Boston, United States (IBwire.com - May 20, 2009) DuPont remains committed to market-driven science and technology to emerge stronger from the crisis the world economy faces today, said DuPont Senior Vice President and Chief Science & Technology Officer Uma Chowdhry during the annual Industrial Research Institute meeting here today.

"Innovation at DuPont continues to focus on several global trends," Chowdhry said. "The current volatile environment has challenged every scientist to be more creative about productivity and effectiveness. We are becoming smarter at leveraging our capabilities through partnerships and globalizing our portfolio to grow with customers in emerging markets."

Chowdhry cited the company's first quarter R&D results, with over 500 new product introductions and leadership in intellectual property innovation. The Patent Board™, a well-known patent benchmark provider, has named DuPont as the No. 1 innovator in its most recent report on the chemical industry. The organization specializes in tracking and analyzing innovation, movement and business value of patent assets across 17 global industries. In addition, the scientific journal Nature Biotechnology ranked the DuPont biotechnology patent portfolio first in the field of agriculture and industrial biotechnology patents.

The DuPont R&D strategy focuses on accelerating new products to market, partnerships with customers and research institutions around the world and R&D globalization. In her speech, Chowdhry provided examples of each of these strategies in action.

Partnerships and Innovation: DuPont has partnered with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) since 2000 for early stage research and development. The initial five years focused on bio-based materials and now is expanded to all materials directions for DuPont. During that time, DuPont formed another partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy and a consortium that began development of cellulosic ethanol technologies. Last year, DuPont turned the technology into a business reality with the formation of the DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol joint venture.

"We are creative in our partnership models and look for opportunities to capture value at the early, mid- and pre-commercial stages of our research to gain knowledge and reduce the risks of bringing bold new ideas to market," Chowdhry said.

Launch Advantaged New Products: DuPont™ Kevlar® fibers were introduced in 1971 as a woven layer material. Last year, DuPont launched Kevlar® XP™, a differentiated fabric that is a step-change in ballistics technology. It is a patented design based on 100 percent Kevlar® fiber that provides superior bullet-stopping power, up to 15 percent reduction in trauma and 10 percent lighter weight vests when compared to competitive lightweight technologies. It's also able to maintain its performance in extreme field conditions that officers face including heat, humidity and mechanical wear.

R&D Globalization: "With over 35,000 products in its portfolio, DuPont is at an advantage when it comes to customizing these technologies for new markets," Chowdhry said. For example, new, more durable grades of DuPont™ Hytrel® high-performance plastics were initially developed at the company's European Technology Center in Switzerland and later tailored with the support of the China R&D Center and the DuPont Knowledge Center in India for new railway systems being built in India and China. "We are seeing product customization and adoptions around the world that leverage our brand, global innovation capability and market knowledge to deliver high performance technologies to the global markets we serve."

DuPont is a science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation.

The DuPont Oval Logo, DuPont™, The miracles of science™, Kevlar®, Kevlar® XP™ and Hytrel® are registered trademarks or trademarks of DuPont or its affiliates.

Patent Board™ is a trademark of The Patent Board.

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Michelle Reardon
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