By Contributing Author
Kusto Group’s Tambour will join a series of Israeli companies including Keter Plastics, Klil, Trellidor and Flying Cargo, Indian IT giant WIPRO, the Manufacturer’s Association of Israel and the Municipality of Karmiel to build an Israel Innovation Authority innovation incubator in peripheral Israel dedicated to transforming concepts into reality and enriching the region by facilitating economic growth.
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Singapore-based Kusto Group is a multi-sector conglomerate with businesses all over the world. Founded by Yerkin Tatishev and a group of young entrepreneurs, the company aspires to bring revolutionary technology and processes to their operations in the oil and gas, agricultural, construction and real estate sectors. Managing director of Kusto Group, Daniel Kunin, oversaw the company’s acquisition of Tambour in 2014. The company has announced its intentions of taking the locally renowned Israeli paint manufacturer global in the coming years.
Israel: A global startup and innovation hub
Israel has been dubbed the ‘startup nation,’ boasting more startups per capita than any other nation. In addition to a highly skilled workforce, Israeli culture and society have contributed to an entrepreneurial ecosystem favorable to innovation by valuing creativity, resourcefulness and ingenuity. Innovation has become a lucrative economic export for the small Mediterranean country.
Innovation incubators, dozens of which have been established across Israel dedicated to multiple sectors, provide an invaluable framework of technological, financial, operating and administrative support to startups to help develop their innovative concepts into commercial products. Incubators nourish and cultivate startups, providing them with essential resources that enable them to become thriving financially viable companies that can survive on their own.
An incubator inspired by the Fourth Industrial Revolution
The incubator initiative supported by Kusto Group is expected to bring skilled employment to Israel’s periphery region. The competitive incubator program will award winners with a grant of up to 500,000 shekels ($142,500 US) per year during the concession period and incubator companies will be eligible for a grant of up to a million shekels ($285,000 US).
The goal of the collaboration between these international and Israeli industrial companies is to establish a world-leading technological center operating in synergy with the Galilee Accelerator which offers mentorships and free services to early-stage startups.
This initiative is inspired by the spirit of the Fourth Industrial Revolution characterized by disruptive technology blurring the lines of the physical and digital world. Artificial intelligence, virtual reality, machine learning, augmented reality and the Internet of Things are pushing innovation in nearly every sector, transforming the way that we communicate, work and live. The primary focus of the Karmiel incubator will be the application of innovative technological concepts in the manufacturing and industrial sectors.
The innovation incubator to be established in the northern Israeli city of Karmiel represents a collaboration of industry businesses, educational institutions, public government entities. The Municipality of Karmiel is slated to provide the land on which the incubator will be built. The ORT Braude College of Engineering will provide incubator members access to its technology labs in addition to professional and technological guidance offered by its professors. Students of the college will also have the opportunity to contribute to innovation incubator projects, earning active participation credit towards their degree requirements while taking part in an invaluable real-world educational experience.
Innovation and collaboration
Innovation, collaboration and education are the foundational cornerstones of Kusto Group’s business philosophy and operations. According to Max Sartiev, Chairman of Tambour Group, “This effort is an example of the power of cooperation between industries, students, government entities and startups. Through my own experiences and in my work at Kusto Group, I truly believe that teamwork and education are the most important elements in achieving success. Tambour and Kusto Group are proud to be members of this alliance helping to transform innovative ideas into reality.”
The Group has a well-established approach of partnering with exceptional businesses to introduce innovative technology and best practices to emerging markets worldwide. In addition, the company will undoubtedly benefit from the close working relationship incubator startups develop with incubator investors which create long-lasting strong connections that promote collaboration and synergy.
Through its business endeavors, Kusto Group has actively been involved in modernizing agricultural operations in Kazakhstan and Ukraine, supplying high-quality building materials to the booming construction industry in Vietnam, and working to bring groundbreaking engineering processes to the mining industry across Central Asia and Canada.
Kusto Group has invested in the education of its employees, offering managerial and professional development training within the organization. In addition, the company and its founder Yerkin Tatishev were instrumental sponsors in the creation of the High Tech Academy, a Project-based Learning school in Almaty, Kazakhstan, and have helped numerous young people achieve their educational and career goals through donations to scholarship programs.
This initiative represents Kusto Group’s commitment to embracing and implementing groundbreaking technology, fostering innovation, and supporting the educational growth and professional development of young people. The innovation incubator in northern Israel is expected to be finalized and established in the coming months.
