Computing giant HP has reorganised its research and development division, HP Labs, to better tie research to emerging business technology trends.

Around 150 existing projects will be ‘refocused’ into 20 or 30 large projects. These will be fall under five overarching themes: the information explosion; dynamic cloud services; content transformation; intelligent infrastructure and sustainability.

While the restructuring will not curtail open-ended, ‘blue sky’ research projects, it will involve a tighter focus on commercially viable technologies, HP CEO Mark Hurd explained. Several current research projects are to be shelved.

HP Labs, which was founded in 1966, is the latest department of the corporation to undergo rationalisation since Mark Hurd became CEO in 2005. Since his appointment, HP has become the first technology company to earn annual revenues of US$100 billion.