Source: Népszabadság Top Publications, May 10, 2006

Original article [1] (in Hungarian)

Innovation Oscar

Few believed that during scientific research a small Hungarian company concerned with the development and production of commonly employed laboratory instruments could survive without suitable capital. For Thales the impossible was possible, and today the company is in partnership with multinational drugs manufacturers and envelops a dynamically developing business.

In 2002, the then management of the ComGenex group of companies, active in the field of drug research, decided to found a subsidiary company with the goal of developing high-tech laboratory instruments. This activity was very far removed from the main activity of the mother company. The new enterprise began operating in a tiny space with four employees. Its situation wasn't easy. There was no lack of exploitable ideas - however, it simply didn't have the resources to realise them. A profitable activity had to be found, a part of which would guarantee the survival of the company, and on the other hand, from the profits of this, finance research and development.
And this is still just one of the problems that Thales had to face. Selecting its workforce was at least as difficult as the raking together of the capital necessary for maintaining the company. There wasn't a lack of suitable people, however it wasn't easy to convince the majority of them to come and work with a small company. The bulk of workers would rather not take the risk, and this gives an advantage to multinational companies with a secure background. Nevertheless, the example of ComGenex, the founder of Thales which is now in American hands, shows that research and development companies with the correct business imagination can also offer good career opportunities.
It was the luck of the laboratory instrument development and production company to have one of Europe's largest drug research companies in the background - ComGenex - and could thus, without fear, lean on professional experience accumulated over a decade. Besides this, in the beginning the mother company also helped the subsidiary company taking its first steps by giving management advice and much other assistance. With the passing of time Thales began to come into its own more and more and stood on its own feet in the form of a spin-off enterprise. At the company, they believe that the unconditional devotion and belief of their workforce played a large role in this. Thanks to these two factors the company brought its first product, the H-Cube hydrogenation device, to market within a relatively short period of time, in late 2004.

The development of the device finally brought the long-awaited business success. Fifty orders were placed at Thales for the H-Cube within seven months, the world's most well-known pharmacy and biotechnology companies among them. Although they sell 90% of their products abroad, Hungarian companies (Richter, Chinoin) naturally feature among their customers, as well as universities (Debrecen and Szeged). Thales has not disclosed its turnover or results; however, it is possible to ascertain that in the first four months of 2006, trade was greater than in the whole of the previous year. The company's endeavors also roused the attention of the outside world. Thales was the first Hungarian company to win the R&D 100 - the "Innovation Oscar". In Hungary meanwhile, in March it also received recognition in the form of the Economics and Transport Ministry's Industry Innovation Award.

It can be assumed that Thales Nanotechnology, Inc. will not rest on its laurels in the coming years either. A whole product line of laboratory instruments already lies under development in the company magicians' shop, all of which exploit the advantages of the micro-fluid technology developed by the company. It helps the development of the company that it has good relations with the leading national and international intellectual workplaces and recognized educational institutions. The profitability of the company is bound to improve further, since up until now it has also been extremely important to Thales that its products are also successful from a commercial perspective. In compliance with this, following the conquering of the European and American markets the company is striving to gain a foothold in all points of the globe. There is also the hope that in the not too distant future, others too shall share in the successes of the instrument-producing firm. According to expectations, within one and a half years the company shall, in line with its long term strategic goals, also set about conquering the capital markets.

H-Cube

The H-Cube is the world's first high-pressure continuous large-scale micro-fluid hydrogenation instrument which works with nano-structured heterogeneous catalysts closed in capsules. As opposed to the large instruments which have been available up until now and require a separate explosive-proof area, the shoebox-sized H-Cube can be used in traditional chemistry laboratory hoods. With the H-Cube, reaction times are substantially reduced; indeed, chemical reactions that were until now believed to be impossible can be carried out with the device. In 2005 the H-Cube won the American R&D 100 Award, otherwise known as the "Innovation Oscar", and which rewards the year's most technologically important products and procedures.

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