On May 15th, 2024, a delegation led by Prof. HOU Limin, Chair of the School Council, and Prof. FAN Tijun, Dean of the School, visited Johnson Controls Asia-Pacific Headquarters. Dr. Anuruddha RATHNINDE, President of Johnson Controls in Asia-Pacific Region, visiting Professor of ECUST School of Business, and member of its Strategic Advisory Board, Ms.LIN Lin, Vice President of Human Resources of Johnson Controls in Asia-Pacific Region, Ms. LIU Shuang, Director of Corporate Communication, MS. JI Yiping, Director of Learning and Development, Mr. YU Ning, Director of System Integration Solutions of China, and Ms. LIU Lan, President Assistant, engaged in an in-depth communication with the delegation. The two sides exchanged views and achieved consensus on topics such as the development of industry-education integration center, faculty with expertise, the innovative teaching mode of "Learning by doing Classroom", and the creation and sharing of knowledge.

       Prof. HOU Limin thanked Dr. Anuruddha for his full support to the School’s work in student cultivation and international accreditation, and expressed her wish of carrying out in-depth cooperation with Johnson Controls through developing industry-education integration center as the main focus. She emphasized that the deep cooperation between the School and enterprises aims to give full play to the advantages of both sides, innovate the education and talent cultivation mode, and will have far-reaching impact on the development of enterprises. Prof. FAN Tijun mentioned that at present, the School has established cooperative relationships with 46 benchmark enterprises and plans to expand multiple forms of deep cooperation with more enterprises. He believes that the joining of Johnson Controls will further promote the development of the industry-education integration center.

        Dr. Anuruddha introduced the history, core business and future development direction of Johnson Controls to the delegation, and expressed his hope to develop internship center and talent nurturing with ECUST School of Business. He said that through the collaboration of School and enterprises,more and more high-calibre and composite managerial talents can be nurtured and better contribute to the economical and social development.

        On behalf of the School, Prof. FAN Tijun also presented a letter of appreciation to Dr. Anuruddha for his continuous contribution and support to the School.

        Afterwards, led by Mr. YU Ning, the delegation visited the Asia-Pacific headquarters building of Johnson Controls and spoke highly of its advanced building technology, intelligent management system as well as green energy-saving concepts.

        As a global company dedicated to smart, healthy and sustainable building solutions, Johnson Controls draws on nearly 140 years of innovation and utilizes a complete portfolio of products and solutions in the comprehensive digital solutions OpenBlue and building technology sectors to realize the blueprint for sustainable development in a wide range of areas, including healthcare, education, data centers, airports, stadiums and manufacturing. Johnson Controls employs 100,000 professionals in more than 150 countries and is home to many of the industry's most trusted brands.

         As the President of Johnson Controls in Asia Pacific, Dr. Anuruddha has a PhD in Complexity Leadership, an MBA from Indiana University's Kelley School of Business, a Master's degree in Global Management from Thunderbird School of Global Management, a Master's degree in Mechatronics from the National University of Singapore, and a Bachelor's degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Peladnya, Sri Lanka, and a broad range of engineering, technical field as well as strong leadership experience. Since taking over as President of Johnson Controls Asia Pacific in May 2022, Dr. Anuruddha has led the Asia Pacific team to continue to drive the business forward by actively engaging with all relevant departments and partners in Shanghai. In 2023, He was honored with the Magnolia Memorial Award in Shanghai. In January 2024, He was appointed by the People's Government of Changning District, Shanghai, as Chairman of the Hongqiao Friendship Alliance.