Our story

1977

Founded as ICPEAR, under the Ministry of the Chemical Industry, headquartered in Bucharest.

1982

The Râmnicu Vâlcea Branch is opened.

1982

The design sector becomes S.C. IPROMED S.A. Under these conditions, the research sector continuously developed, shifting from wastewater technologies to solutions addressing environmental factors: water, air, soil, and expanding expertise from the chemical industry to solving environmental problems across most industrial sectors:

• Wastewater treatment processes for other industrial sectors (1990s);
• Urban wastewater (post-1990);
• Air pollution (1995) and soil pollution (1997);
• Pollution status assessment, impact evaluation, and ecological risk caused by industrial activities (1998);
• Design and implementation of quality and environmental management systems (2000);
• Support for introducing sustainable development principles in enterprises: technological process analyses and cleaner production, eco-efficiency, environmental cost evaluation and monitoring, integrating sustainability into strategic development objectives of industrial units (post-2000);
• Training and professional development courses, environmental competency evaluation (from 2010).

1995

External audit recommends transformation into a national institute due to results achieved, multidisciplinary approaches, and prompt, appropriate responses to the environmental needs of economic units.

1999

Accredited as the National Institute for Research and Development in Industrial Ecology – INCD ECOIND, under the authority of the Ministry of Industry and Resources (currently Ministry of Economy), according to HG no. 261/1999, Ordinance no. 57/2002, and Organizational and Functioning Regulation approved by HG no. 961/2005.

2001 & 2008

Reaccreditation as a national institute.

2009-2012

Infrastructure modernization through POS CCE 115/2600 project co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund.

2014-2015

Implementation of the MEDIND project co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the Sectoral Operational Program “Increasing Economic Competitiveness – Investments for Your Future” for modernizing and expanding INCD ECOIND’s infrastructure, developing/extending new research directions, and creating 5 new laboratories:

• Molecular Biology Laboratory (LBM);
• Electron and Correlative Microscopy Laboratory (LME);
• Industrial Waste Preparation/Pre-treatment Laboratory (LPDI);
• Indoor Air Quality Assessment Laboratory (LAI);
• Dynamic Olfactometry Laboratory (LOD).

Modernization of 4 existing R&D laboratories:

• Environmental Forensic Analysis Laboratory (JUDMED);
• Soil-Waste Pollution Control Laboratory;
• Biotests – Biological Analyses Laboratory (B);
• Bacteriological Control Laboratory (LBC).

2024

Currently, INCD ECOIND operates under the coordination of the Ministry of Education and Research – National Research Authority.

Research-development-innovation, with a focus on applied research in environmental protection, are the fields in which ECOIND has carried out significant impact projects in recent years. Today, ECOIND provides support for sustainable development and environmental protection and enjoys growing national and international recognition.

Our laboratories include: Water, Soil, and Waste Pollution Control Laboratory; Biotests – Biological Analyses Laboratory; Air Pollution Control Laboratory.