December 7, 2005
Merck KGaA was pleased to hold an inauguration ceremony for its subsidiary in Taiwan, Merck Display Technologies Ltd. (MDT), at Kuanyin Industrial Park in Taoyuan on December 7, 2005. Merck invested NT$900 million to construct the largest liquid crystal display center in Taiwan, and, following Japan and Korea, is Merck’s third largest R & D center. The center will not only supply Taiwan’s current TFT-LCD industrial needs, but will also assist in the future of Taiwan's flat panel display industry's technology and raise its production value.
The Merck Group is an international chemical and pharmaceutical company with 67 factories in 28 countries and a workforce of over 33,000 people. It produces over 20,000 products with a yearly turnover of US$6 billion. Merck Group has two companies in Taiwan, Merck Ltd. (formerly Merck Taiwan) and Merck Display Technologies Ltd., with a total of 680 employees. In 2004, the companies exceeded industry expectations with a turnover of NT$13 billion. In 1997, the Merck Group signed a strategic alliance agreement with the Ministry of Economic Affairs (
MOEA), which emphasizes future cooperation and investment in Taiwan.
Over the past 6 years, Taiwan's flat panel display industry achieved a turnover of more than NT$600 billion, and is expected to exceed NT$1 trillion over the next five years, which could mark the world's fastest growth in the LCD industry. In 2003, Taiwan’s flat panel display industry was valued at NT$416.2 billion and climbed to NT$715 billion in 2004, a growth rate of 71%. For the year 2005, it is estimated that Taiwan’s flat panel display industry could reach NT$932. 4 billion; at this rate of growth, it is believed that 2006 will see the industry’s worth exceed NT$1.37 trillion.
In order to further improve the flat panel display industry network, the
MOEA is currently promoting the development of various electronics materials. In so doing, it is hoped that the value of domestic production will double from NT$133.4 billion in 2004, to NT$270 billion in 2008. To facilitate the growth of key LCD materials, the Merck Group has decided to directly invest in production in Taiwan, R & D, and promote upper-, mid-, and downstream integration and development of Taiwan's TFT-LCD industry. It is expected that this will advance the technological standards and competitiveness of Taiwan's flat panel display industry.
In addition to Merck, the past two years have seen a number of foreign companies establishing or expanding production in Taiwan. For example, Corning Technologies and Nippon Electric Glass have both set up glass substrate operations, Toyo Ink and JSR have set up pigment dispersed color resists operations, and 3M has set up enhancement film operations. Foreign companies that control the LCD upper-tier materials and key component operations are flocking to Taiwan to invest and expand the already booming LCD flat panel display industry. From upper-tier glass substrates, color pigment dispersed resists, and liquid crystals, middle-tier color filters, back light modules, polarizers and IC driver key components, to downstream flat panel display, the supply chain is becoming more integrated and solidified. As the industry becomes more clustered, Merck is confident its investment in Taiwan will prove mutually beneficial to itself and Taiwanese companies.
The inauguration was presided over by Merck Group's board chairman Mr. Jon Baumhauer, directors Prof. Thomas Schreckenbach and Walter W. Zywottek, who all came to Taiwan from Germany to participate in the ceremony. Also in attendance was Jerry J.R. Ou, Director-General of the Industrial Development and Investment Center (
IDIC). Director-General Ou expressed his gratitude to Merck for its willingness to promote LCD production, R & D, and investment in Taiwan. He also expressed the hope that future cooperation and government assistance will ensure a win-win situation between Merck and Taiwanese companies in the TFT-LCD industry.
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