Jakarta. Kalbe Farma, Indonesia's largest pharmaceutical company, announced on Thursday (18/01) that it has forged partnerships with two Japanese companies to establish a Rp 100 billion ($7 million) clinical laboratory in Sunter, North Jakarta.

This will allow Yokohama-based medical laboratory service provider Health Sciences Research Institute (HSRI) and Toyota Tsusho Corporation, a subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation, to make inroads in Indonesia's health care sector.

Kalbe and the two Japanese companies have established Innolab Sains Internasional, a joint venture in which the Indonesian company controls 60 percent and HSRI and Toyota Tsusho 20 percent each.

"Through our partnership with these foreign companies, we hope to ensure high quality laboratory services, which will be on par with Japanese standards, and to gain leverage and access to their existing networks. We will also perform a benchmarking process and conduct technology transfers to improve the quality of the laboratory services," Kalbe Farma president director Vidjongtius said in a joint statement on Thursday (18/01).

The Japanese companies see Indonesia's health care industry as an attractive market due to the country's large and expanding population, in addition to complex diseases, that create growing demand for a higher-quality clinical tests, the statement said.

The laboratory, known as Kalgen Innolab Clinical, offers various test services, including advanced molecular diagnostics to support personalized medicine.

Kalgen Innolab Clinical will also offer an international-standard quality management system and integrated laboratory information systems.

"We made a great choice to choose Kalbe as our partner as the company has a wide network in the archipelago and operates a laboratory unit. In the near future, we want to introduce new technologies, such as the Internet of Things [IoT] and artificial intelligence," HSRI president and chief executive Yoshizoh Kugawa told reporters on Wednesday.

HSRI was established in 1950 as Japan's first commercial clinical testing center. It operates 93 sales offices and 52 laboratories, offering a wide range of clinical tests involving biochemistry, hematology, microbiology, oncology, genetics and pathology.