Chemical Industry, Business Development/Strategy
Unlocking R&D Partnerships in Southeast Asia
Problem
ChemicalCo., a global chemicals company, sought to expand its innovation partnerships in Southeast Asia but lacked visibility into the regional academic landscape. To address this, SprintlyWorks was engaged to map research ecosystems, evaluate collaboration models, and deliver a partnership roadmap through expert interviews, institutional scoring, and country-specific engagement strategies. |
Outcomes
30+
Research organizations mapped
20+
High-merit experts interviewed
Problem Summary
ChemicalCo lacked visibility into Southeast Asia’s fragmented research landscape, making it difficult to identify credible partners and initiate high-impact innovation projects. Without a clear view of institutional strengths, collaboration models, or key contacts, the company risked missing R&D opportunities in critical areas like water treatment, circular packaging, and circularity, areas where Southeast Asia is rapidly emerging as a hub for sustainable innovation.
Situation
ChemicalCo had a strong history of research collaboration in the Nordics but lacked structured visibility into Southeast Asia’s academic and innovation ecosystems. While the region showed growing momentum in sustainable R&D, particularly in water treatment, pulp-based packaging, and circular materials, engaging the right partners was challenging. Institutions varied widely in collaboration maturity, funding access, and willingness to work with industry. Without clear contacts, country-specific models, or insight into ongoing research activities, ChemicalCo struggled to build a scalable, region-wide innovation strategy aligned with its long-term sustainability and product development goals.
Key Research Question
The key question driving the project was:
- Which universities, research institutes, and consortiums in Southeast Asia are most aligned with Kemira’s innovation focus areas?
- What are the most effective university-industry collaboration models in Southeast Asia and how do they compare with the Nordic model?
- Who are the high-merit researchers in Southeast Asia with a track record in relevant domains and a forward-looking mindset suitable for transformational collaboration?
Our Approach
SprintlyWorks deployed a three-phase approach to help ChemicalCo build a scalable R&D partnership strategy across Southeast Asia.
- Ecosystem Mapping
We conducted a comprehensive scan of universities, research institutes, and consortia in three countries, mapping 32 organizations across four innovation domains: water treatment, circularity, packaging, and textiles. Public databases, publication profiles, and regional directories were used to create a baseline map of institutional capabilities.
- Evaluation Framework and Interviews
We designed a shortlisting framework based on criteria such as research output, industry collaboration history, infrastructure quality, and funding accessibility. Guided by this framework, we conducted 20 in-depth interviews with professors, lab heads, and consortia leads to assess relevance, mindset, and readiness for industry collaboration. We identified specific research focus areas (e.g., PFAS removal, bio-based materials, membrane technologies) and flagged emerging projects suitable for co-development.
- Partnership Roadmap
We benchmarked collaboration models by country including student-led projects, joint labs, and industry-led consultations and outlined practical entry points for each. We delivered a structured roadmap including priority institutions, recommended high-merit contacts, and tailored suggestions for pilot engagement. An Excel-based toolkit was included, enabling ChemicalCo to filter, compare, and initiate next steps with prospective partners.
By combining institutional analysis with direct engagement, SprintlyWorks enabled ChemicalCo to confidently activate R&D partnerships that align with its sustainability and innovation goals in Southeast Asia.
Results
ChemicalCo received a region-wide roadmap detailing 32 research organizations and 20 high-merit individual contacts, each profiled by expertise, collaboration history, and engagement readiness. The project delivered country-specific partnership models ranging from co-funded joint labs to agile, consortium-driven collaboration and trust-based academic networks. ChemicalCo now has a prioritized list of actionable next steps, supported by an Excel toolkit for partner evaluation and outreach. The output equips the company to initiate strategic R&D pilots, access public grants, and accelerate innovation in circular packaging, advanced water treatment, and bio-based materials.
“Exactly what we needed to unlock research in the region”
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