Global specialty chemical company Ashland today said it has set up a specialities technical research and development (R&D) centre in Mumbai to support producers of personal and home care products in India and southeast Asia.

The state-of-the-art facility will focus on bringing new personal and home care innovations to market and providing technical support that may be required to meet consumers’ rising expectations for higher-performing products in these regions, the company said in a statement.

“With 15 per cent year-on-year growth in personal care expenditures, India is a market that increasingly requires the formulating expertise of our technical team.

This centre reflects our vision of aligning our R&D resources to support our customers’ innovation in personal and home care in this emerging market,” John Panichella, Group operating officer said.

The facility is expected to cater to clients like Hindustan Unilever, P&G, Colgate Palmolive, L’Oreal, Godrej Consumer Products, Emami, Dabur India, Cavin Kare, Himalaya and Marico Industries among others, the release said.

By setting up a facility centre in Mumbai, the company plans to collaborate with marketers and manufacturers on new product innovations directed at consumer needs in the region, he said.

“In addition, the technical team here will also provide preservative efficacy studies and general formulation support upon request. The centre will also serve as headquarters for key account managers in India and as a base of operations for distributor training and technical seminars,” Panichella said.

This facility has dedicated formulation laboratories to hair, skin, oral and home care, controlled environment laboratories for measurement science to support claims substantiation and a microbiology laboratory for preservative optimisation and micro challenge test, the release said.

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