The ‘topping out’ ceremony for the Dow Middle East Innovation Center (MEIC) at King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia was officiated by Andrew Liveris, Dow chairman and CEO, marking an important milestone for the completion of the superstructure of the dedicated MEIC building which is expected to be operational in the second half of 2018.
Members of the board of trustees of KAUST, including HE Ali Naimi, chairman of the board of trustees of KAUST, HE Khalid Al-Falih, minister of energy, industry and mineral resources, Amin Nasser, president and CEO of Saudi Aramco, and Jean-Lou Chameau, president of KAUST, attended the ceremony.
Andrew Liveris said: “KAUST is a long-standing partner of Dow and provides multicultural diversity, inclusion and creativity at the intersection of sciences which would foster innovation for human kind. When the new Dow innovation centre opens in 2018, state-of-the-art technologies such as reverse osmosis, ultrafiltration, energy efficient systems and infrastructure, and roofing systems will be developed by leading Dow researchers right here in the Kingdom and help to solve some of the world’s biggest global challenges. I am proud of the future that Dow and KAUST are building together.”
As a founding member of the KAUST Industrial Collaboration Program that was initiated in 2009, which aims to commercialise research into practical applications, Dow has implemented multiple programmes investing in KAUST students and faculty.
“Our collaboration with Dow continues to be driven by innovative research for the creation of new knowledge and technology,” said Jean-Lou Chameau. “The high-risk, high-reward culture at KAUST empowers our leading scientists to partner with industry in order to remain at the forefront of new discoveries in technology and science. We look forward to the research outputs that will help propel further economic development in Saudi Arabia.”
Focusing on themes such as water, energy efficiency, and reducing environmental footprints that address critical needs in the Kingdom and the broader Middle East region, Dow currently has an R&D centre at the KAUST Innovation Cluster.
