Dialog powers ‘Beyond the Obvious’, a platform for innovation driven business growth by SLINTEC

Dialog Axiata PLC, Sri Lanka's premier connectivity provider will power 'Beyond the Obvious', organised by the Sri Lanka Institute of Nano Technology (SLINTEC), to spearhead innovation driven business growth in the country. The Research and Development (R&D) networking event on the 20th of June, is aimed at providing an outlook on the need and value of R&D in the country, and in meeting the challenges of the future.

As part of the evening, SLINTEC will showcase its research strength and capabilities to support multiple verticals in their R&D efforts. The event will feature a cross section of key invitees from Agriculture, Textile and Apparel, Pharmaceuticals and Nutraceuticals domains and government institutes including the Ministry of Science, Technology and Research, Sri Lanka Export Development Bank, The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, National Science Foundation, Coordinating Secretariat for Science, Technology and Innovation, Board of Investment, The Ministry of Finance, National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka and the National Planning Department.

The keynote speaker, Dr. Dineli Wickramasinghe, Founding Partner, DWSO BioPharma Consulting, United States of America, will deliver a speech on The value of Science and Technology in Modern Society – Benefits Derived by Business to Maintain Global Competitiveness, while the highlight of the evening will be a panel discussion including Dr. Dineli Wickramasinghe, Pradeep De Almeida, Group Chief Technology Officer, ‎Dialog Axiata PLC, Harin De S Wijeyeratne, CEO, SLINTEC, Prof. Gehan Amaratunga, Chief of Research & Innovation, SLINTEC and Prof. Veranja Karunaratne, Vice Chancellor, SLINTEC Academy. The event will be underscored by the panel discussion addressing the gathering on the infrastructure and key research areas of SLINTEC and their socio-economic impact, the role of SLINTEC in the development of Science and technology in Sri Lanka and the importance of innovation for local industries to break barriers and compete with the global market.

As a public private partnership, SLINTEC's vision is to facilitate businesses with R&D that will empower them to create local and global impact. Established in 2009, SLINTEC is considered the pioneering research facility in Sri Lanka (Nanotechnology and Science Park) for conducting nano and advanced technology based research focusing on pure scientific research as well as industry and product oriented applied scientific research.

Commenting on SLINTEC's role in supporting the country, Harin De S Wijeyeratne, CEO, SLINTEC said, "The facility is equipped with a fleet of eminent scientists and up-to-date, state-of-the-art and world-class instruments enabling cutting edge research. Within a relatively short operational period, SLINTEC has produced high impact scientific publications including the first-ever all Sri Lankan authored publication in ACS Nano." He continued "We hope to open a world of R&D that will enable Sri Lankan corporates to compete on a global level. In addition to engaging in high value strategic research, we are committed to undertaking research and development projects to foster value added economic growth for Sri Lanka, targeting both the local and export sector."

Also sharing his thoughts, Pradeep De Almeida, Group Chief Technology Officer, ‎Dialog Axiata PLC said, "R&D has become an essential part of business and paves the way for continuous development which brings agility as well as affordability to products and services that we offer. Events such as 'Beyond the Obvious' provide an ideal platform to educate and create awareness about the benefits and attributes among key business personnel and government institutes."

One indication of SLINTEC's success in research is the fifteen patents which have been filed for with thirteen being filed in the United States and two in Sri Lanka. Three patents were sold to an Indian fertilizer company for USD 1Mn, and one to Sri Lanka's largest garment manufacturer, MAS. SLINTEC has also very recently formed its first spin out company Ceylon Graphene Technologies PVT LTD. with newly confirmed shareholder LOLC. This spin out aims to take SLINTEC's scaled up process for developing graphene to a global platform. Recently SLINTEC granted a license to British Cosmetics Pvt Ltd to develop advanced materials based cosmetic products.