Following unanimous agreement from members of the Grouping of European leather technology centres, GERIC, Romania’s ICPI has become GERIC’s first member in Eastern Europe. ICPI, the Romanian Institute that hosts the country’s domestic leather technology centre, led by director Luminita Albu, has collaborated with GERIC institutes for the last decade on a number of EU sponsored projects notably in the field of sectoral education and training. It produced the Romanian version of the EUREKA Glossary of Leather Terms and is currently participating in the CTIC- led EU project ‘One Leather Training’ in the framework of the EU Leonardo Programme. During the last ten years ICPI has also served as a bridge to the Romanian leather industry providing COTANCE assistance in liaising with its representatives and organising workshops and conferences in the framework of the Perfect-Link Project (EU Phare BSP Programme) and in the context of the EU Social Dialogue facilitating the Social Partners of the Romanian leather industry.
Based in Bucharest, the institute is fitted with laboratories for leather research and a range of physical and chemical tests for the tanning industry.
Chaired by Alcino Martinho (CTIC – Portugal), GERIC unites European leather technology centres providing the leather industry with the technological and educational tools required for sustainable development. Its members include AIICA (Igualada, Spain), CTC (Lyon, France), CTIC (Alcanena, Portugal), ELKEDE (Athens, Greece), SSIP (Naples, Italy), and LGR (Reutlingen, Germany). Its secretariat is managed by COTANCE, the representative body of European Tanners.
