In 1985, in an industrial landscape very different from today’s, a project with a unique vision was born: Recuperación Industrial de Metales, S.A., or as we know it today, RIMSA. What began as a company dedicated to supplying brass bars and custom-cut parts would soon reveal its true DNA: the ability to see opportunities where others only saw waste.
The original idea of our founder, Manuel Carbajo, was the catalyst for everything. It wasn’t just a business, but a philosophy. The initial spark was to transform a by-product of the foundry industry, a low-value material, into a high-performance additive for a sector undergoing a major transformation: friction materials, which at the time were desperately seeking alternatives to asbestos.
This was not just RIMSA’s first innovation; it was the declaration of principles that has guided the company for four decades. It was proof that, with ingenuity and a different perspective, it is possible to create value, efficiency, and advanced solutions from the unexpected. This approach, which we would now call the circular economy, has been rooted in our core from day one.
“Without a doubt, I never thought I would get this far,” reflects Manuel Carbajo, looking back. “It fills me with satisfaction to realize how much all the effort and time invested has been worth it.” That effort has not been a straight path. It has been marked by resilience, the ability to learn from initiatives that did not succeed, and the determination to reinvent ideas with greater strength. As he himself states, “there is no success without defeat; it takes a lot of dedication and passion for what you do, for your dream.”
That passion translated into constant evolution. From that first brake additive, RIMSA’s strategic vision expanded. Our experience in materials science and solid-state chemistry allowed us to enter new and complex sectors. First, by establishing ourselves as one of the world leaders in non-ferrous additives for the friction industry. This same philosophy of synergies led us, in the late 90s, to pioneer the introduction of fiber manufacturing for reinforcement in Spain. What began as the utilization of a by-product from our ferric additives became a groundbreaking product nationwide. Over the next 25 years, we evolved from being mere producers to becoming experts in application, developing the country’s most extensive product catalog to provide an integral solution for every construction challenge.
More recently, we have embraced the greatest challenge of our time: the energy transition. We understand that energy storage will define the future of this transition, opening up a world of opportunities for various materials. It is here that our deep experience in solid-state chemistry allows us to develop advanced solutions. And precisely because of the global nature of these challenges, in 2022 we took a strategic step by launching our first joint venture, Innovamat Srl. This project, in an innovative coopetition model with Quartz Srl, allows us to gain the critical mass needed to tackle the new innovative and productive challenges that the energy transition demands.
Each of these seemingly different steps is connected by the same common thread that began in 1985: our team’s ability to rethink materials and their possibilities.
As we celebrate these 40 years, we celebrate not only a timeline of successes but the persistence of an idea. The idea that true innovation lies in transforming challenges into opportunities, a legacy that began with Manuel Carbajo and that today, in the hands of a new generation, drives RIMSA into the future.
