The Spanish industrial sector is undergoing a transformation driven by automation, electrification, and increasing operational complexity in warehouses and industrial platforms. All this is pushing the traditional concept of an industrial asset toward infrastructures increasingly prepared to meet new energy, regulatory, and technological demands.
According to Accolade, factors such as energy capacity, adaptation to new safety regulations, and the technological readiness of assets are gaining weight for both operators and investors, progressively redefining the value of modern industrial parks.
In this context, the group identifies five factors that are already redefining its value:
1 – Adaptation to new safety requirements and operational resilience
The evolution of industrial activity is raising safety and risk-management requirements within platforms. The rise in storage density, the presence of increasingly diverse goods, and the need to guarantee operational continuity are driving a progressive review of safety standards across the sector.
In Spain, for instance, operators, investors, and insurers remain particularly attentive to updates of the Fire Safety Regulation in Industrial Establishments (RSCIEI), a regulation designed to adapt fire-protection requirements to the new operational dynamics and storage typologies of industrial activity.
This is causing the asset’s ability to respond to future regulatory demands and minimize operational risks to begin being valued as an increasingly important factor in real estate and investment decisions.
2 – Energy capacity and grid access as a new strategic factor
The progressive electrification of a large portion of industrial activity is significantly increasing the sector’s energy needs. Electric vehicle charging infrastructure, energy storage systems, self-consumption, or new operational requirements are increasing pressure on available electrical capacity. In this way, factors such as grid access, available power, or the possibility of expanding energy capacity begin to play a leading role in the planning and valuation of industrial assets.
Indeed, in some European markets, the availability of electrical capacity is already becoming a gating factor for certain initiatives, especially in locations with a high concentration of economic and industrial activity. Moreover, the growing energy complexity is driving much more advanced management models aimed at optimizing consumption, reducing operating costs, and improving the energy efficiency of facilities.
3 – Flexibility to respond to more dynamic supply chains
The rise of e-commerce, the regionalization of certain supply chains, and the need to reduce delivery times are transforming operational needs. In Spain alone, e-commerce now accounts for between 11% and 12% of retail sales, according to Savills’ 2025 Spain e-retail Index, a trend that is driving much more agile and flexible supply chain models.
Companies demand assets capable of rapidly adapting to different distribution models, growth rates, or sector-specific needs. The modularity of spaces, the ability to combine different industrial typologies, or adaptation to last-mile and cross-dock operations are becoming increasingly relevant.
Moreover, operational flexibility is gaining importance in an environment marked by higher economic volatility and supply chains subjected to constant changes driven by geopolitical, regulatory, or consumer factors.
4 – Risk of technological obsolescence and the need for “future-ready” assets
Technological evolution has also shown up as an increased risk of obsolescence for certain industrial assets that were not designed to absorb new operational needs or integrate advanced technologies. This modernization need is particularly relevant given that, according to recent reports by JLL and CBRE, more than 55% of Spanish logistics warehouses are over 20 years old.
The incorporation of automated systems, robotic solutions, smart-management tools, or data-analytics technologies requires infrastructure that is increasingly technically prepared. Therefore, factors such as connectivity, clear height, floor slab strength, and the capacity for technological integration begin to directly influence the assets’ future competitiveness.
In parallel, the speed at which industrial operations are evolving is driving interest in facilities capable of adapting more readily to future technological and operational changes.
5 – Sustainability and operational efficiency as structural value drivers
Sustainability has become a structural criterion within the industrial sector, beyond ESG targets or regulatory compliance. Aspects such as energy efficiency, resource optimization, and reducing operating costs have an increasingly direct impact on competitiveness and the long-term value of assets.
More and more operators and investors are analyzing the real performance of infrastructures in terms of energy consumption, operational efficiency, or the well-being of people working in them. This is driving interest in infrastructures capable of integrating solutions aimed at improving facilities’ energy performance, reducing consumption, and meeting future environmental and corporate requirements.
Against this backdrop, environmental certifications such as BREEAM continue to serve as a benchmark within the sector, although the focus is increasingly on operational impact and the real long-term efficiency of assets.
“A few years ago, many of these issues barely factored into conversations about industry. Today, from Accolade, we see operators and investors analyzing assets in a much more strategic and long-term way, because operational needs are changing so quickly,” concludes Jan Mazáč, Associate Director at Accolade.
