DuPont opened its eighth Innovation Center inside its Automotive Development Center in Troy, Mich., to provide an environment for collaboration with customers, government, academia and business partners. The Troy Innovation Center, DuPont's first such facilityin the U.S., connects the Detroit-area customer base with 9,500 DuPont scientists and engineers around the globe. “Auto customers’ expectations for energy efficiency and performance continually increase; the automotive industry must increase the rate at which new technologies are adopted,” said Thomas M. Connelly, DuPont executive vice president and chief innovation officer. “DuPont R&D excels when we are able to collaborate with our customers. Our Innovation Center at Troy will accelerate introduction of new products and applications in support of the automotive industry.” The opening featured a panel of thought leaders who discussed how the multiple technologies designed to improve vehicle fuel economy and lower carbon dioxide emissions are changing value-chain relationships and demanding higher-performance materials. The panel, facilitated by IHS Automotive Consulting managing director Mike Robinet, featured FEV, Inc., president and CEO Gary Rogers, chairman emeritus of the Center for Automotive Research and Auto Harvest CEO David Cole, as well as DuPont’s Connelly.“The auto industry is developing a number of technologies that respond to customer desire for great efficiency and for even better driving experiences," Connelly said. He noted that DuPont is responding with new materials that will meet the future needs of the industry. “Our Troy Innovation Center is Detroit’s gateway to DuPont technology worldwide. This center will promote even closer collaboration with our partners in the auto industry.”The Troy facility marks DuPont’s fourth Innovation Center focused on automotive. The others are located in Pune, India; Seoul, Korea; and Nagoya, Japan. To learn more about DuPont’s innovation centers visit our website at www.innovationcenter.dupont.com.
