- Strengthen and shorten innovation cycle from new product initiative to production
- Enhance customer centricity by reducing interfaces and enabling faster response
- Leverage global R&D expertise and apply local R&D flexibility to provide best-fit solutions
Tokyo, Japan – June 2, 2021 – BASF is enhancing its innovation efficiency in Japan by moving the Dispersions and Resins Applications R&D Center from Amagasaki to Yokkaichi. The new R&D center is adjacent to BASF’s dispersions and resins production plant where the commercial and supply chain management teams are based. Under this new setup, cross-functional collaboration will be further strengthened.
“I am very excited about this new move which creates seamless product development process, from R&D initiatives including scoping new R&D projects to on-premise scale-up production and supply chain management. It eases cross-functional team communications and therefore, shorten project lead time. In the end, our customers enjoy better services,” said Masashi Sugitoh, Business Director of Dispersions & Resins of BASF Japan. “Our customers prefer BASF products because of our product reliability, quality and sustainability features. Our durable Acronal® architectural coatings which reduce building maintenance burden is a good example — the blue exterior wall of our new R&D center is applied with high weather resistant paint with our Acronal® coatings in formulation from Kikusui Chemical Industries, one of our key customers of joint branding portfolio. Packaging coating supported by our Joncryl® resin for biomass inks is another popular product provided by BASF Japan. We leverage our global R&D platform to provide localized modifications of the Joncryl® brand to meet customer demand.”
The Amagasaki R&D Center has been operated by BASF since 2010 following the integration of Ciba, a Swiss specialty chemical producer. Located right next to the Rokuromi production plant that celebrated its 50th anniversary with zero lost-time injury in August 2020, the new Rokuromi R&D Center will start operating in June 2021.