Webuild: the winners of the Hackathon Uniwelab Award have been announced. The marathon for sustainable innovation in collaboration with the University of Genoa

Genoa, September 16, 2021 - With the announcement of the winners, the two days of the 'UniWeLab Hackathon Award', an innovation marathon promoted by Webuild, together with the University of Genoa, within UniWeLab, the research lab and open innovation model born from the collaboration between these two realities, has now ended.

The purpose of the event was to identify innovative solutions to rethink the urban infrastructure of the Genoa flyover, having in mind the future construction of the sub-port tunnel that connects San Benigno and Calata Gadda. The competition was attended by students, doctoral students, graduates in Engineering, Architecture and Design, Computer Science, Economics, Sociology and Communication Sciences of UniGe, divided into interdisciplinary teams of three people.

The group of young people who presented an innovative solution to rethink the Genoa Flyover, with high quality standards on all the dimensions that have been taken into consideration, the utility, the impact, innovation, sustainability and representation of the proposal, won the award. The winning group provided interesting insights into the transformation of the flyover into a green lung for the city, with a roof that will allow the use of the space throughout the year. The winners were awarded an internship within Webuild, a leader in the sector of sustainable infrastructure sector, which has already built the new Genoa Bridge in Liguria, and is currently building the Terzo Valico dei Giovi-Genoa Junction.

Gianluca Grondona, Webuild Chief HR, Organization & Systems Officer, and Chairman of the Jury declared: 'We are proud to have promoted and developed this initiative with the University of Genoa, consolidating the fruitful collaboration relationship that binds us to this university and Liguria. This initiative is a further testimony of our commitment to investing in young people and their ideas, and our desire to pursue innovation with them. Giving voice to young talents is a priority for us, in Italy and throughout the world. We do so by maintaining a constant dialogue with the main universities in the strategic places where we work. As a Group we are investing heavily in innovation, digitalization, and we believe that creating a system with universities is the best way to create a favorable context for attracting new generations who want to grow with us in Italy and around the world. Today, the infrastructure sector is making progress in terms of innovation aimed at a more efficient and more sustainable production. And having 43% of direct resources under the age of 35 in the company is of great value in terms of competitiveness on the market '.

Since the construction of the new San Giorgio bridge, Webuild has continued to maintain its bond with Genoa and Liguria as a whole, together with the University. And thanks to the joint research UniWeLab is now promoting research and training activities for young people in the construction sector, infrastructure, logistics and transport.

The collaboration with the University of Genoa is part of the collaboration programmes with Italian and international universities, scholarships and talent attraction for young people that Webuild has been carrying out for some time, aimed at their inclusion in the Group's construction sites. The agreements in progress with Italian universities and Webuild include those with the Milan's Polytechnic and Bocconi. And abroad, with the University of Technology in Sydney and the University of Melbourne in Australia.