HKSTP and FHKI Launch Joint R&D Hub Programme to Spark Transformation and Growth Opportunities for Hong Kong Industries

(Hong Kong, 29 April 2021) – Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) and Federation of Hong Kong Industries (FHKI) today launched the joint R&D Hub programme to give visionary leaders and businesses from Hong Kong’s manufacturing industries the platform to transform and capture new business opportunities through innovation and technology (I&T).

The R&D Hub programme provides vital infrastructure, funding support and access to I&T talent and expertise to FHKI’s member companies. Rapid city-wide digital transformation has left many businesses and industry sectors facing a greater urgency to develop new ideas, transform business models and create new services. The challenge is a lack of R&D resources or expertise to fully explore and capture new business that can be unlocked by the enormous untapped potential of I&T.

Located at the Bio-Informatics Centre (Building 2W) of Hong Kong Science Park, the R&D Hub provides unique and exclusive access for FHKI member companies to join the extended HKSTP I&T ecosystem and network, while also growing Hong Kong’s overall I&T community by attracting industrialists from traditional manufacturing sectors. FHKI member companies can take part in the R&D Hub programme with access to a wide range of HKSTP communal labs, facilities and value-added services.

All programme applicants are required to meet the same admission criteria as the tenants of Science Park, with 50% of the workforce to be engaged in R&D activities.Immersed into the HKSTP community, these companies can tap the I&T expertise at HKSTP and its huge partner and startup network for further co-creation and collaboration. Companies are also encouraged to leverage  government support schemes to gear up their R&D and innovation capabilities, for instance, the Research Talent Hub (RTH) funding scheme administered by the Innovation and Technology Commission to support tech companies in Hong Kong and nurture local I&T talent pool.

Dr Sunny Chai, Chairman of HKSTP said,“The R&D Hub is a major catalyst for industrialists and companies with the ambition to seek a new chapter of success via innovation and also advances Hong Kong’s vision to drive city-wide re-industrialisation. HKSTP is excited to collaborate with FHKI to help industrialists accelerate their digital transformation and commercialisation of R&D-driven innovations. Fueling the R&D talent growth is critical to a thriving I&T ecosystem, which ultimately boosts the government’s drive to transform, upgrade and create new growth for traditional industries.”

Dr Daniel Yip, Chairman of FHKI said, “R&D is the most critical producer-service in the value chain of advanced manufacturing industries, injecting business value and creating market differentiation for manufactured products. The R&D Hub programme is an excellent platform for FHKI member companies to bolster industrial innovation by tapping into the support services and facilities of HKSTP, as well as to foster industrialisation of R&D outcomes by collaborating with the technology enterprises in the Park community. We look forward to seeing more Hong Kong manufacturers engaging in high technology and high value-added industries, and thereby propelling Hong Kong towards re-industrialisation.”

The R&D programme welcomes companies of different sizes and industry sectors, such as bio pharmaceutical, electronics and food & beverage, to apply. Companies with a clear R&D objective, an ambition to transform existing business models or those seeking to spin off new business operations are an ideal fit for the R&D Hub.