IIT Kanpur’s Technopark@IITK unveils its Phase 1 Building, marking a New Era of Industry-Academia Collaborations

It was a landmark occasion as the IIT Kanpur Research and Technology Park, commonly known as Technopark@IITK, celebrated the inauguration of its state-of-the-art Phase 1 Building. The ceremony was distinguished by the presence of Professor Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, who served as the Chief Guest. Shri Awanish Awasthi, Advisor to UP Chief Minister, graced the occasion as the Guest of Honor. Professor S. Ganesh, the then Director of IIT Kanpur and Chairperson of the Board of Directors at Technopark@IITK, warmly welcomed all guests and dignitaries and traced the journey of Technopark at IIT Kanpur.

Professor Abhay Karandikar, who had previously laid the foundation stone of this building during his tenure as the Director of IIT Kanpur, delivered an address, envisioning Technopark as a pivotal hub for industry-academia collaborations to develop cutting-edge technologies. Shri Awanish Awasthi discussed several upcoming government initiatives, particularly in the pharmaceutical sector, aimed at bolstering IIT Kanpur’s role as a vibrant industrial hub.

Professor Amarendra Singh, Professor-in-Charge, Technopark@iitk, highlighted the vision and different modes of industrial collaboration at Technopark@IITK and the role of breakthrough research at IIT Kanpur in attracting R&D companies such as Laurus Labs, TVM Signalling and Transportation Systems, JK Cement and others to Technopark@iitk. He also noted the establishment of Defence Testing Infrastructure (DTIS) under two domains, UAS and Communications, at Technopark, with the support of DPSUs.

The event also included felicitations for the Chief Guest, Guest of Honor, the Director, and members of the Board of Directors, including Professor Tarun Gupta and Professor G M Kamath. The ceremony concluded with a vote of thanks proposed by Ms. Reema Mittal, Chief Operating Officer, celebrating the collaborative efforts that made this milestone possible. The speaker also recalled the contributions of Prof. Avinash K Agarwal, the first Professor-In-Charge of Technopark@iitk, and Prof. AR Harish, former Dean of Research and Development

Concurrent with the inauguration, a workshop on “Industry-Academia Collaborations: Challenges and Opportunities” was held. The first session featured esteemed speakers Professor Ashutosh Sharma from the Department of Chemical Engineering at IIT Kanpur, who advocated for technology hubs that facilitate the transition of scientific breakthroughs into practical technologies. Professor Sandeep Shukla from the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, and C3i Hub at IIT Kanpur emphasized the importance of robust cybersecurity measures. Dr. Rajaram Iyer from Laurus Labs highlighted the value of industry-academia collaboration with examples from Laurus Labs, including the CART project at IIT Bombay and GMP facility for the development novel gene therapy assets at Technopark at IIT Kanpur.

The second session included talks from Professor Rajeev Jindal from the Department of Sustainable Energy Engineering at IIT Kanpur, who discussed the necessity of aligning academic activities with industry timelines for successful partnerships. Dr. Nilesh Badwe from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at IIT Kanpur emphasized academia’s contribution to workforce development and innovation from a semiconductor perspective. Mr. Anuj Awasthi from Medetronix Labs at Technopark@iitk highlighted the role of mentors at IIT Kanpur in the journey towards the successful development of innovative electrochemical devices.

The workshop concluded with a comprehensive panel discussion on the “Role of Technoparks in furthering Industry-Academia collaboration”. The panelists, including Prof. G M Kamath from the Department of Aerospace Engineering at IIT Kanpur, Prof. Bharat Lohani from the Department of Civil Engineering at IIT Kanpur, Dr. Nilesh Badwe, Dr. Rajaram Iyer, Mr. Anuj Awasthi, and Mr. Gaurav Pilania, Co-Convenor of the CII MSME Panel, explored how Technoparks can contribute to the transition of lab-scale inventions to pilot and industrial scales and support the journey of successful startups and MSMEs.