the development of new projects and solutions with a high technological complexity and of high interest to the market.
The recognition in R&D+I practices
Controlar has its Research, Development and Innovation Management System (IDI) certified by NP4457. In addition, after in 2020 obtaining the recognition of suitability for R&D practices by ANI (Portuguese Agency for Innovation), the following year Controlar obtained the Inovadora COTEC status, which recognizes the performance of Portuguese companies that stand out for their investment in innovation, financial robustness and economic provision.
These recognitions demonstrate not only Controlar’s sustained growth in the area of innovation, but also its positioning vis-à-vis the competition in the markets where it operates.





Our R&D+I projects
We have been developing several R&D projects in partnership with major players in the automotive industry, namely Bosch, Visteon, MAHLE, Continental Advanced Antennas and Stellantis.
These projects follow the principles of open innovation management models, in accordance with the best international practices and with the involvement of R&D Centers and Universities, which allows companies to integrate knowledge that does not yet exist in the industry, and the possibility of a comprehensive sharing of knowledge in Controlar’s innovation ecosystem.
We aim to increase the company’s knowledge in the areas of artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision, cloud systems, Internet of Things (IoT), collaborative robotics, among others.
As part of the Controlar Group’s diversification strategy, we have developed R&D+I projects at EIIT – a Controlar company, in the areas of space and defense, as well as establishing various contacts with the Major Scientific Facilities (CERN, ITER and ESA).
In addition, Sensing Future Technologies (another Controlar company) also has a great track record in the execution of R&D+I projects in the health field, carried out with renowned national and international partnerships in the sector.
We expect that these projects will result in highly innovative services and products, which Controlar will then commercially exploit at an international level to respond to the needs of a wide range of customers and markets.
