A growing market

THE staff at ADInstruments’ Shanghai office are getting used to the sounds and smells of construction.

The office, with six staff, is the newest tenant in a tower that forms part of a brand new mixeduse development still rising from the ground in Shanghai.

The location, overlooking the Huangpu River and near a new metro underground station, is full of potential, even if its surroundings remain empty of one key feature — people — in an otherwise buzzing city.

But, as the development progresses, the market in China for ADInstruments’ products is likewise gathering pace.

The company, which has its roots — and its headquarters — in Dunedin, has expanded its footprint in China since 1998, when its Shanghai office opened.

The company now has offices in Beijing (five staff) and Guangzhou (four staff) as well, all selling a range of hardware and software products to universities teaching and researching life science subjects.

ADInstruments marketing administrator Jenny Shu, of Shanghai, said sales to universities and hospitals across China generated about US$30 million annually for the company.

The market remained small, but was being helped by greater emphasis on research and development within China, which was opening up opportunities, she said.