Specialty chemicals company Evonik plans to invest over 4bn in R&D over the next decade.
In fiscal year 2014, Evonik’s R&D spending amounted to 413m (US$444m), an increase of 5% over the previous year’s R&D expenditure of 394m (US$423m).
Ulrich Küsthardt, who was appointed chief innovation officer at Evonik earlier this year, presented a three-point plan to achieve this goal: “We must become more focused in our projects, more international in our research, and more open in our exchange of knowledge.”
The R&D pipeline consists of around 500 projects focused on several industries. Küsthardt is also pushing for the expansion of international competence centers.
Evonik already supports customers with tailored solutions developed in laboratories and pilot centers around the world. The company is also opening up to external partners and cooperating with scientists and start-ups, an effort Küsthardt plans to intensify further. This includes corporate venture capital activities, for which a budget of 100m (US$107m) has been set aside; such investments and shareholdings give Evonik insights into innovative technologies and businesses in the early development phases.
March 31, 2015
