Presentation

 

The world is changing with a dazzling speed. Science and technology has entered into our daily lives as never before following enormous developments in science and technology in the last thirty years.

Today, universities and research institutes form the core of the economic development and welfare of a nation and universities must rise to the challenge of turning their knowledge into innovative industrial products and processes thus making a valuable contribution to the economy and society.  Globalization is forcing the companies and industries to be more innovative than ever before and they are in their increasing numbers turning to universities for new ideas and expertise in order to survive and prosper in the international arena and increase their competitiveness.  This has been a trend in the west where university research parks, technoparks or spin-off companies are becoming major contributors to the local economy and country as a whole. 

Our mission is to see more products invented and developed at Kocaeli University and made in Turkey.

With these goals and vision in mind, we have obtained a permission to start Kocaeli Teknopark following 22nd March 2003 Council of Ministers directive of 2003/5390.  As a start, a management company, KOU Teknopark Inc. was formed with five partners and was published and declared in the official companies’ registry and charter.  At the end of 2004, the necessary plans for building and infrastructure at Yenikoy were submitted to the Council of Ministers.

This is a historic opportunity for our university based in one of the most dynamic and industrial regions in the country. Kocaeli University has been a success story in its short history and will add new success stories by bringing and blending knowledge and innovative ideas together with the industry.  I have every confidence that Kocaeli University will be succesful in carrying out its mission by contributing more to the local economy and society as a whole.

 

Prof Dr Baki Komsuoglu
Chairman