HCMUT Technology Business Incubator (HCMUT –TBI): Fertile land for Start-up
Technology business incubator center of HCMUT is among a few effectively operating incubator in Vietnam. – Photo: internet.
Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT) is one of the first universities having Technology Business Incubator and being supported by Belgium’s ODA.
Technology Business Incubator (TBI) is an organization specializing in providing resources and necessary support to the businesses, so that they can overcome the beginning challenges and thriving.
TBI model of a university is a popular model all over the world. HCMUT-TBI is one of the few TBIs of the nation.
“SWIM IN CHALLENGES”
Ho Chi Minh City authorities, from 2007 to 2013, started the trial program for TBIs directly under universities. With that policy, HCM Department of Science and Technology collaborated with and supported HCM University of Technology and HCM University of Agriculture and Forestry to establish two TBIs directly under the universities.
Before that, there were some TBIs founded in the city and this support of the city has created a new vitality for TBIs of the universities. The incubators generally completed the process and strategy for operation, place the first step for future development.
Assoc. Prof. PhD Mai Thanh Phong – Vice Principal of HCMUT cum Director of HCMUT-TBI, revealed that: “When building HCMUT-TBI, we were considered as the very first people founding the directly-under-universities Technology Business Incubator model in Vietnam. Every of us was aware of facing the difficulties and challenges.”
After 5 years operating, there are difficulties listed: lack of investment and operating capital, unskilled operators, society’s awareness of TBIs, inefficiency of government supporting policies,…
Through observation, TBIs in Ho Chi Minh City in particular, and in the nation generally in the past years has encountered lots of difficulties, which has made the results not as good as expected. The majority of TBIs find it very difficult to have a good business plan.
The main reason for this is the scientists’ and policy maker’s limit awareness of importance of technology start-up. This leads to the lack of financial resources and government policies, and that’s why the TBIs haven’t work properly, and start-up business swim in difficulties.
Some TBIs received grants from government and foreign organizations, but until now, most of the TBI receiving the grants nearly has stop operating or work half-heartedly until the end of the grants, which means lacking sustainable development.
However, overcame those challenges, some TBIs have achieved note-worthy accomplishments, and Technology Business Incubator of Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT-TBI) is a typical example.
PROSPER STEPS
Due to the limited facilities, HCMUT-TBI has been able to support 10 business at a time. After 5 years operating, HCMUT-TBI has been supporting 20 businesses in 3 years for each. Vietcontrol and iNext Technology are the two businesses that graduated from HCMUT-TBI with the revenue of 10 billion VND a year. They all are businesses of lecturers, HCMUT alumni which have been founded and developed based on technology platform – strength of the HCMUT. Currently, HCMUT-TBI is supporting 10 businesses.
Executive Board of HCMUT-TBI (Assoc. Prof. PhD Mai Thanh Phong, on the first right) greeting Management Board of BIPP Project. – Photo: BIPP.
Next is the GPAT Ltd. Co., of which owners are HCMUT alumni. They actively joined in start-up activities of HCMUT-TBI when they were students and had quite a lot ideas for business. Although just having been founded, GPAT, with creative ideas in E-commerce field, has prominent outcomes, such as winning a prize in Hackathon and having been supported to invest in the USA, where company staff can gain much more experience, and call investment in Silicon Valley. To make it easier for calling investment and approach the market place, GPAT opened a branch in Singapore.
Besides, there are also potential businesses like: ENVIBIOCHEM Binh Lan – being versed in fast-measuring water quality of ponds and aquaculture solutions; Infedol – specializing in vertical-axis wind generator and the optimum manufacturing solutions”.
Following that, BIPP will be conducted in 5 years (2015 – 2019) with total budget of 4.4 million EUR, which is sponsored non-refundably by Belgian government (Vietnamese reciprocal capital is 400.000 EUR of the total budget). HCMUT-TBI will be supported experimentally by BIPP to carry out some policies, enhance conducting capability and help businesses raising fund for start-up. The purpose of this support is to build a model TBI center, and duplicate the model later on.
Assoc. Prof. PhD Mai Thanh Phong (siting on the right) at the Grant Agreement Signing Ceremony. – Photo: Student Activities Office.
“To get that support, we have persuaded Management Board of BIPP by our own abilities and potential development, by our efficiency in operating in recent years” – Dr. Phong emphasized.
Dr. Phong also mentioned that government must have a macro policies and suitable for “hatching” businesses, to reach sustainable development of TBI centers, through which technology businesses thrive. The policies have to focus on supporting TBIs, and on technology businesses especially, and motivate innovative activities. Some countries in the region have had experience in building TBIs like Japan, Singapore,…That we have to learn from the countries is essential.
Writer: THI CA
