On 5 September, the new students at the UIC Barcelona School of Architecture visited the headquarters of the Official Association of Architects of Catalonia (COAC) and the Catalan Institute of Construction Technology (ITeC). Throughout the day, the 59 new students were accompanied by the School’s director, Josep Lluís i Ginovart.

Duna Bellmunt, a member of the COAC’s Board of Governors, was the person charged with welcoming the new students to the association. “This is your home. Remember that we are here to help you throughout your academic and professional career”, she asserted. The association representative also gave the students a tour of the building, which included the library, the mural by Pablo Picasso and the Sert School classrooms. The students also had the opportunity to view a selection of historical documents (plans, drawings, etc.), with a detailed explanation from the head of the COAC’s archives, Andreu Carrascal. 

Following the visit to the COAC, the UIC Barcelona students were taken to the headquarters of the Catalan Institute of Construction Technology, where they were greeted by its chairman, Francisco Diéguez. There, they had the opportunity to listen to talks by the Institute’s head of Innovation Projects, David Sabatés, and its technical director, Ferran Bermejo. Both discussed the new methodologies and tools currently being developed in the construction industry in efforts to create more sustainable urban environments.