Saint-Gobain Opens Extension to its Shanghai Research and Development Center to support the Group's Rapidly Growing Businesses in the Asia-Pacific Region

PARIS, September 27, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

• An investment of € 7 million in a new 8,300-square meter building
• Nearly 400 researchers to develop new technologies for China and Asia-Pacific
• A model building in terms of energy savings, environmental protection and sustainable development

Pierre-André de Chalendar, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Compagnie de Saint-Gobain, officially opened the Group's Research and Development Center today in Shanghai (SGRS).

The new 8,300-square meter building is located in Shanghai's Minhang district, next to the first SGRS building. The first building, opened in late September 2007, spans 5,500 square meters and currently employs 245 people. The two buildings will host up to 400 researchers in total. The expansion of this state-of-the-art center will further increase Saint-Gobain's capacity to develop new technology in China for the Asia-Pacific markets and to support rapidly growing businesses.

"Research and innovation forms the cornerstone of Saint-Gobain's sustainable habitat strategy," commented Pierre-André de Chalendar at the opening ceremony. "Saint-Gobain Research Shanghai plays a critical role in our global research and development network by delivering cutting-edge technology and innovation to our businesses in China and throughout Asia. The expansion of SGRS illustrates our strong focus on 'Innovation in Asia for Asia' and 'Innovation in China for China'."

The R&D center was designed to meet the Chinese GBDL (Green Building Design Label) standard and has been awarded gold status under the US LEED standard.

Saint-Gobain has grown extensively in China since it first started up operations there in 1985. So far, the Group has created 54 legal entities across the country, including 40 production sites, which employ nearly 10,000 people generating €1.11 billion in sales in 2012.

More about Saint-Gobain

Saint-Gobain, the world leader in the habitat and construction markets, designs, manufactures, and distributes building materials, providing innovative solutions to the challenges of growth, energy efficiency, and environmental protection. With 2012 sales of €43.2 billion, Saint-Gobain operates in 64 countries and has nearly 193,000 employees. For the second year in a row, Saint-Gobain has been included in the Thomson Reuters ranking of the 100 most innovative companies. In 2012, 3,700 researchers worked on 850 projects with a total budget of €479 million. Last year, the Group registeredover 400 patents. More than one in five Saint-Gobain products sold today did not exist five years ago. For more information about Saint-Gobain, please visithttp://www.saint-gobain.com.

Media relations


Sophie CHEVALLON        +33-1-47-62-30-48
Susanne TRABITZSCH      +33-1-47-62-43-25


Analyst/Investor relations


Gaetano TERRASINI       +33-1-47-62-32-52
Vivien DARDEL           +33-1-47-62-44-29
Alexandra BAUBIGEAT     +33-1-47-62-30-93

SOURCE Saint-Gobain