Konvoy, the first research and development center for the Chinese pharmaceutical industry, was established in Chicago recently, according to China's Kunming Pharmaceutical Group Co., Konvoy’s parent company. 

The establishment of the center is an important milestone in the internationalization process of the group, and also a key turning point in the North American market, according to Dai Xiaochang, the president of the pharmaceutical group. 

With a total of 26 subsidiaries, Kunming Pharmaceutical Group Co. has a complete industrial business chain for production of Artemisinin, the world's largest anti-malarial drug. Chinese chemist and educator Tu Youyou was awarded the Nobel Prize for discovering Artemisinin, a drug that has since helped immensely to reduce the mortality rate of malaria patients. 

The pharmaceutical industry in Chicago is quite developed, and there are many internationally known pharmaceutical companies, such as AbbVie, Eli Lilly, Takeda, Astellas and Abbott that already have R&D centers in the area.