The second Spanish Conference on Geosynthetics, Geosintec 2, was held 7-8 October 2015, at the Centro de Estudios y Experimentación de Obras Públicas (CEDEX), a body of the Spanish Ministry of Public Works, in Madrid, Spain.

Geosintec 2 was organized by the IGS Spanish Chapter, with the collaboration of public and private businesses and scientific associations. More than 180 participants mainly from Spain, but also from Mexico, India, Turkey, Russia and Romania, attended the conference.

The conference was opened by Mrs. Liana Sandra Ardiles, Managing Director of Water at the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment, Mr. Mariano Navas, Director of the CEDEX, Dr. Jorge Zornberg, Immediate Past President of the IGS, and Mr. Ángel Leiro, President of the IGS Spanish Chapter.

The conference provided two keynote lectures. The first keynote, given by Dr. Manuel Blanco, Head of Materials Department of LCEYM (CEDEX) and Vice President of the IGS Spanish Chapter, was about synthetic polymeric geomembranes used in the waterproofing of hydraulic works. The second keynote, given by Dr. Jorge Zornberg, presented advances in the use of geosynthetics in the reinforcement of pavements.

There were six technical sessions, chaired by prominent professionals, consisting of twenty-one papers presenting information on hydraulic structures, geotechnical applications, soil improvement and reinforcement, environmental applications, mining, erosion control, and coastal works. Also, a review of the present and the future situation of geosynthetics was presented. All aspects of the use of geosynthetics were dealt with, drawing on experience gained in case histories as well as research and development into new products and uses.

The conference also included four round tables, where experts from different institutions discussed the topics presented in the technical sessions.

Geosintec 2 was a great success. The support of the sponsors contributed directly to the success of the conference. The 12 sponsoring companies, who fully occupied the conference exhibition area, included Huesker, Cetco, Tencate, Renolit, Geotexan, Atarfil, Intermas, Laborcontrol, Sotrafa, Naue, Sika, and Sunjut.

The conference provided a platform to discuss the most important issues about the applications of geosynthetics, as well as subjects related to the research, durability and development of new products and uses.

Reported by
Beatriz Mateo, Assistant Secretary of IGS Spanish Chapter
Pedro Abad, General Secretary and Treasurer of IGS Spanish Chapter