Syensqo has renewed its partnership with Ewha Womans University in South Korea, continuing a collaboration that began prior to the company’s demerger from the Solvay group. The cooperative efforts in collaborative research, support for the next generation of female scientists, and business activities in the research center established in Ewha’s University-Industry Cooperation Building will now be carried on under the Syensqo brand name, following 10 years of fruitful collaboration with Solvay.
The Research & Innovation (R&I) center in Seoul employs 60 scientists. Syensqo’s ambition to be the prime innovation partner for its customers benefits significantly from this world-class R&I center and unique partnership with the university, aimed at serving Asia’s fast-growing battery, electronics, and automotive markets.
Furthermore, Syensqo will continue contributing to the university-industry cooperation by supporting scholarships for highly talented women, as well as Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) joint activities. R&D grants aimed at pursuing innovation and new technologies that benefit the future development of sustainable technologies will be awarded for joint research activities between Ewha and Syensqo.
“I am very proud of Syensqo’s valuable partnership with Ewha. In the last 10 years, the Research & Innovation center has helped put the Group in a prime position to work closely with key Asian customers and universities. Moreover, scholarships and STEM activities will be dedicated to further supporting scientific education for women in Korea. We intend to invest in training employees and to provide state-of-the-art infrastructure and enhance laboratory competency to be presented as a role model of academic-industry cooperation,” said Dr. Ilham Kadri, CEO of Syensqo.
Over the past decade, Ewha and Solvay/Syensqo have embarked on 13 joint research projects, including pioneering initiatives involving Artificial Intelligence. The Ewha-Syensqo Research Center has invested over 2.8 million EUR in research funding, supporting 11 professors from diverse fields such as chemical nanotechnology, chemical engineering, architecture, environmental engineering, and management.
In addition to advancing research, Syensqo has demonstrated a strong commitment to nurturing female leaders in science and technology and has awarded over 1.7 million EUR in scholarships to 63 students at Ewha Womans University.
“Ewha Womans University and Syensqo’s partnership symbolizes our shared vision for innovation, education, and gender equality in science,” said Kim Eun-mee, president of Ewha Womans University. “Together, we are paving the way for groundbreaking discoveries and empowering future generations of female scientists.”