The acquisition makes it possible to enhance a large-scale infrastructure with significant potential, transforming it into an advanced technology hub designed to meet the needs of a rapidly evolving market, characterized by the growing integration of mobility, digitalization, automation, and safety.

Market context

Mobility is undergoing a profound paradigm shift, driven by the convergence of sustainability, digitalization, and the automation of driving and connectivity with road infrastructure. The development of hybrid and electric solutions, together with the widespread adoption of advanced driver assistance systems and autonomous driving technologies, requires dedicated testing infrastructures and highly specialized expertise. In this scenario, the availability of independent, technologically advanced testing centers is a key factor for innovation and industrial competitiveness.

IMQ Proving Ground

IMQ Proving Ground was established to address these needs, offering manufacturers, engineering companies, and suppliers a reference hub for the experimentation, validation, and certification of intelligent vehicles—that is, electric, autonomous, and connected vehicles integrated with advanced digital technologies for driving, safety, and connectivity—as well as of complex systems and components intended for the advanced automotive and aerospace sectors.

The Group’s expertise

The project is based on an already well-established industrial collaboration: CSI S.p.A., an IMQ Group company specialized in automotive testing and certification, has been operating on the site for years. The acquisition now makes it possible to further strengthen and integrate CSI’s expertise, reinforcing the IMQ Group’s contribution to the safe and certified development of the mobility of the future.

Project of national interest

The project underlying IMQ Proving Ground has been recognized by the Italian Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (MIMIT) as being of national interest, enabling Italy to equip itself with an independent center of excellence capable of competing internationally and of bringing together expertise from the industrial, technological, and research value chain.

Investment and territory

The site covers a total area of more than 500,000 square meters. The IMQ Group plans significant investments to enhance infrastructure, technologies, and internal skills, with positive impacts in terms of qualified employment and economic development for the Biella area.

Statements

Vincenzo De Martino, Chairman of the IMQ Group: “IMQ Proving Ground represents a strategic investment that strengthens the role of the IMQ Group in the safe development of intelligent vehicles. We are making available to the market an independent center of excellence for vehicle testing and certification, supporting both the automotive and aerospace industries in a rapidly evolving technological context.”

Claudio Tovaglieri, CEO of IMQ Proving Ground and Chairman of Air Vergiate S.r.l., the parent company of SACE S.r.l.:
“After years of careful management, following a precise industrial strategy, SACE has been restored and is now entrusted to a diversified, international group capable of ensuring a future for the airport. The entry of the IMQ Group makes it possible to fully unlock the site’s potential, transforming it into a technology hub of reference for highly innovative activities of national relevance.”

Davide Chiarletti, Mayor of Cerrione: “IMQ Proving Ground is an important opportunity for our territory: a project that combines industrial development, qualified employment, and national and international visibility, strengthening the role of the Biella area in mobility innovation.”

For information: comunicazioni@imqgroup.it