Aid and financing to buy an additive manufacturing machine in Spain

The first conversation about buying an additive manufacturing machine is almost never about technology. It's about money, and it usually ends with "we'll look at it next year."

It's worth looking into beforehand, because in Spain there are four ways to pay for a machine like this, and most companies only know about one. These options can be combined, and the difference between using one or three changes the actual outlay for the first year more than any price negotiation.

This isn't tax advice or a list of open calls for proposals—those change every year. It's a map of where the money is flowing, so you know who to ask and in what order.

The four ways

Via	What it is	How much it weighs	When it's paid
Non-repayable grant	Money that doesn't need to be repaid, tied to a project	The most profitable, the most competitive	Later, with justification
Soft loan	Low or zero interest rate credit, often with a grace period	High volume, must be repaid	Before, upon signing
R&D&I tax credit	Less tax on what you've already spent	Constant and rarely used	In the tax return
Renting or leasing	Monthly payment instead of purchase	Turns investment into expense	No initial outlay

1. Subsidy: the most profitable and the slowest

It's money that doesn't need to be repaid, and that's why everyone starts here. What almost no one considers is that a grant doesn't pay for a machine: it pays for a project. No one is going to subsidize "buying a printer"; they are going to subsidize "developing a process to manufacture this component that we currently buy from abroad," and the machine is included as an associated investment.

That changes what needs to be prepared. A catalog isn't necessary: a specific industrial problem is needed, a phased work plan, and a reasonable idea of what will be known at the end that isn't known today.

Who convenes them, on two levels:

State-level. The CDTI (Center for the Development of Industrial Technology) is the go-to resource for projects with a development component, and there are funding lines linked to industry and digitalization plans that fluctuate with budgets.
Regional-level. Each autonomous community has its own development agency and its own industrial investment programs. These tend to be smaller, much less competitive, and considerably faster: for a first machine, it's worth looking here rather than at the regional level.

{!Specific programs and organizations, with current guidelines: to be confirmed by Samylabs before publishing, as they change every year.!}

2. Soft loan: the one that really moves the volume

Less glamorous but more useful than it seems. These are loans with interest rates well below market rates, often with a one or two-year grace period, and with amounts that can actually cover the cost of an entire machine.

The advantage over a grant is that they are resolved and paid for sooner. The obvious disadvantage is that they have to be repaid. But if the project makes sense, a ten-year loan with a two-year grace period and zero interest rate is quite similar to a grant spread over time.

3. R&D&I tax deduction: the one that almost nobody uses

This is the forgotten path, and it's the only one that doesn't depend on winning a grant. If your company develops a product or process—and parameterizing a new alloy, qualifying a part, or redesigning a component to manufacture it differently qualifies as such—that activity generates a deduction in corporate tax.

Two things you should know:

You can request a justified report that protects the deduction against a subsequent audit. It costs money and time, but for substantial amounts, it's worthwhile.
If the company doesn't have enough tax credit to apply it, there are mechanisms to monetize it. Being in the red doesn't mean you lose the deduction.

This isn't money to buy the machine; it's money that comes back based on what you do with it. That's why it fits well with the other methods instead of competing with them.

4. Renting or leasing: when what's lacking isn't profitability, it's cash

Sometimes the project is clear, but the problem is the lack of funds for a large outlay. In those cases, the answer isn't financial assistance, but rather a change in the payment method: a monthly installment instead of a single purchase.

The difference between the two figures matters more than it seems:

Leasing: You finance the purchase. The machine eventually becomes yours and appears as an asset on your balance sheet.
Renting: You pay to use it. This usually includes maintenance, and at the end you decide whether to keep it, renew the contract, or return it.

For a first machine, leasing has a little-discussed advantage: it limits the risk. If the project hasn't gone anywhere after two years, it's returned. If it's been successful, it's renewed for a larger one.

{!Samylabs is considering offering rental periods with transport, installation, and commissioning included. Terms and deadlines to be defined.!}

The mistake that leaves out more projects

This deserves its own section because it is systematic and cannot be fixed once it occurs:

Buy before the issue is resolved.

Almost all funding programs require what's called an incentive effect: the funding must be the reason the project is undertaken, and that means that expenses incurred before the application are not eligible. Signing the order in March and applying for funding in June disqualifies the machine from the grant, no matter how good the project is.

The correct order is always the same: firm quote → request → resolution → order. A quote is non-binding and is precisely what they need to assess the investment.

This leads to another practical consequence: if you want the machine up and running in January, the conversation with the manufacturer starts the previous summer. Not because of the manufacturing lead time, but because of the administrative process.

How I would approach it, in order

Define the project, not the purchase. What part, what problem, what will be learned? Without this, there's nothing to request.
Request a firm quote from the manufacturer, with deadlines and a detailed breakdown of what's included. It's free and serves as the foundation for everything else.
Check your region first. Less competition and faster service.
Include the tax deduction in the plan from the beginning, not after you've already done it: document everything as you work, not rebuild it a year later.
Consider leasing as a backup plan, not as a primary plan. If a subsidy is available, adjust the entire budget accordingly.
Don't sign anything until you have the final decision.

And here's a tip that costs nothing: talk to someone in your community who has already gone through this. The difficult part of these calls for proposals is almost never the substance, it's the process.

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If you're at this point and want the figures for your case, we can prepare the firm quote you need to submit your application. It's non-binding and is the document they'll ask for.

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What is actually being financed is a specific machine with a budget behind it: ours are ALBA 300 and ALBA 500, and the cost of running them for a year is the annual cost of operating an LPBF machine. If you need a technical report with defensible figures, write to us from contact and we will prepare it for you.