$300m loan backs tech push

At the official opening of the SCG Open Innovation Centre yesterday, Science and Technology Minister Atchaka Sibunruang said the ministry is working on the details for the proposed loan from the ADB. The loan would require approval by the Cabinet, the minister added.
“This project may be kicked off next year. This is a part of the drive for Thailand to become an innovative country,” she said. “The provision of matching loans will support Thailand’s innovative small and medium-sized enterprises to gain enough funds to drive their business growth.”
Atchaka said the country’s economy had to be driven by innovative research and development. But most of the research coming out of universities could not be commercialised due to legal issues. A revision of the relevant Act would help to overcome such problems as part of broader efforts to upgrade the economy under the Thailand 4.0 policy, the minister said.
The SCG Open Innovation Centre is one of the ways to channel research into commercial products, and achieving this commercialisation was one of the challenges for the researchers and innovators, she said. “We hope most of the corporates will do like SCG has done and provide a tool to drive the country forward under the Thailand 4.0 strategy,” she said.
The SCG Open Innovation Centre, owned by Siam Cement Group, is open to all researchers and innovators to collaborate with 1,800 research staff of SCG to create innovative products that meet customer demand. The centre focuses on six categories: petrochemicals, packaging, cement, building materials, robotics, and digital, said Cholanat Yanaranop, executive vice president of SCG and chairman of the SCG Innovation Committee, yesterday.
He said the group allocated 1 per cent of its total revenue to research and development every year, amounting to about Bt6 billion this year.
The company wants to open the opportunity for others researchers and innovators to collaborate and share their idea with the group through the innovation centre.
“Since the pre-opening of the centre last year, we’ve had 5,000 visitors and nine innovation projects that are under way as a collaboration between us and outside innovators, so that we can study the projects together,” he said. 
“When a project is successfully taken to the commercial level, we will share the benefits with innovators who cooperated with us on the project.”
SCG Group invested Bt37 million to build the innovation centre last year. It is located in Science Park, within the National Science and Technology Development Agency compound in Pathumthani province. 
The centre is opens to all researchers and innovators who wish to share their ideas, Cholonat said.