SKF India Expands Innovation Ecosystem with Launch of Open Innovation

• First-of-its-kind initiative to co-create solutions for a better tomorrow

• Partners with IncubateHub to access India’s innovators’ ecosystem

SKF India, the country’s leading bearings manufacturer, announces the launch of Open Innovation initiative to accelerate innovation and create more sustainable and customer-oriented solutions under the intelligent and clean strategy. In collaboration with IncubateHub, the initiative invites participation from start-ups, scale-ups, academia, and industry experts to exchange ideas, technologies, and expertise to co-create solutions for the industrial and automotive businesses in the Southeast Asian region.

In line with SKF’s purpose: Together, we re-imagine rotation for a better tomorrow, the Open Innovation initiative will accelerate innovation and solve complex problems, leading to increased competitiveness, adaptability, and growth. By enabling co-creation of clean technologies and value-adding solutions, SKF aims to offer competitive advantages to customers and, at the same time, contributes to a sustainable world. The Initiative will also contribute to the growth of startups by providing access to funding, new markets, and the opportunity to develop solutions that resonate with the market's needs.

Manish Bhatnagar, Managing Director, SKF India Ltd. said, “India is a thriving hub for innovation-driven start-ups. Our Open Innovation initiative aims to accelerate innovation by collaborating with startups, SMEs, researchers, and universities. Together with leading innovation platforms like IncubateHub, we are looking to draw on the country’s brightest minds to co-create pioneering solutions that solve some pertinent problems in the industrial, automotive, and engineering space. While the innovators’ community benefits from our scale and operational expertise, our customers benefit from the valuable and sustainable innovations.”

IncubateHub is an open innovation and corporate venturing platform to drive digital transformation and sustainable solutions. The platform will work closely with SKF to add new challenges and connect with startups, students, and innovators community.

Alagesan Thasari, Director for Automotive India and Southeast Asia, said, “With trends like sustainability, electrification, and digitalization, transforming industries, we believe innovation will be the key differentiator for success. Through these platforms, the Open Innovation initiative aims to broaden the horizon of value creation, unlock hidden potential for innovation, and open the door to strategic partnerships, and new business models. Along with facilitating more scouting activities across India and Southeast Asia region, this initiative will focus on executing the best concepts through a series of testing and providing advanced technical knowledge for design, process, and supplier validation. Together, we can solve real-world challenges through collaboration and innovation.”

Start-ups, universities, research institutions, and more can visit skfopeninnovation.incubatehub.com to learn more and submit ideas. Successful submissions will be given an opportunity to drive innovation forward together as collaborative partners.

About SKF

SKF is a world-leading provider of innovative solutions that help industries become more competitive and sustainable. By making products lighter, more efficient, longer lasting, and repairable, we help our customers improve their rotating equipment performance and reduce their environmental impact. Our offering around the rotating shaft includes bearings, seals, lubrication management, condition monitoring, and services. Founded in 1907, SKF is represented in approximately 129 countries and has around 17,000 distributor locations worldwide. Annual sales in 2022 were SEK 96,933 million and the number of employees was 42,641. 

For further information, please visit www.skf.com/in.