Italy / Lombardy

Brescia  is a city located in the region of Lombardy in northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometres from the lakes Garda and Iseo. With a population of 196,480, it is the second largest city in the region and the fourth of northwest Italy. The urban area of Brescia extends beyond the administrative city limits and has a population of 672,822, while over 1.5 million people live in its metropolitan area. The city is the administrative capital of the Provincia di Brescia, one of the largest in Italy, with over 1,200,000 inhabitants.

Brescia is considered the industrial capital of Italy. The metallurgy and the production of machine tools and firearms are of particular economic significance, along with mechanical and automotive engineering. The major companies based in the city are utility company A2A, steel producer Lucchini, firearms manufacturer Beretta, shotgun producer Perazzi and machine tools manufacturer Camozzi.

Nicknamed Leonessa d’Italia (“The Lioness of Italy”), Brescia is the home of Italian caviar, and is known for being the original production area of the  Franciacorta sparkling wine as well as the prestigious Mille Miglia classic car race that starts and ends in the city. This short overview let imagine how Brescia became a dynamic city, with an economical system lead by a relevant number of big companies and several SMEs born to provide the area with high specialized competences and skills.

Close to its Industrial and productive sector Brescia has a very active Agri-food sector with lot of small producers.

University of Brescia has a very good reputation and has been able to build fruitful relations with local companies based on technology transfer and exchange of knowhow and competences.