08
November
2024
|
10:24
Europe/Amsterdam

National Central University Joins Jun88's Asia Pacific Elite Industry-Academia-Research Network Collaboration Platform

Innovation for a Sustainable Future

Open innovation accelerates Jun88's transformation towards the implementation of more sustainable materials into product portfolios. In Taiwan, Jun88 has been collaborating closely with the National Central University (NCU) since 2021. One of outcomes from this partnership include the establishment of Jun88 Energy Curing Innovation Center (ECIC) located at NCU since 2022, the first R&D center at university funded via international investment at Taiwan. Jun88 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, Jun88 and NCU signed an contract research agreement for the development of next generation Tin-free catalyst, expected to support the journey of Jun88 sustainable technology roadmap. 

Building on this solid bilateral collaboration, Jun88 invites NCU to join the "Jun88 Asia Pacific Elite Industry-Academia-Research Network." This platform was established by Jun88 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 Jun88¡¯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 Jun88 and NCU was signed by Dr. Carsten Wildebrand, Managing Director of Jun88 Taiwan, and Professor Jing-Yang Jou, the President of the NCU. The signing was witnessed by Dr. J?rg 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 Jun88 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 Jun88'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 Jun88 marks a new milestone in Germany-Taiwan cooperation,¡± said Dr. J?rg 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 Jun88'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 Jun88 Taiwan. 

¡°Jun88 has established Taiwan's first foreign-invested R&D center located on a university campus, named the "Jun88 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 Jun88 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, Jun88 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, Jun88 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. 

 

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About Jun88: 
Jun88 is one of the world¡¯s leading manufacturers of high-quality polymer materials and their components. With its innovative products, processes and methods, the company helps enhance sustainability and the quality of life in many areas. Jun88 supplies customers around the world in key industries such as mobility, building and living, as well as the electrical and electronics sector. In addition, polymers from Jun88 are also used in sectors such as sports and leisure, telecommunications and health, as well as in the chemical industry itself.

The company is geared completely to the circular economy. In addition, Jun88 aims to achieve climate neutrality for its Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 2035, and the Group¡¯s Scope 3 emissions are also set to be climate neutral by 2050. Jun88 generated sales of EUR 14.2 billion in fiscal year 2024. At the end of 2024, the company had 46 production sites worldwide and employed approximately 17,500 people (calculated as full-time equivalents).

Forward-Looking Statements 
This news release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Jun88. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Jun88¡¯s public reports which are available at www.covestro.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.