2012 Sustainability Report
56
| prysmian group | 2012 Sustainability Report
Prysmian maintains its long-established
commitment to the environment by
working on specific projects, some already
in progress, others under preparation at the
17 Research Centres, often in collaboration
with universities and national and
international research centres.
The Prysmian Group has always attributed strategic
importance to Research & Development (R&D), in order
to maintain market leadership by providing customers
with technologically innovative solutions at increasingly
competitive costs. The acquisition of Draka has added
to the Group's know-how and expanded its expertise in
specific high value-added fields such as optical fibres,
multimedia (for voice, data and video communication)
and special cables, elevator systems, cables for aviation
applications and cables for the offshore oil industry.
Following the integration of Draka's Research and
Development activities, the Group now has a central R&D
facility in Milan plus 16 Centres of Excellence, where the
R&D function develops specific products drawing on local
know-how. In addition, Prysmian has long-established
relationships with major universities and research
centres, including the Polytechnic University in Milan,
the University of Pavia, CNR (the National Research
Centre) and Trento's Bruno Kessler Foundation in Italy,
the University of Delft in the Netherlands, the University
of Catalunya in Spain and the National Nanotechnologies
Centre in Brazil. In North America, Prysmian is an honorary
member of NEETRAC (National Electric Energy Research
and Applications Center) at the Georgia Institute of
Technology.
For Prysmian, environmental sustainability is the
fundamental driver of all major development and product
optimisation projects. It represents the key to achieving
economic sustainability and an essential commitment
for all leading businesses, in order to assure well-being
and the quality of life in today's society and for future
generations. As highlighted in all environmental or
sustainability reports made public from 2009 onwards,
Prysmian maintains its long-established commitment
to the environment by working on specific projects,
some already in progress, others under preparation at
the 17 Research Centres, often in collaboration with
universities and national and international research
centres. Collaboration with the universities is of strategic
importance to Prysmian, both to keep constantly updated
on all social issues and to access the most advanced
technologies available to the scientific community.
RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT AND INNOVATION
>
PRODUCT RESPONSIBILITY
