ABB technological group, active in the sectors of energy and automation, has recently announced the decision of optimizing its activities in the research and development field, focusing them on innovative technologies that can improve productivity and sustainability of the customers' processes and developing, especially, the areas tied into the new strategy called Industrial Information Technology (IndustrialIT).ABB's new R&D guidelines were illustrated by the Group's CEO and chairman, Jörgen Centerman (in the picture), and by the research manager, Markus Bayegan, during a Technology Day held in Dättwil, in Switzerland, at the ABB Research Center labs and which saw the participation of specialized journalists from all over the world.
According to Markus Bayegan, the new R&D strategy will mean the transfer of some research resources from mature technologies to those emerging and tied into IndustrialIT, such as, for example, wireless communication in production environment, the development of industrial software, innovative sensors, pointing towards making Industrial IT compatible with ABB's traditional and mature products.
In the context of this process, four virtual labs will be created (Industrial Processes and Automation; Power Technologies; Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies; Oil and Gas Technologies) which will be able to collaborate between them on line as will external partners (Research centers on materials, University, etc.), exploiting the network potential offered by the new communication technologies.
ABB invested about 3% of its proceeds in 2000, 793 million euro, in research and development and currently there are almost 6.000 scientists and technicians who work in the labs and divisional research centers throughout the world.
R&D's activities restructuring will lead to a decrease, in Europe, of the personnel working in the Group's Research Centers from 750 to 550 people, whereas in the United States and Asia there should be an increase from the current 25 to 100 people.
December.2001
ABB
