Having committed over Rs 200 crore as part of its India investment, science research and services major US-based E.I. DuPont, through its subsidiary, E.I. DuPont India Pvt Ltd has decided to double its investment at its R&D centre in Hyderabad to a tune of Rs 400 crore by 2010. The company proposes to set up four centres of excellence (CoEs) at its R&D centre which is claimed to be the largest centre outside the US.
Explaining the company?s plans, Homi C Bhedwar, director, R&D, said: ??We are planning to double our investment to about Rs 300-400 crore in next two years, bring in more people and scientists on to our board.?? Besides, we are also looking at setting up about four CoEs initially which would focus on development of hybrid rice using biomarkers to accelerate the process of development; a centre for alternate energy; a centre for photo-voltaic modules and a centre for nanotechnology.
Presently, the DuPont Knowledge Centre (DKC) is situated on about 15 acres at the ICICI Knowledge Park, near Hyderabad. It is considered to be one among the top important centres after the two labs in the US. Further, joint programmes with India and the US centre are being conducted for generating a lot of IP and protecting the same. To recall, the parent company, DuPont has been ranked number one as the top innovator as per a Patent Board data released last week in the US. ?As we grow DKC, we will be expected to do our part in maintaining this leadership position. We look forward to our success as we get ready to start the centre this year,? he said.
Talking about the research activities from the lab, Dr Bhedwar said that it is divided into agri-biotechnology and nutrition, construction, automobile and renewable energy. The ag-biotech group is working on trait development for drought tolerance in certain crops such as rice and maize apart from understanding the nitrogen uptake efficiency. It is also looking at developing low-cost alternative energy fuels and developing materials from renewable resources. This apart, the company has set up a pilot manufacturing facility at the Park for providing customised solutioto its global customers.
