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Shimadzu Corporation has announced plans to build the SHIMADZU Future Collaboratory at the Technology Research Laboratory in Keihanna Science City, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan to expand the program of innovation at Shimadzu Corporation. The new laboratory will further drive research and development by focusing on several core themes including artificial intelligence (AI), innovative biotechnology, brain-science and the five senses. The goal is to develop meaningful solutions to the challenges of today and help transform the delivery of innovative products for the benefit of everyone.

The new Shimadzu Innovation Incubator will build on the current mission of the Technology Research Laboratory to develop core technologies required to grow Shimadzu's global business capability by creating a new environment for acquiring new technologies and creating new businesses. A key design element is to build the right space and logistics to bring about a culture of constant innovation with the freedom to be creative. The building has been shaped to get academic researchers, business leaders, industrial innovators to think differently and develop people-focused solutions which can make a positive impact in their lives and work. It’s a building designed for visionary thinking and to make things happen in our capability and core competence in three major themes of biotechnology, sensing technology and in the fast-moving science of AI.

The space is shaped to integrate new ideas, new collaborations and making it happen, all in one building. The ‘Core Hub’ is an environment for sharing new ideas and finding new ways to overcome real-world obstacles. Whilst the ‘Catalyst Hub’ is design-lead to help encourage a really positive business-to-business experience. To make it all happen, both hubs are supported by research laboratories to help accelerate prototype development and arrive at solutions that are designed to positively change lives. The space not only includes interactive office environments and research laboratories but also includes an auditorium for over 300 people to share ideas and encourage creative thinking. All in a single building, all on a single floor.

With a clear mission statement, this new research space is tasked to make a positive, high impact difference to people’s lives with new technologies in a spectrum of domains including human health and safety and industrial development. The scope of technologies considered is broad in context including a better way to use biomarker analysis by transforming high volumes of detailed analytics into actionable data by using AI, exploring the impact of ‘organ-on-a-chip’ technology to help pharmaceutical drug development, researching ways to help the management of dementia by intervention efficacy measurements based on the five senses and also including the impact of new material developments.

‘We are reshaping our approach and capability to open innovation by bringing frontier academic groups, leading customers and our advanced R&D scientists together in one space. The corroboratory is designed to bring about new thinking, new ideas and new ways to positively change people’s lives. At Shimadzu, our technology is our passion and this new facility is created to go beyond problem solving and to change lives’. Mitsuo Kitaoka, Managing Executive Officer, Shimadzu Corporation.

Overview and Plans for the New Research Facility