Month: March 2026
ShieldBot Co-organises its first Project Workshop at the European Robotics Forum 2026
ShieldBot hit a significant milestone at the European Robotics Forum 2026 (ERF 2026) hosted on 23-27 March 2026 in Stavanger, Norway, with the co-organisation of its first workshop titled “AI and Robotics in Construction: From Perception to Action”. Jointly organised with the Tech4EUConstruction Cluster, the workshop gathered seven experts from research and industry to discuss how Artificial Intelligence (AI) and robotics can drive a more sustainable, digital future for the construction sector.
The workshop, held on the 24 of March, brought together three Tech4EUConstruction members: DISCOVER, RoBétArmé and BEEYONDERS, alongside ShieldBot, as well as two EU-funded projects: TARGET-X and XCAVE. These initiatives focus their research activities on robotics, automation, AI, and construction, developing solutions to face industry challenges and creating real-world applications.
Robotics in Construction: From Undeniable Potential to Real-World Implementation
The session attracted an engaged audience of over 70 participants, reflecting the growing interest in robotics and automation within the construction sector. After the project's presentations, Jason Rambach (DFKI), main organiser of the workshop and ShieldBot partner, moderated the panel discussion featuring the speakers, in which participants from the audience contributed actively to the conversation. Among the topics discussed were the construction areas with more potential for robotics, the main challenges for robots in construction, or the current funding landscape.
The experts sharing the various research activities developed within their projects were:
- Sigrid Brell-Cokcan (RWTH Aachen University) represented TARGET-X
- Dimitris Giakoumis (Centre for Research & Technology Hellas - CERTH) talked about RoBétArmé.
- Antonio Alonso Cepeda (ACCIONA) presented BEEYONDERS.
- David Caballero Flores (CDEI-UPC Centre de Disseny d'Equips Industrials - Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya) showcased DISCOVER.
- Viktor Wiberg (Algoryx) spoke about XSCAVE.
- Sara Mata (IDEKO) introduced ShieldBot.
They described the use of robotics in a wide range of scenarios in the construction industry, from buildings to maritime infrastructures. The use cases highlighted the capabilities of robots to perform a variety of tasks: from mapping, to maintenance or excavation, in a reliable and autonomous way.
The message was clear: the potential of robotics to transform the construction industry is undeniable, yet we need to go further to accelerate innovation, collaboration, and real-world implementation. The importance of embedding a human-centric approach and sustainability principles into the development of every solution was also remarked.
Jason Rambach (DFKI) reflected on the session:
“For the fourth year in a row at the ERF, the Workshop on AI and Robotics in Construction was a great success as shown by the number of attendants as well as their active participation in the interactive part of the workshop. We were able to witness how early concepts have turned into reality over these last years, and how construction robotics are transforming from a niche domain into a key robotic application area contributing to efficiency, sustainability and safety in the sector.” - Jason Rambach, Senior Researcher and Team Leader Spatial Sensing and Machine Perception at the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI)
ShieldBot at the Tech4EUConstruction Workshop at ERF 2026
The main objective of ShieldBot is to revolutionise the construction, renovation, and maintenance sectors with robotics.
During the Tech4EUConstruction workshop at ERF 2026, Sara Mata, Senior Researcher on Robotics for Manufacturing at IDEKO, the organisation coordinating the project, presented ShieldBot.
She explained how we are investigating and validating a new generation of robotic systems tailored to the industry’s unique challenges. These robotic systems will integrate groundbreaking advancements in robotic hardware, advanced control algorithms, eco-material applications, and AI-based dynamic modelling tools to enable thorough upfront planning and execution.
By addressing critical challenges such as environmental sustainability, resource inefficiency, and workforce limitations, ShieldBot will deliver adaptable, precise, and sustainable solutions that enhance productivity, quality, safety and environmental performance of construction, renovation and maintenance tasks.
ShieldBot at European Robotics Forum 2026
Beyond the workshop, ShieldBot partners from IDEKO, DFKI and AUSTRALO, actively engaged with the broader ERF community, attending workshops, sharing insights, exchanging ideas, and strengthening connections with stakeholders across academia and industry.
Humanoid robots that support cognitive stimulation tasks for seniors, drones to inspect offshore oil platforms, or robots to automate processes in manufacturing are only some examples of the cutting-edge technologies being developed to address the industry challenges.
But our partners also had the opportunity to learn more about designing robots for social acceptance, building sustainable and trustworthy cognitive robotics, and technology transfer and exploitation, especially in SMEs.
About European Robotics Forum 2026
The European Robotics Forum 2026 (ERF 2026) once again proved to be a cornerstone event for Europe’s robotics and AI community, bringing together over 1,000 researchers, industry leaders, and innovators to exchange ideas and showcase progress on the latest trends shaping the future of robotics in Europe.
About the Tech4EUConstruction Cluster
ShieldBot is a member of the Tech4EUconstruction Cluster. Funded in 2022 by BEEYONDERS, HumanTech, and RoBétArmé projects, and supported by the European Commission, the Cluster aims to develop and demonstrate new technologies to further digitalise and automatise the European construction sector, targeting to increase its safety and attractivity for workers.
The rest of the projects involved are: REINCARNATE, BIM2TWIN, InCUBE, HERON, DTERBIM, RECONMATIC and DISCOVER.
ShieldBot Joins the Conversation on Innovation in Robotics at BIEMH 2026 in Bilbao
ShieldBot participated in the Bienal Internacional de Máquina-Herramienta (International Machine-Tool Exhibition), BIEMH 2026, held at the Bilbao Exhibition Centre from 2 to 6 March 2026. The project was represented by our coordinator IDEKO at Stand E20 in Hall 1 and also took part in one of the fair’s innovation workshops.
Within the booth, IDEKO showcased the latest innovations and technologies developed at the research centre, creating a research corner highlighting several ongoing Research & Development (R&D) initiatives, including ShieldBot, which was presented to visitors throughout the event, screening the presentation that you can see below. This space enabled direct interactions and discussions with industry professionals interested in robotics, automation, and advanced manufacturing solutions.
ShieldBot Participation in an Innovation Workshop on Robotics, Automation and Digitisation
Our coordinator also took part in a roundtable discussion organised by AER Automation, the Spanish association for robotics and industrial automation, on Thursday 5 March at 11:05h in Hall 6 - B-50 Speakers’ Corner by Bizkaiko Foru Aldundia / Diputación Foral de Bizkaia (Provincial Council of Bizkaia), as part of the Innovation Workshops on Robotics, Automation and Digitisation. The session was titled “De la I+D aplicada al impacto industrial: robótica y automatización para una fabricación inteligente y sostenible” (“From Applied R&D to Industrial Impact: Robotics and Automation for Smart and Sustainable Manufacturing”).
Asier Barrios, Researcher at IDEKO, contributed as a speaker, sharing IDEKO’s experience and perspectives on the role of robotics in enabling smarter and more sustainable manufacturing. His intervention helped to increase the visibility of the ShieldBot project among members of the industrial and automation community who attended BIEMH 2026.
The workshop gathered approximately 30 participants, mainly representatives from Basque industrial companies as well as researchers from regional technology centres. The discussion offered an opportunity to strengthen relationships with AER Automation and foster dialogue with potential end-users from the advanced manufacturing sector. It was moderated by Alfonso Muñoz Bisié, Business Development at AER Automation, who was joined by Emilio Sánchez Tapia, Researcher at Ceit Research Center; Urko Esnaola, Head of Robotics for Industrial Flexibility at TECNALIA; Ander Ansuategui, Researcher in the Autonomous and Intelligent Systems Unit at Tekniker, and the ShieldBot representative Asier Barrios.
Asier highlighted that Shieldbot is a clear example of IDEKO's evolution in the field of robotics, where we are exploring new applications to help shape a more sustainable construction sector, with a particular focus on improving building efficiency.
BIEMH 2026: The Leading International Trade Fair for Advanced Manufacturing
Participation in the event facilitated valuable exchanges with industrial companies, technology centres, and potential adopters of advanced robotic solutions. These interactions contributed to strengthening IDEKO’s outreach and opened new opportunities for collaboration and future exploitation pathways for the ShieldBot project.
ShieldBot at the European Robotics Forum 2026: Workshop on Robotics and AI with the Tech4EUConstruction Projects
The ShieldBot project will participate in the European Robotics Forum (ERF) 2026 in Stavanger, Norway, by contributing to a workshop organised by the Tech4EUConsutruction Cluster exploring the role of artificial intelligence and robotics in the construction sector. Titled “AI and Robotics in Construction: From Perception to Action” the session will take place on 24 March 2026 from 14:00h to 15:20h in Lysefjorden B, bringing together experts from research and industry to discuss the latest advances enabling autonomous and intelligent construction systems.
The organiser of the workshop is Jason Rambach (DFKI), with co-organisers David Caballero Flores (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya), Viktor Wiberg (Algoryx), Antonio Alonso Cepeda (ACCIONA), Dimitrios Giakoumis (CERTH-ITI), and Ali Muhammad (University of Southern Denmark).
The Tech4EUConstruction projects participating are RoBétArmé, BEEYONDERS, DISCOVER, and ShieldBot. Sara Mata, Senior Researcher on Robotics for Manufacturing at IDEKO, will represent us. Moreover, after the workshop introduction by Jason Rambach, there will be an invited talk with the project TARGET-X about climate-neutral and resource-efficient construction with Sigrid Brell-Cokcan (RWTH Aachen). XSCAVE will also join us as an invited project.
“AI and Robotics in Construction: From Perception to Action” - Agenda and Speakers
READ THE BROCHURE BELOW TO DISCOVER THE FULL WORKSHOP AGENDA AND SPEAKERS:
Loading...
Reload document 
Open in new tab