At TechInnovation, thought leaders from various industries will be presenting their strategies and goals as well as make their case for collaborations. The event, organised by IPI Singapore and already in its sixth year running, will be held at Marina Bay Sands on 19 and 20 September 2017. Enterprises can tap on the world's latest technologies to develop their portfolio of innovative products and services. Themed Discover, Connect, Collaborate, TechInnovation will feature over 160 exhibitors showcasing more than 400 enabling and licensable technologies.

 

Find out more about the companies at TechInnovation 2017’s crowdsourcing segment; their technology needs and challenges below.

Consumer Product Companies to Seek Collaboration at TechInnovation 2017

Two companies that will be presenting their key ideas at the sessions are Unilab, the Philippines’ largest pharmaceutical company, as well as Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB), global leading consumer health and hygiene company.

 

The quest to improve technology for medical care

 

Dennis Dizon, Unilab’s Innovation Director, Consumer Health, will be seeking partnerships and collaborations that will explore areas such as non-invasive diagnostic tests, technologies or apps that can educate and monitor consumers on their health and wellness progress; as well as novel delivery technologies for consumer wellness and nutrition products. 

 

These areas of collaboration are in line with the latest trends in the OTC and wellness spaces, said Dizon, who oversees overall innovation strategy, market space identification, and end-to-end new consumer health product development at Unilab. 

 

 

Improving customer experience through open innovation

 

For RB, which owns well-loved household brands like Dettol, Gaviscon, Lysol, Vanish, Durex and Air Wick, among others, Open Innovation is vital for the company’s long-term sustainability. RB prides itself on giving its customers healthier lives and happier homes and open innovation will enable them to make more customer-centric products.  

 

“RB has a long track record of collaborating with third parties. Open innovation and partnership is in our DNA. Whether it is collaborating with technology developers to bring new disruptive products to market or utilising our marketing expertise to take a novel product to a mass market audience, we have experience, track record and more importantly the desire to make this happen, fast,” said Carl Clayton, 

Outside Innovation Strategist at RB.

 

Read more here

 

Multi-national Firms Embrace Open Innovation to Stay Ahead of the Curve

Companies appearing at TechInnovation 2017 are all about third party collaboration in pursuit of cutting-edge products and technologies. Their Open Innovation strategies are vital to their success as truly global organisations leading their respective fields.

 

Building partnerships that drive innovation 

 

One such company that focuses on Open Innovation, is Swiss specialty chemicals company Clariant, that will be seeking new partnerships at TechInnovation’s Crowdsourcing sessions. “In order to remain competitive, Clariant must develop new products and technologies that cannot be replicated easily or at low cost. This in turn requires increased innovation power that goes beyond the company boundaries,” said Melvyn Ho, Clariant’s Open Innovation Manager. He will present during the Crowdsourcing session

on Day 1. 

 

 

 

Crowdsourcing to innovate the food industry  

 

For Stefan Dobrev, Global Head of Innovation Portfolio Management at Nestlé S.A., Open Innovation helps the food giant access competences complementing its food science core, including biotechnology, health science, data and devices. This allows the business to engage consumers and grow in tune with wider trends, such as greater awareness of healthy nutrition and rising demand for authentic, natural and organic foods. Dobrev will be presenting on Day 2 of TechInnovation’s Crowdsourcing sessions. He will be actively pursuing new partnerships for Nestlé.

 

 

 

 

Harnessing external expertise

 

Cavan Yu, Senior Director, Global Resource Integration of Haier Open Innovation Center said that with the rapid development of science and technology, no company can rely solely on its own strength to meet the needs of the market and users. "The world is our R&D centre. The world is our talent pool." he said. He will be making his presentations on Day 1 of TechInnovation’s Crowdsourcing sessions. Yu is seeking working partnerships to improve the status quo of refrigerators through HOPE, or Haier Open Innovation Ecosystem.

 

Read more here