Valencia Smart Parking: NB-IoT for the Blue Zone

Deployment Snapshot

Field	Value
Client	Pavapark Movilidad S.L.
HQ	Valencia, Spain
Industry	Parking management (Grupo PAVASAL subsidiary)
Products deployed	5× Sensor Standard (NB-IoT), 1NCE SIM cards, Surface Adaptor
Connectivity	NB-IoT (1NCE 10-year pre-paid SIMs)
Deployment type	Reduced demo kit evaluation
Order date	July 2023

The Client

Pavapark Movilidad is the urban mobility arm of Grupo PAVASAL, a Spanish construction and infrastructure group with over 70 years of history. Pavapark manages a large portfolio of on-street and off-street parking spaces across Spanish municipalities and has expanded into EV charging point management and vehicle removal services. The group encompasses PAVASAL (civil/industrial construction), PAVAGUA (water management), PAVENER (energy services), EDIFESA (building), and ELIT (logistics).

In 2024, Pavapark secured a major contract with the City of Valencia to install 2,000 parking sensors — a deployment that likely built on the evaluation documented in this July 2023 Fleximodo order. The company also operates sensor-based parking in Gandía (reduced-mobility spaces), Calpe, Villena, Alzira, Cullera, Vinaroz, and Oliva — demonstrating consistent demand across Valencia's municipal landscape.

The Challenge: Scaling Sensor Detection Across Distributed Municipal Contracts

Pavapark operates parking management contracts across numerous Spanish municipalities — from Valencia (population 800,000+) to smaller coastal and inland towns. Each contract involves different street configurations, parking zone types (blue zone, reduced-mobility, loading zones), and regulatory requirements. The challenge is finding an in-ground parking sensor that works identically across all these environments: reliable in Mediterranean heat, maintenance-free across geographically distributed sites where technician visits are costly, and connected via cellular to avoid installing gateway infrastructure in each town.

The Solution: NB-IoT Sensors with 10-Year SIMs for Multi-Municipal Operations

Pavapark's July 2023 evaluation order strategically tested Fleximodo's NB-IoT parking sensor with the exact connectivity model needed for distributed operations.

The deployment included:

• 5× IoT Parking Sensor Standard (NB-IoT) — Reduced demo kit configuration with in-ground sensors rated for Mediterranean conditions (-40 to +85 °C operating range, IP68 waterproofing against flash flooding)
• 1NCE SIM cards (10-year data) — Pre-paid decade-long NB-IoT connectivity eliminating per-municipality SIM management — a single connectivity model that works identically in Valencia, Gandía, Calpe, or any future contract municipality
• Surface Adaptor — Mounting bracket for on-surface evaluation without committing to in-ground installation during the testing phase

The 1NCE 10-year SIM choice is particularly telling for a municipal parking operator. Pavapark's concession contracts with Spanish municipalities typically run 5-10 years — a 10-year pre-paid SIM covers the entire concession period with no mid-contract connectivity renewals. Combined with the sensor's 6-year battery, Pavapark can deploy sensors at the start of a concession and operate them maintenance-free for most of the contract term. The NB-IoT connectivity means every municipality in Spain has coverage without Pavapark needing to deploy or maintain LoRaWAN gateways in each town — a critical practical consideration when managing parking across a dozen-plus locations.

Fleximodo IoT Parking Sensor Standard In-ground 2.0: Technical Profile

Spain's Mediterranean climate subjects parking sensors to extreme heat (40°C+ in Valencia summers), occasional flash flooding, and UV exposure. The Standard sensor's specifications address all of these environmental challenges.

Specification	Detail
Detection method	3-axis magnetic field + nanoradar (dual-sensing)
Detection accuracy	99.96%
Dimensions	115 mm diameter, height 64 mm
Weight	390 g
Battery	3.6 V, 13-19 Ah (6-year operational lifetime)
Connectivity	NB-IoT (1NCE 10-year pre-paid SIM)
Ingress protection	IP68
Impact resistance	IK10
Weight endurance	Up to 8 tonnes
Operating temperature	-40 to +85 °C
Certifications	ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, DNV, CE, FCC

Valencia summers regularly push surface and near-surface temperatures well past 40°C, which is exactly the scenario automatic temperature compensation is built for: the sensor continuously corrects its magnetometer reference point to offset heat-driven drift, keeping the 99.96% detection accuracy figure stable rather than letting Mediterranean heat distort occupancy readings.

Fleximodo smart parking technology is deployed in 30+ countries. Explore the Demo Kit | View all products | See also: Geosparc — Belgian parking platform with Fleximodo NB-IoT sensors | FAST PARK — Romanian parking operator evaluating Fleximodo