Bosch celebrates five years of research and development in Vietnam

“Our five-year anniversary is a testament to our growth as a provider of technology in the ASEAN region. We offer young and talented engineers a high technology environment to create smart solutions that enhance the quality of life worldwide,” said Guru Mallikarjuna, managing director of Robert Bosch Engineering and Business Solutions Vietnam.

Starting operation in 2010 with 20 employees as Bosch’s first R&D centre in Vietnam, Robert Bosch Engineering and Business Solutions Vietnam has grown its workforce to more than 850 associates as of November 2015. The number of associates is expected to expand further by the end of 2016 to over 1,100. Robert Bosch Engineering and Business Solutions Vietnam’s engineers have contributed innovative solutions for the business sectors that Bosch is active in, namely mobility solutions, industrial technology, energy and building technology, and consumer goods, both for the Southeast Asian market as well as near-shore markets such as Japan and Korea.

Bosch also announced the three winning teams of the Green Challenge 2015 contest. The Green Challenge 2015 is Bosch’s first green mobility and connectivity project in Vietnam. Initiated and co-organised by Bosch, the Green Challenge 2015 contest asked students from three selected universities to research and develop a system to manage and operate a fleet of e-Scooters.

The system which the students developed had to be environmentally friendly and to meet the technical requirements set by Bosch, including a confirmation and payment system as well as the implementation of charging stations using renewable energy, and tracking devices for the e-Scooters. This solution will help to decrease the amount of air and noise pollution. In this way the systems contributes towards the reduction of greenhouse gases and make the world a healthier place for generations to come.

The first prize of a field trip to Germany including a visit to Bosch plants and the newly inaugurated global R&D center in Renningen went to a team from the Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology. The two runner-up teams, one from the Danang University of Science and Technology, and one from the Vietnamese-German University shared the second prize of a full-day training session in soft skills which will be held in Ho Chi Minh City.

Next, each winning team will be granted with an allowance of VND900 million (around $40,000) and consultation from Bosch experts to implement their projects which are expected to be completed by 2016. Bosch sponsored more than VND4 billion (about $182,000) for this project in total. During a pilot phase, users will have the opportunity to rent the e-Scooters and experience a unique way of riding the vehicles in Danang, Ho Chi Minh City, and Binh Duong.

“The Green Challenge 2015 is a pilot project led by Bosch to foster more and more cooperation and coordination between businesses and educational institutions in Vietnam, especially in the areas of research and development. We believe that our initiative will bring about more innovation and smart technologies for a better life to all people. We are therefore also looking forward to closely work together with the authority for final realisation of this project in Vietnam,” said Vo Quang-Hue, managing director of Bosch in Vietnam.

Since its inception in 2008, Bosch has been investing in R&D as well as human resources development in Vietnam. The company was accredited a ‘high technology’ status in 2014 by the Vietnamese government.