Henkel to invest US$70m in Inspiration Center Shanghai

The German chemical and consumer goods company Henkel opened its new Inspiration Center Shanghai for its adhesive technologies on Monday, investing 500 million yuan (US$70.4 million) to demonstrate its long-term commitment to China and the Asia Pacific market.

The 33,000-square-meter Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park site has over 30 labs and 500 scientists and technical experts in product development, application technology, and technical services.

Apart from its Düsseldorf innovation facilities, it's Henkel's largest adhesive technology inspiration center. It facilitates cross-industry collaboration and knowledge exchange, helping it better understand regional trends and needs.

"We've witnessed Shanghai's open business environment and rich talent resource, which are strong appeals for our long-term investment here, and it's the most vibrant place where innovations are taking place," said Anna An, president of Henkel China.

It will support customers across a broad range of industries, such as automotive, manufacturing, electronics, furniture, and home building materials, with leading solutions in adhesives, sealants, and functional coatings.

She added that staying close to customers and understanding their needs is crucial for its future.

"Driving cross-industry innovation through this integrated facility fits with our strategy, which also aligns with the speeding up and rising demand for China's homegrown innovations that are applied and adopted on a global level," she said.

It opened an Adhesive Technologies Application Engineering Center in the Shanghai International Chemical New Materials Innovation Center this year. It is designed to accelerate the transformation of innovations into industrial applications through the testing of localized applications and process scale-up.