Lockheed Martin extends its India-specific innovation outreach programme

New Delhi: Happy with the response accorded to its initiative, the ''India Innovation Growth Programme,'' US aerospace major, Lockheed Martin, says it will now extend the programme beyond its original two-year limit. Launched in March 2007, the programme seeks to reach out to young Indian innovators and enable them to translate their ideas into commercial products,

This year Lockheed says it has received 329 proposals that have been short-listed to 30. After  a process of elimination, the number will eventually be brought down to 14. According to Lockheed Martin's chief technology officer and senior vice president, Ray Johnson, the company was due to announce only seven winners last year, but there were so many positive projects that the number was eventually raised to 14.

Launched in association with the IC2 Institute of the University of Texas at Austin and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci), the programme has been created to enhance the growth and development of Indian entrepreneurs. It aims to do this by accelerating innovative Indian technologies into the global markets by focusing on teaching and using world-class commercialisation strategies.

Sixty innovative technologies from sectors such as aeronautics, agriculture, biotechnology, chemistry, communications, computing, defence, electronics, environment, IT, manufacturing, marine, materials, medical/life sciences, nano-technology, petrochemical, semiconductors and transportation were selected in the launch year. The number was brought down to 30, before 14 eventual winners were selected.

Nine of these have already inked 13 partnership agreements while the remaining are in the pipeline.

Under the scheme, Lockheed Martin provides the overall funding for the effort and the University of Texas and IC3 provide the training and business development process. Ficci has a major role in helping to connect businesses with the innovators.

Lockheed Martin was earlier this year awarded a $1 billion Indian Air Force (IAF) contract for six C-130J Super Hercules heavy-lift transport aircraft. The company is one of the six contenders for a $11 billion IAF contract for 126 combat jets, the bids for which were opened Monday.

According to Johnson, the entrepreneurship programme was not linked to the contracts and that it would continue the initiative and launch other such outreach programmes regardless of whether or not it was awarded the combat jet order.