Kimberly-Clark Expands Network of Global Innovation Centers

DALLAS, Aug. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NYSE: KMB) today announced plans to establish a Global Innovation Center in Bogota, Colombia, the first facility of its kind in the region. The center will develop products using local and regional insights to meet broader consumer needs around the world. This development follows Kimberly-Clark's recent announcement of its Korea Global Innovation Center and marks a significant expansion of the company's worldwide innovation capabilities.

"Innovation is a core strategy of our Global Business Plan," said Cindy Panning, Kimberly-Clark's vice president of Product Development. "We intend to further leverage our leadership by coupling integrated marketing programs with winning innovation around the world to grow our categories and our businesses. Our Global Innovation Centers will help us stay competitive in a fast-changing environment."

The Colombia and Korea expansion sites will join a global network that includes Kimberly-Clark's North American facilities in Neenah, Wisconsin and Roswell, Georgia as well as the Innovation Center of Asia in Seoul, Korea.

"The Colombia Global Innovation Center will be strategically located within Kimberly-Clark's Latin American Operations," Panning said. "Colombia offers us access to a thriving, diverse talent base with keen insights into developing markets and how to succeed in them, as well as a favorable cost structure. The Global Innovation Center will also benefit from strong support from the Colombian government, which is focused on development in the hygiene sector."

Kimberly-Clark currently has five manufacturing plants in Colombia that cover all product sectors. The Colombia Innovation Center will be located in Bogota and will provide opportunities for talented employees to collaborate in global-scale product development with their counterparts in North America and Asia.

The Korea Global Innovation Center, announced in July, will be located adjacent to the Innovation Center of Asia. This expands Kimberly-Clark's research, engineering and design capabilities with product development. The close proximity to the key, premium Korean market will accelerate the development and introduction of innovative products.  

"We selected Korea because of the 40-year success of our joint-venture company, Yuhan-Kimberly, and because the country is at the forefront of many great technologies and inventions that meet consumer demands," Panning said. "The Korea Global Innovation Center will help take Kimberly-Clark to the next level of global collaboration in both technology and product development."  

About Kimberly-Clark

Kimberly-Clark and its well-known global brands are an indispensable part of life for people in more than 150 countries. Every day, 1.3 billion people – nearly a quarter of the world's population – trust K-C brands and the solutions they provide to enhance their health, hygiene and well-being. With brands such as Kleenex, Scott, HUGGIES, Pull-Ups, Kotex and Depend, Kimberly-Clark holds No. 1 or No. 2 share positions in more than 80 countries. To keep up with the latest K-C news and to learn more about the company's 139-year history of innovation, visit www.kimberly-clark.com.

SOURCE Kimberly-Clark Corporation