Lite-On to invest NT$30 billion in new R&D center

Taiwan's largest manufacturer of computer monitors and printers, Lite-On Technology Corp, plans to invest NT$30 billion in a new research center over the next five years, an official at the company confirmed yesterday."The new center will be constructed in the Neihu Technology Park and we will start construction next month," Lite-On spokesman John Chen said."The center will concentrate on six basic research platforms: a reliability testing laboratory, a safety testing laboratory, a capability testing laboratory, high-precision tooling, product industrial design and prototyping," he said. Lite-On's research workforce of 1,200 engineers will more than double to 2,500 when the new center opens. They will work on new technology in the fields of storage, computer displays, networks, wireless data transmission, computer chips, software and digital cameras.The investment plan was announced by Lite-On's chief financial officer Wei Yi-chih at an event to promote innovation. For the past three years Lite-On, together with the China External Trade Development Council, has sponsored a design contest for students and professional engineers from Taiwan, Hong Kong and Chinah innovative designs and products. There are 902 entries in this year's awards, 80 of them from professionals and the rest from schools. Twenty-six Taiwanese schools and 21 Chinese schools have entered projects, institutions in Italy, the UK, Canada and the US.The entrants are competing to share NT$800,000 in prize money, divided among three winners. Source: Taipei Times