Park Ji-won is a writer for The Korea Times who has been covering a wide range of topics from Korea’s culture to its politics. An avid journalism enthusiast to the core, Ji-won brings a thoughtful and unique perspective to every topic she covers. On weekends, you'll often find her contemplating life’s purpose on a yoga mat — with a cup of quality tea in hand. A native Korean speaker by birth and fluent in English through her work, she went to college in Japan and is learning Chinese and French — hoping to add Polish, Russian and Thai to the mix.
Chemical multinationals open more R&D centers
By Park Ji-won
Global chemical companies are opening research and development (R&D) centers in Korea to create synergy between them and Korean electronics companies.
SABIC, or Saudi Basic Industries Corp., opened its Electronics, Electrical and Lighting Technology Center at Sungkyunkwan University’s Suwon campus in Gyeonggi Province on March 25. The R&D center is its first in Asia, an official at SABIC said.
SABIC, which is a Saudi Arabian company that manufactures chemical products such as polyethylene, polypropylene and other thermoplastics, will focus on products in three categories: electronics, electrical and lighting.
“We recognized the importance of Korea in this industry … and all the expertise across the value chain,” Asia Pacific
Technology Director Mahari Tjahjadi at SABIC Innovative Plastics said.
“It is important that we understand and we work very closely with experts in the region,” said Tjahjadi, who is in charge of building R&D centers, by telephone.
BASF, the largest chemical company in the world, is also building an R&D facility at the same site as SABIC’s.
The German company plans to open the center after this summer, company spokeswoman Erin Kim said.
The R&D center will focus on specialty and process chemicals, inorganic materials and formulations for high-performance applications for semiconductors, displays, organic electronics, light-emitting diodes and photovoltaics, according to the firm.
Some 40 scientific and technical professionals will work there.
“Korea is at the cutting edge of the electronics industry and of electronic materials research,” said Lothar Laupichler, senior vice president of electronics materials at BASF.
“By setting up our new Electronic Materials R&D Center Asia Pacific at Sungkyunkwan University, we will be able to combine BASF’s international expertise in electronic materials with the latest advances from top research scientists.”
Meanwhile, Solvay, a Belgian chemical company, is setting up a new electronics laboratory at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, which will focus on developing organic light-emitting diode (OLED) technologies.
“With the creation of the Solvay OLED incubator, we aim to evolve into a new business and strengthen our presence in Asia, mainly in South Korea,” said Bill Chen, general manager of the Solvay OLED incubator in a statement.
Meanwhile, Wacker Chemicals Korea opened its Center of Excellence Electronics in 2012, a silicones R&D center, in a bid to strengthen its technology development and market presence in Korea.
“Recently, more global chemical firms are setting up R&D facilities, mainly in Korea and China, and making specialty chemicals rather than bulk commodities to create synergy with the nation’s top conglomerates such as the Samsung, LG and Hyundai groups in order to meet the rising demand for chemical products made by Korean firms,” KB Investment & Securities analyst Park Jae-chul said.
“R&D centers can help companies get involved in making local-oriented products from the early stages.”