P&G partners A*Star in new research deal

SINGAPORE - Consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble (P&G) has signed a new research agreement with the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star).

Both parties will provide up to $60 million in total for projects over five years, according to an A*Star press statement yesterday.

The agency will tap the multinational company's consumer expertise - which spans some four billion customers globally - and extend the research services and facilities at the Biopolis and Fusionopolis centres in return.

The two parties will also jointly offer doctorate programmes and post-doctoral fellowships that are relevant to the industry.

While the Biopolis initially focused on pharmaceuticals and biologics - where drugs and compounds are derived from living cells rather than chemicals - it is now diversifying into new and fast-growing areas in the Asia Pacific.

This includes the personal care, food and nutrition and medical technology industries.

The new research agreement is one of P&G's largest public-sector collaborations and builds on a 2010 partnership between the two entities.

The firm will also soon be opening a $250 million, 500-employee innovation centre at the Biopolis.

P&G said in the press statement expanding the partnership would allow it to more fully tap A*Star's network of institutes.

A*Star chairman Lim Chuan Poh said that recently announced collaborations between research institutes, hospitals and universities here have boosted Singapore's attractiveness as a research hub.

He cited the new Skin Research Institute of Singapore, which draws on scientists, clinicians and engineers from A*Star, the National Skin Centre and Nanyang Technological University, as an example.

"This demonstrates that meaningful partnerships between public institutes can greatly enhance our public-private partnerships," he said.

Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.