Solvay opens flagship innovation center in singapore

Belgian chemical company Solvay recently announced the opening of a new Research & Innovation center in Singapore, which will be the Group's core innovation ground for its Consumer Chemicals growth engine in the Asia-Pacific region.

Located in Singapore's Biopolis research hub, the 1,100 square-meter laboratory will lead worldwide innovation projects primarily for Solvay's business unit Novecare, which is active in the fields of Home and Personal Care, Coatings and Oil & Gas. It will also be a regional hub in developing sustainable solutions for the Agrochemical business and provide technical support to Solvay's regional customers as well as plants in the region.

Solvay, which received strong support from the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), invested close to €2 million in the laboratory and expects to invest another €5 million in the next five years to boost the laboratory's capabilities, including the hiring of an extra 30 researchers. The laboratory is Solvay's latest investment in Singapore after Novecare, a global leader in the specialty surfactants industry, announced in April 2013 the construction of a large scale alkoxylation facility.