Hopkinton-Based EMC Breaks Ground in Brazil

Press release submitted by the office of Gov. Deval Patrick.

Gov. Deval Patrick joined officials from Massachusetts-based and business leaders in Rio de Janeiro yesterday for the groundbreaking of a new EMC research and development center at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro technology park.

“It is great to see a Massachusetts-based company like EMC growing in Brazil,” Patrick said. “This groundbreaking will strengthen the Massachusetts-Brazil connection and will help grow our innovation economies for years to come.”

The groundbreaking is part of Patrick’s Innovation Economy Mission and marks a five-year investment of $100 million by EMC in Brazil.

Thanks to companies like EMC, according to Patrick's office, Massachusetts is one of the leaders in the nation and the world in research and development, with research and development spending accounting for 7 percent of the state’s economy. In 2007, $25.4 billion was spent on research and development in Massachusetts. The concentration of iTech firms in Massachusetts is four times the national average, with 6,500 IT firms directly employing 124,000 workers and supporting another 202,000 jobs. In 2010, Massachusetts captured $2.37 billion in venture capital investment, one-third of which was invested in iTech companies. The Innovation Economy Mission seeks to build on these successes, forging new economic relationships between Massachusetts and Brazil. 

“The cultural and educational importance of Rio de Janeiro and its strategic location in Latin America make it an ideal setting for EMC’s new R and D center, which is our very first to primarily focus on uncovering new ways to extract the maximum value from data generated by the oil and gas industry,” Joel Schwartz, EMC senior vice president and general manager of Global New Business Development said. “Over the years, EMC has experienced strong revenue growth in Brazil, and we’re excited to work with the Brazilian government, the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and other academic institutions and technology companies to address opportunities in cloud computing and Big Data.”

“Massachusetts is a global hub for information technology and innovation,” Pamela Goldberg, CEO of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative and member of the trade mission delegation said. “Brazil’s rapidly growing IT sector provides an exciting platform for economic expansion and job creation. By advancing research collaborations and partnerships, EMC and other Massachusetts companies are creating the conditions for new growth and long-term economic development opportunities.”

In June 2008, Patrick signed the Massachusetts Life Sciences Act, which includes making financial investments in public and private institutions that are advancing life science research and development. This 10-year, $1 billion initiative has already created more than one million square feet of new laboratory and biomanufacturing space.

From Dec. 4 to 9, the Innovation Economy Mission is making stops in Brasilia, Sao Paulo, and Rio de Janeiro, visiting Brazilian companies, universities and government leaders to highlight all that Massachusetts has to offer to Brazil. The mission is focusing on creating jobs in the life sciences, IT, clean energy, financial services and education sectors and solidifying the already strong Massachusetts-Brazil connection.

Prior to arriving in Brazil, Patrick and a smaller delegation traveled to Chile and signed an agreement to grow jobs and opportunities in the areas of clean energy, biotechnology and education.