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Nokia Siemens Networks inaugurated an R&D center in Aveiro, Portugal, in 2007. Its work focused on network management, technical communications and fiber-optics telecommunications, with a planned investment of €45 million over three years and cooperation with the University of Aveiro.

Where was the center, and what did it do?

The center was in Aveiro, in northern Portugal. EE Times reported its inauguration in 2007, but the exact day is not established in the available contemporaneous account.

Its remit was telecommunications research and development—not the same as operating a global network-services center. The reported areas of focus were network management, technical communications and advanced fiber-optics telecommunications.

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How much was invested, and what was the university’s role?

EE Times reported a planned investment of €45 million over three years. The announcement presented the center as a way to strengthen cooperation with the University of Aveiro; it does not establish that the full planned amount was ultimately spent.

João Picoito, then director of Nokia Siemens Networks South West Europe, described the center as an “innovation pole” reflecting the company’s commitment to cooperation between academia and industry.

How did the Aveiro center fit into Nokia Siemens’ wider Portuguese presence?

Nokia Siemens announced other Portuguese initiatives around the same period. They had different locations and purposes, so their staffing figures should not be read as headcount for the Aveiro R&D center or for the company across Portugal.

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Initiative Purpose and commitment Reported staffing or operational scale
Aveiro R&D center (2007) Research in network management, technical communications and fiber optics; €45 million planned over three years. EE Times, 2007. Not stated in the EE Times account.
Global Service Center protocol (announced June 2007) Planned a Global Network Operation Center and a Global Care Center, providing engineering and service capabilities. Portuguese government/Nokia Siemens protocol, 2007. 170 initial engineering jobs and about 500 engineers targeted by 2010, according to the protocol.
Tagus Park innovation-center plan (2007) A separate initiative with the Technical University of Lisbon and Instituto Superior Técnico, focused on software applications for telecom operators. 70 engineers initially, with 100 planned in 2008, according to the 2007 plan.
Alfragide global telecommunications center (reported February 2010) Engineering services for networks worldwide. RTP reported the center had been operating for six months. RTP reported 600 employees. Diário de Notícias/LUSA reported that the Global Networks Solutions Center managed more than 17 million users worldwide and had 600 highly qualified employees.

In July 2008, Portugal’s Council of Ministers described Nokia Siemens Networks Portugal’s competence-center investment as supporting high-level technical services, exports, innovation, suppliers and universities. That government account situates the Portuguese projects within a broader effort to build technical capabilities and export-oriented services; it does not change the distinct remit of the Aveiro R&D center.

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What do the Portugal employment figures mean?

The figures describe particular plans or facilities, not Nokia Siemens’ total Portuguese workforce. The 2007 figures were commitments or targets, while the 2010 reports described staffing at the Alfragide global center. None of those sources gives a comparable headcount for the Aveiro R&D center.

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