Thailand is the world's number one producer of natural rubber(NR). In the year 2002, it produced 2.63 million tons of raw rubber with 90% being exported as a raw material and the rest used to produce rubber products for exporting and use within this country. To increase the value added products of natural rubber, the Thai government realized the need to increase the potential and performance of rubber products manufactured in Thailand. Songkhla and Satun provinces, situated in NR plantation areas, were consequently strategically placed and appointed to be primary areas of NR activity. To promote the use of rubber, the government also focused on encouraging farmers (latex gatherers) to become self proficient in producing NR products. This resulted in the founding of the Natural Rubber Products Technology Transfer Center as a special unit to research and transfer suitable new technology and to support various activities in these provinces. With a 14 million baht budget from the provinces and about 3 million baht from the Faculty of  Science, Prince of Songkla University, the center opened at the beginning of December 2004. It is considered to be one of the countries most valuable enterprises for research and technology transfer.

          The center will benefit/help to develop and improve the performance of rubber manufacturing and also create manpower within three sectors, namely, industry, farming and education. Moreover, it will support and facilitate the "rubber city" which will be established at Chalung industrial Estate in Songkhla province in the near future.

A summary of the objectives of the center are therefore:

• To create and develop research projects focused on using natural rubber.
• To effectively communicate and transfer new technologies to farming, industrial and other communities.
• To give basic knowledge of NR products manufacturing processes to farmers.
• To publicize the potential of farmers to produce NR products.
• To coordinate and facilitate collaboration between various research units, educational institutions, industrial sectors and related international institutions.
• To offer testing services, training and consultancy to industry sections.