Motorola opens center in Beijing

Motorola Inc. marked its 20th year in China by expanding its operations to include a new research-and-development complex in Wangjing, Beijing.

The complex, in collaboration with the Chaoyang District Government of Beijing, and Zhongguancun Electronic Zone Construction Co. Ltd., has one 16-floor office tower, three low-rise R&D buildings (three stories each) and one lab building. It will house 3,000 Motorola employees, including 2,000 R&D engineers.

"China has always been a very important part of our company's strategy and it continues to be," said Motorola president and chief operating officer Greg Brown said in a statement. "Today's event is another key milestone for Motorola. The inauguration of Motorola China R&D Complex will make the company better positioned to drive development of China's wireless industry and to achieve win-win results with local customers, consumers and partners."

Last November, Motorola opened more centers around China, South Korea and Vietnam, aiming to strengthen its hold on the booming Asian market. While the centers in Beijing, China, and Seoul, South Korea, were additional research centers, the one in Vietnam was new for the region and focused on information technology training.

Several Motorola labs will move to this latest complex, including Motorola Beijing Compliance Lab, which serves as Motorola's compliance test lab with expertise in radio frequency and audio testing; the Global Telecom Solutions Sector China Design Center; the Customer Network Resolution Center; and Motorola Engineering Institute, and other labs, the company said.

Motorola has been doing research in China since 1993 when it established its first R&D lab, the Global software Group China. The company has invested about $800 million in R&D, building R&D centers and labs in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Nanjing, Chengdu and Hangzhou and employing more than 3,000 people there, the company said.