Huesca-based Up Lifting has launched an ambitious expansion project for its facilities at the Huesca Logistics Platform (PLHUS), involving an investment of €11.3 million. The move will allow the company to expand from its current 8,000 square meters to 20,000 square meters and substantially increase production capacity at a time of rising demand linked to the defense sector.
The project, promoted by Metálicas Gaypu and Up Lifting Vertical, was designated a Regional Investment of Interest by the Government of Aragon last June. Planned investment totals exactly €11,374,633 and includes new assembly and paint areas, with the aim of tripling the company’s production capacity over the coming years.
The new facilities are expected to be completed by the end of 2027. The project also represents a significant boost to employment. Official estimates call for the creation of more than 30 direct jobs, although the company itself puts its future staffing needs at about 40 to 50 professionals across a range of roles as the expansion progresses.
From civil machinery to dual-use industry
Up Lifting manufactures heavy machinery and lifting equipment in Huesca for civil and military applications. Its product range includes equipment such as forklifts and container-handling machinery, a specialization that has enabled it to develop dual-use operations and gradually enter the defense market.
That positioning explains much of the growth project. The company announced in late 2025 that it intended to expand its facilities and triple output. Less than a year later, the project has begun to take shape with an investment exceeding the amount initially planned.
During a visit to the plant this week, Eva Valle, Aragon’s regional minister for Economy, Competitiveness and Employment, highlighted the company’s ability to adapt and its evolution toward a business model combining civilian and military markets.
Up Lifting is also part of the Aragon Defense Hub, an initiative aimed at building a regional business, technology, logistics, research and training ecosystem linked to the defense industry and dual-use technologies. The hub already has about 150 member companies and organizations.
The next challenge: finding workers
The expansion, however, raises an issue increasingly common among some of Aragon’s growing industries: the availability of qualified professionals.
Roberto Garzo, chief executive of the Gaypu group, has identified recruiting workers as one of the main challenges accompanying the factory’s growth. The company needs a broad range of talent, from welders and industrial specialists to engineers.
The issue is especially significant because Up Lifting’s growth is not taking place in isolation. Aragon is seeking to leverage its industrial base, logistics position, infrastructure and long-standing ties to the Armed Forces to strengthen its presence in the defense industry and dual-use technologies.
The Defense Hub itself includes among its priorities an analysis of the professional profiles companies will need and a comparison with the talent available in Aragon. The growth of companies such as Up Lifting shows that this need is already moving from strategic plans to factory floors.
For Huesca, the expansion will strengthen specialized industrial activity at PLHUS and add new skilled jobs to its labor market. For Up Lifting, it represents the step up in scale needed to meet growing demand without abandoning the civilian business that has been part of its corporate history.
