The SEAT 1200 Sport, better known as the ‘Bocanegra’, went down in history thanks to its unique black polyurethane foam bumper, which earned it its famous nickname. But this model was also a milestone in the history of SEAT S.A. for being the first to be developed entirely at the Technical Center. The year was 1975.
This year, when the company celebrates its 75th anniversary as a driving force of mobility, its R&D Center is also celebrating its own 50th anniversary, while fully immersed in the development of the electric urban car. “This double anniversary is a milestone that highlights our ongoing commitment to progress, talent and vision for the future” says Dr. Werner Tietz, SEAT S.A. Executive Vice-President for Research and Development.
Creating, experimenting, learning… The Center’s motto hasn’t changed in its half-century of existence. Keep reading to learn how SEAT S.A.’s innovation hub has created the mobility of tomorrow, always at the cutting edge of the technology of the moment.
From paper to digitalisation. In the early days of the Technical Center, its 211 employees would spread out large rolls of paper on a table and draw the first sketches of a model by hand. Full-scale reproductions to complete the process of defining the silhouette of a prototype were made with plaster, and acoustic tests were carried out in a room with foam-covered walls.
Today, the team of 1,000 people including engineers, designers, aerodynamics and acoustic experts…work with 3D sketches, virtual reality headsets and artificial intelligence tools. “The biggest evolution has been the variety of technologies that our team has to master” says Josep Bons, director of User Experience & Interior Engineering.
Plaster gave way to clay, and acoustic tests are conducted in an echo-free chamber with ‘box in box’ technology, an inner room constructed within a larger outer room using layers of steel and concrete that isolate more than 95% of external sounds and vibrations. Inside, the old microphones have given way to dummy heads that simulate human perception, capturing every acoustic nuance.
Models that have made history. The development of the ‘Bocanegra’ was followed by such iconic models as the Ibiza, Toledo and Leon. The integration into the Volkswagen Group in 1986, and later into the Audi-Lamborghini cluster in 2002, gave the Technical Center the necessary brawn that has been key to extending its scope. And the opening of the Design Center and the Prototype Development Center in 2007 made it possible to centralise all stages of the creative and technical process in Martorell: from the very first line drawn by a designer to final validation before series production.
2020 saw the arrival of another icon, the CUPRA Formentor, the first model designed and developed entirely by the brand and the company’s best-selling vehicle. In 2021, the CUPRA Born, CUPRA’s first 100% electric car, was the spearhead of electrification. That same year, the Technical Center was expanded with the Test Center Energy, a one-of-a-kind battery research and development centre in southern Europe. And the company continues to make progress with the battery system assembly plant, with an investment of 300 million euros.
Creating the future, an electric future. Because right now this advanced innovation hub is focused on developing the electric urban car. Of the 310,000 simulations carried out in 2024 to validate aspects such as aerodynamics, safety, acoustics, etc., 220,000 corresponded to the range of electric urban cars. “Leading the development of the electric urban car family reflects the Volkswagen Group’s trust in our people and our capabilities” says Dr. Werner Tietz; a 5-decade-long trust backed up by data.
50 years of the Technical Center in figures
- From 211 employees in 1975 to 1,000 today
- 34,000 professionals in total throughout its history
- Its facilities have grown from 16,000 m2 to today’s 200,000 m2
- 950 prototypes
- 359 patents
- 35,000,000 km of extreme weather condition testing
SOURCE: SEAT
