Shanghai firms, institutions honored for IP excellence

Nine companies and institutions in Shanghai were honored yesterday for excellence in the creation, protection and application of intellectual property rights.

The "Shanghai Intellectual Property Innovation Award" was established in 2018 by the Shanghai government and the World Intellectual Property Organization and has up to nine recipients each year.

Business entities and organizations can apply for the award.

The award winners this year include tech companies, manufacturers, a hospital and a university.

Shanghai Jahwa United Co Ltd was one of the recipients. The consumer goods manufacturer, with a 123-year history, owns more than 300 valid patents both in China and overseas, around 1,200 registered trademarks around the world and over 500 registered copyright items.

"We feel honored to have our effort in innovation recognized through this award, and we believe that the award will encourage more companies in the consumer goods industry to invest in innovative activities and address technical barriers, which will be beneficial to the entire industry," said Pan Qiusheng, CEO of the company.

Zhongshan Hospital, an 84-year-old comprehensive hospital, received the award for its efforts to promote the commercialization of science and research findings. In 2020 alone, 25 patents from the hospital were commercialized, with contracts worth more than 13 million yuan (US$2 million) signed.

"Our innovation focuses on clinical problems and we're active in applying our research results to medical products and techniques for our patients," noted Fan Jia, president of the hospital.

"Over the years, we have solved many difficult medical questions this way and we will continue to do so (in the future)."