DAMMAM: King Fahd ™University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM) is to establish a new technical center after it signed a contract with Honeywell UOP. The center will offer enhanced technical support, regional training services and research and development collaborations with universities and customers in the region.
The new office, located on the KFUPM campus, includes facilities for customer training programs and technical support offices for UOP, a global leader in the development and licensing of technology and products used in petroleum refining.
University Rector Dr. Khaled S. Al-Sultan referred to the large number of applications from different companies to join Dhahran Techno Valley (DTV). However, he said the university only accepts those that will create quality changes and are parallel with KFUPM research and development interests, which is why the UOP deal was accepted. Honeywell UOP will rent a number of laboratories inside the university until the completion of its location at DTV.
“We have been a key partner in the Saudi Arabian refining and petrochemical industry for 40 years,” said Rajeev Gautam, UOP president and CEO. “This initiative will significantly enhance the way we transfer technology, and the location of this new center will enable us to maintain close links with the university community and Saudi petroleum industries for ongoing research and development collaborations.”
The new center is part of a broader Honeywell initiative to build an integrated facility for three of its businesses at the university’s DTV business cluster. Honeywell Building Solutions, Honeywell Process Solutions and UOP will open a joint office to better manage existing relationships and partnerships with organizations such as KFUPM, while retaining close ties with its many important customers in the energy industry. This office is expected to open in Saudi Arabia in the fourth quarter of 2010, when the UOP technical services center will also relocate.
The first UOP training course is scheduled to begin in the middle of December.
Meanwhile, Al-Sultan hosted Japanese Ambassador Shigeru Ando in the Kingdom on Dec. 8th. The ambassador was briefed about the university’s academic initiatives, programs, activities and research. Ando praised the university for its significant role in promoting development in the Kingdom, pointing to its stellar reputation both domestically and abroad.