For Immediate Release
Mind to Mind and Heart to Heart
Salt Lake City, UT: Monday, November 19, 2007– Governor Huntsman and over a dozen business and education leaders have just returned from a two week trade mission to India. Organized by the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) the mission created new business and education relationships which will help Utah companies grow and open new opportunities to sell Utah developed technology and products which would not have been possible without the many face-to-face meetings that were arranged for the trade mission participants.
Many only think of the over 1 billion population in India and the inherent infrastructure issues which they face, but India is the worlds 5th largest economy and the world’s largest democracy. For business it is also critical that India is governed under the “Rule of Law” and it has more English speakers and middle class than does our own country. These facts make India a great trading partner for Utah.
For Governor Huntsman and the participants on the trade mission it was much more that a trip to see what they could sell today. Governor Huntsman often used the phrase “Mind to Mind and Heart to Heart” to express the give and take, the sharing that our State and their country could both benefit from. “As the world grows smaller, people generally, not just business needs to understand each other better. We all need to grow closer in mind and spirit. It is mutual understanding which will carry us forward, make both communities better, when times are challenging and competition is strong.” said Governor Huntsman.
Representatives from six Utah colleges and universities participated in forging new educational alliances. During the trade mission, representatives from the University of Utah signed four memorandums of understanding between the UofU and four Indian companies. The University will work with each of the four companies to create a progressive alliance to accelerate commercialization of university-invented technologies, expand educational and research opportunities, as well as aid in humanitarian efforts. The signings took place in Mumbai and New Delhi, India. The companies: Globerian, Global Health Private Ltd. MediCity, Manipal AcuNova Ltd., and Pregna International each bring individual strengths in the new relationships with the UofU.
Forging new educational relationships between the two countries was a major part of the trade mission. Jack Brittain, Vice President of Technology Venture Development at the University of Utah said, “These Indian companies are unique partners for the University of Utah. Their leaders are innovative and eager to bring new medical technologies to their community. Partnering with Indian companies will allow the University to benefit from their expertise and willingness to engage in collaborative research and development. Through this alliance we will be able to accelerate commercialization of University technologies and provide economic benefits to both the United States and India.” Brittain continued, “With the Governor’s involvement during the trade mission, we were able to enhance the relationships between the University of Utah and the companies with which we are collaborating.”
Dr. Ashok Joshi, President and CEO of Ceramatec based in Salt Lake City pointed out during the opening of a school in India, “This trade mission resulted in three distinct collaborative opportunities for Ceramatec to sell our products in India. Governor Huntsman's presence and leadership created trusting environment in India with his underlying theme of ‘Mind to Mind and Heart to Heart.’ This first trade mission is overwhelmingly successful and will lead to significant economic growth for both Utah and India.
The mind and heart were supported by lots of ground work from the Governor’s Office of Economic Development. Business doors were opened for BioMeridian Corporation, North America’s leading manufacturer of BioElectrical Impedance Measurement devices used by over 4,000 medical practitioners. “The trade mission far exceeded our expectations for sourcing distributors, customers and access to key government officials. In one week we accomplished what might have required up to a year at 10 times the cost. Governor Huntsman opened doors for us that we could not have achieved ourselves,” said Jim Solomon, Chairman.
Sanchaita Datta, Chief Technology Officer of Murray based FatPipe Networks found that the trade mission experience for their company to be similar. FatPipe provides companies with the highest levels of Wide Area Network (WAN), reliability, redundancy and speed, which are often needed in companies with mission critical web based applications. "The Utah Trade Mission to India provided FatPipe the opportunity to forge new partnerships in India, laying the foundation to expand our business in the region. We were very impressed with the quality of the appointments set by the GOED and the U. S. Commercial Service” said Datta.
On the banking and finance side of the mission Zions Bank, Senior Vice President in International Banking, Mark Garfield, reacted to the mission. “Being a part of the Governor’s trade mission to India provided Zions Bank valuable opportunities to meet face-to-face with public and private banks in India. We were able to begin establishing strong correspondent relationships with these banks, which will allow us to better serve our commercial clients who are doing increased business in India. Had we not been part of this important trade mission, we would have missed the chance to work one-on-one with India’s financial institutions to offer our clients easier international transactions.”
Lew Cramer, CEO and President of the World Trade Center Utah summed up the experience when he echoed the mind and heart theme with the work load of the mission. “The Governor’s Office of Economic Development under Executive Director, Jason Perry and the mission organizer, Director, Franz Kolb did an outstanding job in arraigning our meetings and managing the incredible logistics that were required to accomplish a trade mission half a world away from home.” Cramer continued, “Our informal motto on the mission was ‘contacts and contracts’ and we got bundles of both. During the trade mission what we all did every day was work- work- work, but because of that work we all were able to establish a deeper and more personal business relationship with leaders in India which will insure increased opportunities as both our economies become more interdependent in the future.”
Editors Note: For Additional information on all of the participants of the trade mission in addition to those quoted, please contact Michael Sullivan at GOED 801-538-8811, mgsullivan@utah.gov
University of Utah MOU’sAbout the Pregna International MOU
The dynamic partnership between the University of Utah and Pregna International, a world leader in contraceptive manufacturing located in Mumbai, India, will focus on the commercialization of cutting edge anti-HIV and contraceptive delivery products for the Indian marketplace.
One of the technologies that may be commercialized through this partnership is a molecular condom that protects against AIDS. This technology was developed by Kavita Madanlal Gupta and Kiser. Gupta is an international student from India and is currently working toward a Ph.D. in bioengineering at the University of Utah. Microbicides, such as the microbicidal molecular condom developed by Gupta, are seen as a way for women to gain power by protecting themselves from HIV. Together, Pregna, and the University, will work on this and a variety of other technologies which have the potential to provide humanitarian aid to the people of India. For more information about molecular condom research see: https://unews.utah.edu/p/?r=111706-2
About the Globerian MOU
Globerian, headquartered in New Delhi, India, is a world leader in health information technology, research and healthcare practice management. Globerian’s resources will help medical and bioinformatics researchers and students at the University of Utah identify emerging opportunities for the development and commercialization of the U’s medical informatics expertise.
About the Manipal AcuNoval Ltd. MOU
Manipal AcuNova Ltd., a global clinical research organization based in Bangalore, India, will help university researchers more efficiently conduct clinical trials in India, accelerate collaborative medical technology commercialization, and offer students a practical experience in an international business-research setting.
About the Global Health Private Ltd., “MediCity” MOU
Global Health Private Ltd., MediCity, is currently developing a four-million-square-foot, 40-acre facility in Gurgaon, India. This partnership will facilitate collaborative efforts to enhance healthcare delivery while providing international experience for students.
University of Utah
Dr. Jack Brittain
801-581-7347
Sanchaita Datta
FatPipe Networks
801-281-3434
Dr. Ashok Joshi
Ceramatec
801-972-2455
Mark Garfield
Zions Bank
801-844-7688
Jim Solomon
BioMeridan
801-540-8784 x
Lew Cramer
World Trade Center Utah
Contact:
Michael G. Sullivan
GOED Communications Director
801-538-8811
mgsullivan@utah.gov
