Open innovation accelerates Covestro's transformation towards the implementation of more sustainable materials into product portfolios. In Taiwan, Covestro has been collaborating closely with the National Central University (NCU) since 2021. One of outcomes from this partnership include the establishment of Covestro Energy Curing Innovation Center (ECIC) located at NCU since 2022, the first R&D center at university funded via international investment at Taiwan. Covestro and NCU also partnered on a three-year Academia-Industry Research Program (AIR Center) supported by the National Science and Technology Council. In more recent, Covestro and NCU signed an contract research agreement for the development of next generation Tin-free catalyst, expected to support the journey of Covestro sustainable technology roadmap.
Building on this solid bilateral collaboration, Covestro invites NCU to join the "Covestro Asia Pacific Elite Industry-Academia-Research Network." This platform was established by Covestro with the aim of broadening future cooperation with academic partners, harnessing their internal and external innovation capabilities to develop alternative materials and solutions that can support its sustainable roadmap. The foundation of the Network is based at Covestro’s Innovation center in Shanghai, and seeks to promote open innovation and win-win collaborations aligned with the needs of various business units, and fostering partnerships among universities, upstream and downstream business partners, as well as investment institutions. The platform is already collaborating with a number of prestigious Asian and international academic institutions in science and engineering, such as Tongji University in Shanghai and the Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, together with other nine R&D institutions and suppliers. The Network specifically aims to advance polymer material applications and recycling technologies to boost sustainable product portfolios development. Research fields cover business ecosystem for "bio-based" materials, and developing polyurethane chemical recycling solutions through trilateral cooperation. The Network expect to extend external partners in Asia Pacific region including academic institutions in Hong Kong and Japan.
The memorandum of cooperation between Covestro and NCU was signed by Dr. Carsten Wildebrand, Managing Director of Covestro Taiwan, and Professor Jing-Yang Jou, the President of the NCU. The signing was witnessed by Dr. Jörg Polster, Director General of the German Institute Taipei, and Dr. Wang-Lung Li, Director General of the Department of International Cooperation & Science Education, National Science and Technology Council.
"The Covestro Elite Industry-Academia-Research Network is a groundbreaking initiative that opens up exciting new possibilities for innovation” said Dr. Andre Rittermeier, Head of Group Innovation and Sustainability APAC. “By facilitating cross-disciplinary and cross-regional collaboration between industry and academia, it accelerates technological advancements while playing a pivotal role in nurturing local R&D talent. The Elite Network also showcases Covestro's strategic commitment to open innovation, sustainability-focused R&D collaborations, and building an ecosystem of partners to unlock circular business models in the Asia-Pacific region."
“This collaboration between NCU and Covestro marks a new milestone in Germany-Taiwan cooperation,” said Dr. Jörg Polster, Director General of German Institute Taipei. “The cooperation between academia and private enterprise will foster innovation, sustainable development, and global perspectives, benefiting both Taiwan and Germany and contributing to a better future of both.”
“Through our existing cooperation, we have jointly filed multiple patents in the field of UV-curable coatings. With the NCU joining the Asia Pacific Elite Industry-Academia-Research Network we expect to increase the diversity of Covestro's innovation ecosystem, allowing Taiwanese R&D talents the participation in materials development projects across the Asia Pacific region and globally. Finally we will accelerate the introduction of sustainable material solutions to Taiwan's electronics and electrical appliance industries." stated Dr. Carsten Wildebrand, Managing Director of Covestro Taiwan.
“Covestro has established Taiwan's first foreign-invested R&D center located on a university campus, named the "Covestro Global Center for New Energy-Curing Technologies," said Jing-Yang Jou, President of National Central University. “This collaboration represents a close industry-academia partnership, with both parties hopeful for an expanded scope of cooperation in the future. The university's research technologies are expected to be applied to industry, creating a mutually beneficial model of collaboration.”
“This collaboration between National Central University and Covestro aligns with Taiwan's innovation strategy, promotes sustainable development, and enhance the global competitiveness of industry-academia partnerships,” said Dr. Wang-Long Li, Director General of Department of International Cooperation & Science education of NSTC
In addition to its major R&D centers in Leverkusen (Germany), Pittsburgh (USA), and Shanghai, Covestro R&D centers located in Taiwan, Japan, and India focused on the development of specialty materials solution. Through the Asia Pacific Elite Industry-Academia-Research Network, Covestro aims to integrate broader open innovation resources across the Asia Pacific region, providing a pipeline of diverse talents to accelerate R&D processes for both regional and global projects.