Juan Fran has always been interested in research. He’s always liked intellectual challenges, transforming ideas and bringing innovation closer to market to help society and companies.
Today, he can explore his passion through his work as a member of the multidisciplinary microplastics teams, which involves identifying and characterizing polymer materials ranging in size from nanomillimetres to millimetres. His mission is to establish a standardized analytical methodology to help companies detect, identify and quantify microplastics. This will help facilitate prevention, improve safety and anticipate future regulations on the presence of microplastics in products and effluent.

What is your passion?

My passion is learning, expanding my knowledge, facing new challenges. I love research. Starting a new research project is always a new challenge. You have to get up to scratch on the problems to be faced, the solutions that have been proposed so far, the main research groups, the technological resources that have been applied, the new technologies being used and many other factors. Then, with your own knowledge, perspective and ideas, you can make your small contribution to improve society through innovation.

What is your mission at AIMPLAS?

To generate value and share knowledge, ideas and excitement in order to drive projects and innovation that can impact society. To do that, you have to be familiar with the concerns of society and companies to be able to offer solutions that best fit their needs.

Tell us about your experience at AIMPLAS. Why made you come and what motivates you the most? What does AIMPLAS mean to you?

My experience at AIMPLAS couldn’t be better. I became familiar with AIMPLAS some years ago, when I did a vocational training course on plastics and rubber. For me, it was the beginning of everything. It was my first contact with the plastics industry and I discovered that I loved it. I also learned how a technology centre like AIMPLAS works. Training, research, development, innovation and services to learn about company problems and offer the best solutions are all happening here. That’s when I knew I wanted to work in a place like this. So I continued my training as a chemist. I specialized in the synthesis of polymeric nanomaterials and finished a Master’s Degree in Molecular Nanoscience and Nanotechnology and I’ll soon present my doctoral thesis.

I joined AIMPLAS a few months ago to form part of the Microplastics 2020 Project. It was a turning point in my life. I was finally able to work in that place I had discovered and that gave me the basis of my training in the industry. Getting to know a human team with so much talent, knowledge and drive to always be on the cutting edge in the industry motivates me in my own professional and personal development. I believe that’s what truly represents AIMPLAS: a group of enthusiastic people who use their knowledge, experience and pursuit of continuous improvement in order to make innovative technological solutions available to society.

What advice would you give someone who wants to develop a professional career in the field of R&D&I?

Most of all, they should be eager and excited about facing new challenges. They should be inquisitive and curious about acquiring new knowledge and keeping up to date on the latest advances. It’s also important to know how to work on a team and create a multidisciplinary knowledge network to be able to offer solutions and suggest new answers. In the end, the aim is to transform ideas into innovative products to be used by companies and the general public.