Merck opens second research center

By Kim Tae-gyu

Staff reporter

Merck Korea, the affiliate of the global pharmaceutical and chemical behemoth here, launched it second research center, dubbed the Advanced Technology Center (ATC) on Tuesday, a two-year construction project costing 14 billion won.

At the opening ceremony of the state-of-the-art facilities in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, Merck Korea Chief Executive Juergen Koenig said that the ATC will further strengthen the firm's initiatives in research.

``Merck will continue to support its partners' success by following customer-centric strategies. We research and develop high technologies according to our customers' needs and expectations and this is the key factor for a successful partnership. We develop today what our customers will apply tomorrow,'' Koenig said.

``We are investing globally in the fields of display, photovoltaics and solid state lighting. In Korea, Merck even invested during the uncertain times of the recent global economic crises. This reconfirms Merck's commitment and responsibility to contributing to innovative solutions for the future success of the Korean display industry.''

Thanks in no small part to the efforts of research-oriented innovators and component providers including Merck, Korean corporations are currently leading the world in the display industry.

Particularly, Asia's fourth-largest economy accommodates the world's top-tier makers of liquid crystal display (LCD) products, or the very brainchild of Merck researchers about 100 years ago ― Samsung Electronics and LG Display.

The two Seoul-headquartered electronic giants are crucial clients of Merck Korea, which vows to beef up the partnerships based on brisk results of research at the ATC.

``The major global players in the field of LCDs are based in Korea. To be close to the needs of the customers and to satisfy them with new technologies is fundamental for mutual further success,'' Koenig said.

``Merck will use the new ATC to further develop innovative products in line with the market and customer needs. Cooperation has always been part of Merck's strategy.''

LG Display concurs

``It is not too much to say that Merck has been a companion for over 20 years in the development of LG Display's LCD business whose history began in the early 1990s,'' LG Display Vice President Jung In-jae said in the opening ceremony.

``With Merck's strong liquid crystal technology and resources, we at LG Display successfully developed a host of new technologies and new products, sweeping over the global LCD Market. ... I hope today's inauguration of Merck's ATC will serve as a momentum to further cement our ties in developing a higher level of technologies and products.''

More than 100 dignitaries participated in the ceremony including Deputy Minister of Knowledge Economy Kim Kyung-sik, Ambassador Hans-Ulrich Seidt from the German Embassy in Seoul and Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp, chairman of the board of partners of E. Merck KG, the holding company of Merck.

Merck Korea set up its first research center called the Technical Center in 2002. But it was mostly about production and quality control with minor research functionality. In comparison, the ATC is wholly geared toward research and development (R&D).

Merck Korea thinks that its cutting-edge technologies to be developed in the ATC will not only enhance its bottom line but also help improve quality of life via an eco-friendly approach.

Merck has delved into the technologies of minimizing waste products in cranking out LCD products as well as recycling them.

``Besides providing its customers with modern technology, Merck highly considers its corporate responsibility toward the environment. As an R&D-driven company, Merck nowadays also offers feasible solutions for the appropriate reutilization of LCDs to create the right balance between innovation and respect.''