Hessian Ministry of Economics, Transport, Urban and Regional Development

www.hessen-nanotech.de

Hessen Nanotech

Hessen – there’s no way around us.

Materials shape ProductsIncrease Innovation and Market Opportunities with the Help of Creative Professionals

Materials shape Products

Increase Innovation and MarketOpportunities with the Help ofCreative Professionals

Volume 18 of the Hessen-Nanotech Initiatives Series

Publishing DetailsMaterials shape Products – Increase Innovationand Market Opportunities with the Help of Creative Professionals

Volume 18 of the Hessian Nanotech InitiativesSeries of the Hessian Ministry of Economics, Transport, Urban and Regional Development

Created by:

Dr. phil. Dipl.-Ing. Dipl.-Des. (B.A.) Sascha Peters

haute innovation

Agency for Material and Technology

Erkelenzdamm 27

10999 Berlin (Germany)

www.saschapeters.com

Editorial Team:

Sebastian Hummel

(Hessian Ministry of Economics, Transport, Urban

and Regional Development)

Alexander Bracht, Markus Lämmer

(Hessen Agentur, Hessen-Nanotech)

Publisher:

HA Hessen Agentur GmbH

Abraham-Lincoln-Strasse 38-42

65189 Wiesbaden (Germany)

Phone +49 (0)611 774-8614

Fax +49 (0)611 774-8620

www.hessen-agentur.de

The publisher gives no guarantee on the correctness,

the accuracy or the completeness of the information

or for the respect of the intellectual property rights of

third parties. The views and opinions expressed in the

publication are not necessarily those of the publisher.

© Hessisches Ministerium für Wirtschaft, Verkehr und

Landesentwicklung (Hessian Ministry of Economics,

Transport, Urban and Regional Development)

Kaiser-Friedrich-Ring 75

65185 Wiesbaden (Germany)

www.wirtschaft.hessen.de

Reprinting and reproduction in whole or in part is not

permitted without prior written permission.

Layout and design: WerbeAtelier Theißen, Lohfelden

Printed by: Werbedruck Schreckhase, Spangenberg

www.hessen-nanotech.de

December 2010

Source: D

oreen

Westphal

Cover imagesTop: Doreen WestphalBottom Left: Ambient Glow TechnologyBottom Centre: LekkerwerkenBottom Right: Áron Losonzci

ContentsPreface ........................................................................................................................... 2

Motivation .................................................................................................................... 4

1 The Role of Innovative Materials and Nano-Materials in the Products of Tomorrow ............................................................................... 6

1.1 Multi-Functional and Nano-Materials .................................................................... 9

1.2 Natural and Bio-Materials ..................................................................................... 16

1.3 Lightweight Construction Materials and Composites ....................................... 20

1.4 Reactive and Smart Materials ............................................................................... 26

1.5 Optical and Energy Efficient Materials ................................................................ 31

2 The Gap between Material Innovations and the Market – How can it be closed? ...................................................................................... 36

3 Creative Professionals as Partners. Targeted Deployment of Designers and Architects – What are the Strengths of the Creative Professionals in the Process? ......................................................... 40

4 The Process of Collaboration between Technical and Market Oriented Disciplines within the Creative Industries ............. 45

5 How do I find the right Partner? Selection Criteria for the Representatives of Creative Economy ......................................... 49

6 Success Stories: From Raw Material to Product ...................................... 51

6.1 Glass Fibres make Concrete Translucent ............................................................ 51

6.2 Access New Markets with Design ......................................................................... 52

6.3 Communicating Material Innovations ................................................................. 53

6.4 Art and Science Light up Concrete ...................................................................... 55

6.5 Ceramic Wall Covering enters Internal Architecture ......................................... 56

6.6 Designers Smooth OLED’s Route to Market ....................................................... 57

6.7 Tear Proof Paper for the Fashion Industry ........................................................... 58

6.8 Grasp the Invisible on a Nano-Journey ............................................................... 59

6.9 Living Environments with Ultra-Hard Concrete .................................................. 60

6.10 Resource Protection and Material Cultural Dialogue ........................................ 61

7 Material Research: Who can provide me with Information about new Materials and Inspiration? ......................................................... 62

Appendix A – Specialist Literature ................................................................. 65Appendix B – Courses of Study for Design, Architecture and Material Sciences in Hessen .................................................................... 67Appendix C – Contact Details of the Material Manufacturers and Creative Service Providers Referenced .............................................. 68

Series ........................................................................................................................... 78

1

Materials shape ProductsIncrease Innovation and Market Opportunities with the Help of Creative Professionals

There are many facets to economic success.

However one of them is certainly the further

development of technologically competitive

products, which is of vital importance, particu-

larly in view of the promising future markets.

The global product environments are chang-

ing ever more rapidly. Only those economic

regions that manage to expedite the conver-

sion of technological innovations into mar-

ketable products and to adjust development

processes to meet customer demands

in a timely manner can assert themselves. This

is especially true of the innovative materials

and nano-technology sectors in which Hessian

companies and researchers are taking a lead-

ing role. The engineers, physicists, chemists

and materials scientists have driven outstand-

ing developments over the past several years,

which have led to a great variety of novel

materials and new production engineering

possibilities.

It is now time to convert the successes

achieved in the field of fundamental research

and the new technological opportunities

swiftly and efficiently into marketable products

to secure the economic success of companies

and their employees. In this context, branches

of the creative sector play a key role in Hessian

economic policies. The still noticeable effects

of the economic crisis and the increasingly

stronger competition from threshold

economies such as those of China, India and

Brazil force us to call upon all of our potential,

to network among ourselves and develop a

new culture of innovation. This must not only

concentrate on the development of technical

excellence but rather, must maintain a focus

on customer requirements and social aspects

to achieve sustained growth. In the first

instance it is representatives of the creative

industries, who can provide a decisive impulse

to make a marketable product from a techno-

logical innovation. According to a study

carried out by the ‘Research Union Economy

Science’ there just so happens to be a deficit

in terms of inter-discipline collaboration in the

materials sector, primarily due to the low level

of inter-faculty orientation in the training of

young materials researchers.

Dieter Posch

2

However, the opportunities for innovative

materials and processing methods that would

result from a timely cross-linking of technolog-

ical fields with the creative disciplines such as

design and architecture are readily apparent.

The world of materials for use in vehicle con-

struction, aviation, machine engineering, the

construction industry as well as in sport and

the field of consumer products has been

developing at a rapid rate over the past few

years. Mutual interdependencies between the

functional and emotional aspects are becom-

ing ever more evident and therefore com -

panies are increasingly dependent upon col-

laboration between technological disciplines

and creative professionals for material devel-

opment processes. With the current brochure

we want to improve the collaboration between

the traditional industries and the creative pro-

fessionals.

By highlighting the research possibilities in

terms of materials and process engineering we

wish to simplify the exploitation of innovative

materials and technologies by construction

engineers, designers and architects. The show-

casing of successful collaborations between

creative professionals, product manufacturers

and producers of raw materials based in Hessen

is designed to provide inspiration for inter-disci-

plinary innovation processes and to increase the

willingness to co-operate between the various

fields. The assistance provided is intended to

make it easier for companies to select suitable

creative service providers. At the same time we

want to use these activities to promote the cre-

ative industries as an important building block

for our economic and social development and

help it to achieve lasting growth.

3

Dieter Posch

Hessian Minister of Economics, Transport,

Urban and Regional Development

Motivation

4

Cars that change colour at the press of a button;glasses that never steam up, or house façades andpavements, which remove damaging particles fromthe surrounding air: about 70% of all new productsare based on novel materials. This means that mate-rials development plays a key role in terms of theinnovation capability of our society and economy.Enormous growth in innovate materials and in par-ticular in nano-technologies is predicted over thenext few years, from which all sectors will profit.According to the Federal Ministry for Education andResearch (BMBF) the materials based sectors in Ger-many are already turning today over around a billionEuros and employ 5 million people. The Society ofGerman Engineers (VDI) already estimated the mar-ket turnover in products from the nano-technologysector at 100 thousand million Euros in 2006. Whilstthis is scheduled to increase to 500 thousand millionEuros by 2010 according to one German estimate,market researchers from Lux Research are evenassuming a market value by 2014 of 2.6 billion USDollars and that is just from material innovationsalone that are based on nano-sized structures. Evenif this development does not unfold so dramaticallyas predicted due to the economic crisis, this changesnothing in terms of the fundamentally enormouspotential and leverage effects of this key industry.

If public discourse has hitherto largely ignored thenon-dissolvable links between products and mate-rial, this seems to be undergoing a noticeablechange today due to the establishment of manymaterials libraries, trade fairs and electronic data-bases. Materials are currently in fashion and offerhuge opportunities in the vehicle manufacturing sec-tor, process engineering, construction industry, envi-ronmental protection and medical engineering,which need to be exploited in the coming years.Above all the use of innovative materials in designor architecture is an obvious choice.

Whereas in the past one had to develop materialswith particular functions from scratch to address spe-cific issues, today we have access to such a broadspectrum of raw materials and manufacturingprocesses that almost anything seems technicallypossible. This has far reaching ramifications for ourtraditional technology oriented, linear concept ofinnovation because what is often missing today interms of the realisation of successful innovationprocesses is not the technological innovation interms of a functional quality, but rather the success-ful conversion of a technological solution into a mar-ketable product.

According to a study of the Bochum Institute forApplied Innovation Research, Germany has a strikingweakness when it comes to realising ideas for newproducts because only 6% of all officially inaugu-rated innovation projects in this country lead to amarket success. The researchers see the cause asbeing a one dimensional engineering orientationrather than a comprehensive orientation on the mar-ket.

The ‘Innovation Capability of German SMEs’ carriedout by the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Sys-tems and Design Technology IPK in 2008 found thatcompanies lack strategies for identifying opportuni-ties for innovation within the business and to realisethese in a targeted manner. Consultants from BoozAllen Hamilton went even further in the 2006 study‘Global Innovation 1000’, concluding that havingresearched the innovation successes of the largestcompanies in the world, high R&D expenditures donot automatically increase a company’s innovationcapacity and that the number of patents held is notan appropriate indicator of economic success. It hasmuch more to do with the timely orientation of R&Dactivities on the market and the company’s ability totransfer a given technological quality to an applica-tion context earlier than the competition.

5

Creative professionals such as designers and archi-tects take on a particular significance in this contextfor they are able to detect customer requirementsthat are not explicitly stated, take these into accountduring development and transform technical func-tions into emotional added value. Through the par-allel development of technical excellence and mar-ketable product applications the chances of successfor a given innovation are increased!

Designers and architects are increasingly taking ona key role in terms of the success of an innovationprocess, especially as regards materials baseddevelopments, because it is often they who take thedecision as to the choice of a suitable material andno longer just engineers. Also, companies now haverecognised this subsection of the creative industriesas their contact partners when it comes to develop-ing meaningful product offerings for novel materialsand, for instance, to bring the non visible addedvalue of a nano-material to the attention of the user.

Hand in hand with this goes a change in our tradi-tional concept of innovation, a culture, which under-stands innovations primarily as further develop-ments of technological functionalities.

Because in future: “the role of the creative pro-fessional will develop from that of an applicationfocused consumer to that of a conceptuallyarguing thought-leader for novel possibilities,who will, in discourse with manufacturers,encourage the development of new materials or manufacturing processes or develop themthemselves.”, according to Prof. Bernhard E.Bürdeck (The Offenbach College of Design)

With increasing frequency, designers and architectsare themselves stepping forward as innovators ofnovel materials and manufacturing processes andmove ideas from research into a successful applica-tion context.

This brochure showcases stories of success in bring-ing materials to the market, provides assistance forcompanies in their search for creative serviceproviders and lists research opportunities for newraw materials.

The factors of success

for sustainable inno-

vation culture

(Source: Design

Zentrum Bremen)

Science Economy

Innovations

Creative IndustriesDesign, Architecture, PRMarketing, Multimedia,

Film, Communication

Innovationsare solely the developmentsthat markets and users actu-ally achieve and bring abouta sustainable change toeveryday culture!

The creative industries areincreasingly determining thesuccess and failure of inno-vative technologies and indoing so, that of companiesand products as well.

1 The Role of Innovative Materials and Nano-Materials in the Products of Tomorrow

6

The study ‘Materials as the Motor of Innovation’(Höcker 2008) puts the question into focus: newmaterials and technologies for their disseminationare highly important to the innovative capacity ofcompanies and for the development of new productareas and applications. According to the BostonConsulting Group study ‘Innovation Centre Germany– quo vadis?’ Germany occupies a key position inmaterials technology, which forms the basis for ourtop-ranking position in machine engineering, theaviation and transport sector, as well as in medicaland energy engineering. That the subject is also ofhigh importance in Hessen is particularly demon-strated by the high number of Hessian companiesparticipating in research projects in the field of rawmaterials (100 BMBF sponsored projects with Hess-ian participation since 2000). Above all, this is trueof the nano-technology sector, in which Hessiancompanies have made a name for themselves overthe past few years.

Nano-technology is the name of a specific field ofraw materials, in which solutions are developed onthe basis of particles and structures in nano-dimen-sions. A nanometer is one-thousand-millionth of ameter. It has to do with dimensions on about thescale of a thousandth of the width of a human hair.At this scale structures and particles of raw materialscan furnish material surfaces with outstanding func-tional properties and bring about innovations inmany different areas. Coating systems are currentlyin use that can be scratch proof, dirt repellent, elec-trically conducting, anti-bacterial or odour blockingwhilst appearing transparent. Already over 1000everyday products based on nanotechnologies areavailable on the market. What is noticeable is thatGerman companies occupy a leading position in thefuture key technology areas since every second Euro-pean nanotechnology company is located in Ger-many. A disproportionately large number of thesecompanies, 16%, come from Hessen. The finest nano-coatings for the improvement of surfaces havealready found their way into successful applicationsin the areas of architecture and design; the potentialfor the construction sector and interior design as wellas the qualities for everyday objects, are obvious.

Packaging made out

of bio-plastics

(Source: alesco green

packaging GmbH)

7

However, it is not only developments in nanotech-nology that will be important for the products oftomorrow. Increasingly scarce resources are forcingus to use material solutions that guarantee a sustain-able use of our raw materials and energy resources,and provide tailor-made functionalities for the givenapplication. Plastics based on maize starch, acrylicglass of sugar or foam materials made of castor oil:over the past few years chemical companies havemade enormous efforts, primarily in the field of bio-plastics, to find alternative sources of raw materialsand the possibilities seem huge. For example, theFrankfurt Trade Fair in Autumn 2008 successfullyestablished a first congress with associated exhibi-tion known as ‘NUTEC‘. However, several years willelapse before the new offers will become estab-lished in the market. The structures used by thepetro-chemical industry as the basis for materialmanufacture are too well established.

Thus, the focus of attention for the reduction ofresource utilisation is currently on lightweight build-ing materials for logistics, the construction industry,medical engineering or vehicle manufacturing.Resin-soaked paper cell structures for aircraft seats,technical fabrics for architecture, cellular materialsfor engine components or foam structures with anunusual volume to weight ratio for the furnitureindustry: the product pallet is varied and demon-strates the enormous potential for material solutionsin many different fields of application.

Cellular metal foam

(Source: hollomet

GmbH)

Resin soaked paper cell structures

(Source: formvielt GmbH)

Translucent concrete

(Source: Áron Losonczi)

8

Because the functional demands placed on materi-als these days can no longer be met by a singlematerial, recourse is usually made to material com-binations in order to create bespoke compositestructures. Fibre reinforced plastics constitute a largepart of this group of materials. One innovative initia-tive in this context is to work with natural hemp, sisaland flax fibres which have similar properties to con-ventional fibre materials. Other examples are coat-ing systems such as flexible stone veneers withwhich a special interior space aesthetic with a lightconstruction material can be achieved. Alternatively,there is translucent concrete whose properties aredue to glass fibre, which can allow light and shadowto pass through up to 20 centimetre thick concreteand be seen on the far side.

The material appears to react to influences from itssurroundings, which clearly demonstrates a furthercurrent trend: the trend towards active – or better –reactive materials. Plastics that change their geome-try under the influence of electrostatic fields; shapememory alloys whose shape can be changed andsubsequently revert to their starting shapes underthe influence of heat or light; metal plates with lumi-nescent properties, or wallpapers which changecolour in reaction to manual contact. Materials caneven have a positive effect on the climate and theambient air. Developments of particular interest inthis respect are façade elements with air cleaningproperties, in which nano-titanium-dioxide particlesare integrated, or temperature regulating phasetransition materials, which when integrated into ren-ders or plaster boards, can reduce the constructioncosts of air conditioning systems. In addition the sig-nificance of thin-film and dye-sensitized solar cellshas increased enormously in the past few months inlight of the flaring up of climate protection discus-sions. Over the coming years these will find increas-ing acceptance in our daily culture enabling the cre-ation of electricity generating products.

Façade elements with

air cleaning proper-

ties – proSolve370e®

(Source: elegant

embellishments Ltd.)

Thermosensitive furniture surface (Source: Jürgen Mayer H.)

Thermo-bimetal lamp (Source: serien lighting)

9

Nano-technology has experienced rapid growth inthe last few years. Investment in the future market,currently almost 10 billion US dollars a year world-wide, has primarily been encouraged by the highexpectations of the technology sector and the prog-noses of many experts and trend researchers. Ger-many is in third place in terms of the amount of theR&D expenditure and the number of patent applica-tions. Yet, whereas countries like China, India andRussia are strengthening their commitment in thevarious sub-sectors such as nano-materials or nano-coatings, in order to participate in the carving up ofthe future market, public discourse in the USA andCentral Europe about the possible risks of nano-particles seems to be hampering the developmentof the market. However, the focus is actually only ona single aspect of nano-technology. Discussionsrevolve around the potential dangers to humans andthe environment posed by nano-scale particles,tubes or fibres when they are not bound into a sub-stance matrix but can instead spread through waterand air. Due to their small dimensions and high reac-tivity some particles could enter the organism via thelungs where they could have a damaging effect onhealth. Of course everything shall be done to avertthe dangers posed to the human organism by nano-particles. What is omitted from the discussions how-ever is the fact that in instances where there is nodirect contact with the nano-particles, for examplebecause they are securely bound into a substancematrix, there is, in the final analysis, no exposure andtherefore no risk (risk = level of danger x exposure).

To better be able to evaluate and minimize the dan-gers and to be able to succeed in the global market,industrialists and politicians have for some yearsbeen pushing for safer processing and handling ofnano-technological products. Germany is taking aleading role in this context. Around ten million Eurosworth of preventative and accompanying measureshave flowed through the BMBF Project Fund –around 7% of the total project funding volume fornano-technology. The most important aspects of thesubject are summarized at: www.nano-sicherheit.dethrough which the HMWVL’s initiative ‘Nano Technol-ogy in Hessen’ provides an information platform forthe responsible handling of nanotechnologies. It isthere to help entrepreneurs but also scientists, usersand interested citizens to gain a quick and soundoverview of current research activities and the dis-cussions about safety in nanotechnology.

Scientific insights into the potential health ramifica-tions of nano-particles were studied between March2006 and July 2009 in the ‘Nano-Care’ project. Theresults can be found on the Internet at www.nanopar-tikel.info and are administrated by the ‘DaNa’ project.

1.1 Multi-Functional and Nano-Material

The Nano Technology in Hessen initiative runs an

information platform for research and discussion

around the subject of nano safety not found any-

where else in Germany (www.nano-sicherheit.de)

10

Nanotechnology’s potential for marketable productinnovations in many different sectors are enormousbased on improvements in chemical, mechanical,optical and biological properties. Be it in construc-tion, architecture, the optical sector, automobilemanufacture or medical engineering, nano-techno-logical developments are expected over the next 15years that will lead to sustained economic growth.

Self-cleaning roof tiles and windowpanes, fireproofinsulating material, dirt repellent wallpapers, scratchresistant finishes or anti-fingerprint coatings for thesurfaces of valves and furniture: In particular forarchitects and designers applications are currentlybeing launched on the market that can be tracedback to about 150 companies located in Hessen(Germany’s strongest region for the transfer of nano-technological developments to market).

Evonik Degussa GmbH offers a whole range of rawmaterials for the manufacture of nano-materials,which can fulfil many different functions. The mostrecent success story is the ceramic wall coveringccflex stardust® with water repelling, chemical andfire proof properties, the marketing rights of whichwere sold to the Marburger Tapetenfabrik (MarburgWallpaper Factory) in summer 2009. One of the firstbuildings to be equipped with the nano-ceramic,which primarily offers an alternative to standard,commercially available tiles in wet areas, was EvonikDegussa research centre “Creavis” in Marl. Furtherofferings from Evonik Degussa are nano-titanium-dioxide as a basis for superhydrophilic, aroma pre-venting and contaminant reducing coating systems,anti-static coatings or nano-particles for the protec-tion of electrical equipment against electromagneticvibrations.

Chemical

a Reduced tendency to stain for windows, façadesand roofing elements by nano-particle coatingmaterials

a Anti-fingerprint for surfaces in bathroom andinterior design

a Targeted, selective solubility of medicinal activeingredients and food additives

a More powerful batteries and rechargeable batteries by greater specific electrode surfaces

Mechanical

a Improved non-scratch properties of wall coverings, floor plate and finishes by ceramicnano-particles

a Improved rigidity of sports equipment throughthe addition of nano-particles (e.g. bicycleframes and surfboards)

a Increased air tightness of food packagingthrough nano-coatings

Optical

a Special effects for paints and finishesa More transparent UV-protection in cosmetics, textiles and furniture

a Control of light line and heat conduction through window glass

a Anti-glare properties for solar cells

Biological

a Antibacterial properties for valves, refrigeratorsand hospital furniture through silver nano-particles

a Contaminant reducing concrete products,asphalt mixes, façades and paints through nano-particle integration

a Increased permeability of physiological barriersin medicines

a Increased biocompatibility through nano-structuring of bone replacement substances or wound closures

Nano-Effects on Product Innovations

“Nano-Materials in Architecture,

Interior Architecture and Design”

by Sylvia Leydecker

11

The product offering of paint specialist Caparol(located in Ober-Ramstadt) includes photo catalyti-cally active paints based on nano-quartz-particles(also known as silica sol or hydro-glass particles),whose fouling tendency (i.e., contaminant particle,fine dust and spore sticking) is noticeably reduced.Whatever manages to accumulate on the façade inspite of this is removed from the surface by wind andrain. This prevents adhesive agent swelling andmaintains the protective function and colour bril-liance. The advantages of a silicon resin paint arecombined with those of a silicate paint therebyachieving, on the one hand, a highly water repellenteffect, low chalking, universal applicability and easyprocessing, and on the other hand, a strong bindingwith the subsurface and mineral hardness with cor-respondingly lower fouling tendency.

Through the use of nano-scale silver particles, thewater-dilutable, anti-bacterial clear varnish fromLackfabrik Alfred Clouth of Offenbach am Main pre-vents the spread of bacteria and moulds and stopstheir respiration and metabolism. This protectswooden benches, door handles and stairway banis-ters from bacteria. The product was awarded theHessian Innovation Prize by The Hessian Ministry forthe Economy in 2004.

ccflex Wallpaper

(Source: Sylvia Leydecker,

100% interior)

Anti-bacterial

clear varnish

(Source: Lackfabrik

Alfred Clouth)

12

Möller Medical GmbH from Fulda offers bespokenano-dimensional coating systems for medical prod-ucts for the prevention of infections and forimproved hygiene. These provide dirt and waterrepellent properties, low friction coefficients andhigher scratch resistance. Wettable, conducting, iso-lating, decorative or ‘soft-feel’ layers can also be con-figured. Surfaces of steel, brass, copper, aluminium,glass and various plastics (e.g. PA, PMMA, PC, ABS)can be coated using the Sol-Gel process.

Using a combination of micro- and nano-structuredceramic surfaces in conjunction with the inclusion offunctional materials like nano-particles and polymersin a material matrix with aluminium, Seidel GmbH ofMarburg is currently betting on surface effects forcosmetic product packaging (cream jars, perfumestoppers). At its research centre for nanotechnologyin Fronhausen, the company, in a research coopera-tive that includes the Universities of Marburg,Giessen and Hamburg, is working on the systematicdevelopment of new surface coatings for aluminium,to dramatically improve its haptical, optical and func-tional qualities. It has been possible for example, toachieve a self-cleansing effect through micro struc-turing of an Eloxal surface and a subsequent treat-ment with a water repellent reagent. In addition tothis it should be possible to reduce the resourcesrequired for surface treatment techniques by usingnano-particles.

Cream jars with nano -

structured surfaces

(Source: Seidel GmbH)

Dirt and water repel-

lent hygienic coating

(Source: Möller

Medical GmbH)

With its duraAir® Dura Tufting GmbH of Fulda isoffering the first carpet anywhere in the world that,equipped with nano-particles, is capable of freeinginterior spaces from odours and damaging form -aldehydes. Household, animal or garbage and WCodour, as well as cigarette smoke and nicotine are allalso degraded. In this way the carpet provides ahealthier room climate.

The results achieved by the Fraunhofer IME between2007 and 2009 for photo-catalytically acting samplesurfaces primarily to demonstrate the potential forreducing nitrogen oxide concentrations in the airshow that the contaminant reducing effect can betransferred to concrete surfaces and paving stones.Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) attacks the mucous mem-branes even in very small concentrations. That is whyan upper limit was set for NO2 in the atmosphere.Nitrogen dioxide concentrations in the air also con-tribute towards smog formation. Photo-catalyticallyequipped concrete products can contribute to anitrogen oxide reduction of up to 70% (hourly value)in the presence of sunlight. F.C. Nüdling Betonele-mente GmbH + Co. KG of Fulda exploits this poten-tial with its contaminant reducing paving stones,which it markets under the name AirClean®. Theeffect is based on the photo-catalytically active tita-

nium oxide which is added in a process spe-cially developed for the production of pavingstones.

Experts consider an average yearly reduction of NO2

contamination in central European urban environ-ments of 20–30% to be achievable using photo-cat-alytic paving stones. This was confirmed in the open-air tests. A representative long-term experiment atF.C. Nüdling Betonelemente’s field testing facilitywas able to demonstrate a potential NO2 reductionof > 25% as a yearly value. On a heavily used federalhighway in Erfurt bordered by pavement of Air-Clean® paving stones it proved possible, on a spec-ified sampling day, to measure an NO2 reduction of20%.

Air-cleaning carpet

(Source: Dura

Tufting GmbH)

Air-cleaning concrete

(Source: F.C. Nüdling

Betonelemente GmbH)

Air-cleaning effect

of nano-titanium-

oxide-particles

(Source: F.C. Nüdling

Betonelemente GmbH)

AIRCLEAN® PAVING STONEAccelerate the degradation of toxic nitrogen oxides

organicpollutants

organicpollutants

up to 70%less NOx

13

Air-cleaning paving stones

(Source: F.C. Nüdling Betonelemente GmbH)

14

As one of Germany’s market leading producers ofwhite cement, Dyckerhoff of Wiesbaden also offersconstruction materials with titanium-oxide basedphoto-catalytic effects. The nitrogen oxide moleculesare converted to nitrate on the surface of concretebased surfaces. In this way the company’s particularoffering contributes to the pollution reduction.

The Makrolon® AR range from Bayer Sheet Europe(Darmstadt) comprises a selection of plastics withscratch and chemical proof surfaces based on nano-silicon-particles. The double sided coating increasesshelf-life, improves the UV-stability and reduceslong-term clouding and yellowing. The extremelydurable polycarbonate plates have a glass-like hard-ness combined with impact resistance of polycar-bonate.

Merck KGaA of Darmstadt has been particularlyactive during the past few years in the developmentof nano-technological products. For example, nanosized zinc particles have been used in wood treat-ment systems to protect furniture and parquet floor-ing from fading under the influence of solar radia-tion. Medicines have been developed that dissolveand act quicker in comparison with traditional prod-ucts. Of the greatest interest to architects anddesigners are developments in the optical sector.Nano-porous anti-glare layers of SiO2 prevent glasssurface reflections thereby increasing the trans-parency of protective glazing and the legibility ofdisplays. Because they increase efficiency of energygeneration, anti-reflective layers for flat glass sur-faces are used in solar panels. Schott manufacturesbrine-based interference layers for glass and plasticswith angle dependent transmission angle for lightradiation, for example to create optical effects forbuilding façades. The colours change dependingupon solar radiation, viewing point and background.

Left: scratch proof

poly carbonate plates

(Source: Bayer Sheet

Europe GmbH)

Right: soil improve-

ment substance with

water absorbing

properties and an

extraordinary

swelling capacity

(Source: Geohumus

International GmbH)

ConceptPrototypeMarket entryDistribution on the market

0–5 years

Corrosion preventive coatings Nano-membranes for drinking water production Artificial photosynthesis

Optimised batteries Low-cost extensive solar cells Resource sparing production through self-organisationWear protection for mechanical components Photocatalytic air and water purification

Exhaust gas catalytic converters Sensory environmental monitoring Micro fuel cells Nano-sensory networks

Self-cleaning façade elements Switchable glass façades Ultrastable lightweight construction materialsEnvironmentally compatible means of fire protection OLED lighting

Highly efficient heat and noise insulation Function optimised asphalt mixturesDirt-repellent antibacterial wall-paint Ceramic foils as a wall covering Corrosion resistant high-grade concrete

Super isolated thermal clothing Active movement support

Dirt-repellent textiles Clothing with integrated consumer electronics Monitoring of somatic functions

Antibacterial washing Ultra-light protective vestsUV protected fibres

Carbon Black Carbon nanotubes Self-healing materialsNano-phyllosilicatesPolymer dispersions Switchable adhesives Self-organising materialsDendrimers Ferrofluids Micronised materials Organic semi-conductors Highly-efficient hydrogen storage systemsAerogels

Nano silicic acid Quantum dots Artificial spider silkNano pigments NanoreactorsEasy to clean layers Polymer nano composites

Tyre fillers Magnetic electronic sensors Thin-film solar-cells for car roofs Switchable lacquersNano covered diesel injectors Nano composites as lightweight construction materials Adaptable outer shell

Anti-mist layers Polymer glazing Ferrofluid shock absorbersAnti-reflex layers for displays Nanoparticles as fuel additive

Scratch-proof lacquers Optimised fuel cells Thermo-electric waste heat recovery

Carbon nanotubes – Field emission displays

Hard-disks with GMR reading head “Millipede” memory Phase-change memory Spintronics DNA-Computing

Silicon electronics < 100 nm Molecular electronicsFerroelectric memory

Polymer electronics e.g. for radio tags Magnetic electronic memory

Ultra precision optics EUV lithography optics

Near field for nano analytics Quantum point reader

White LED Photonic crystals Optical microscope with nano resolution All optical computing

Scratch-proof lenses Quantum cryptographyOrganic Light Emitting Diodes (OLED)

Nano particles for agent transport Theranostics

Anti-microbial coatings Nano cancer therapy with (hyperthermia) Neuro-coupling Molecular early detection

Biosensors Tissue EngineeringNano-particles as marker substances Biocompatible implants

Nanoscale contrast agent Lab on a chip system Intelligent drug delivery systems

Environment/Energy

Constructional Engineering

Textiles

Chemistry

Automobile manufacture

Electronics

Optics Industry

Medicine

5–10 years 10 –15 years

Scented clothes Active thermal regulation

15

Application Options and Maturity Level of Nano-Technological Developments

(Source: Using Nano-Technologies in Architecture and Construction, Volume 7 of the Hessen-Nanotech Initiative Series)

16

Plastics reinforced with carrot fibres, wooden platesof corn cobs, paper made of apple juice productionwaste or algae-based foams: these are some impres-sive sounding examples of a group of materials thathave undergone a rapid development over the pasttwo or three years, namely biomaterials and sub-stances made of natural raw materials. In December2007 the Federal Ministry for the Environment,Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety calculatedgrowth rates of 25 to 30% for the bio-plastics sectoralone. A production capacity increase to 3 milliontonnes (currently 350,000 tonnes) is expected by2020.

With the first NUTEC in November 2008, a conven-tion in connection with an exhibition at the FrankfurtTrade Fair, the circle of companies with a high levelof environmental awareness created a first mouth-piece and underlined the necessity to think in termsof raw material cycles. The focus was on futuristicmaterials and production methods that enable theexploitation of raw materials within closed cycles. Forexample the first compostable clothes could beseen, the parts of which, such as the buttons orthreads, are based entirely on natural materials (e.g.bio-cotton) and bio-plastics (e.g. PHB or PLA). Inaddition, construction systems and solutions wereintroduced, that support the swapping and recyclingof defective or worn components (e.g. the cloth cov-ering of an office chair) or wooden structures forarchitecture, which need no glue or adhesives andcan be connected simply with dowels. The architec-tural trend of greening façades and roofs was under-lined through the introduction of moss mattingproducts. These are able to rid the air of health dam-aging fine dusts, a capability, which promises thegroup a successful market launch.

“The Frankfurt International has become themeeting point for pioneers, who want to freethemselves from raw material dependenciesand to base their economic success on materialand production changes in favour of environ-ment friendliness.” That is the summary of Prof.Dr. Michael Braungart (University of Lüneburg),who, under the banner of his ‘cradle-to-cradle’initiative, has been battling for years against thewasteful use of raw materials in the industrial-ized nations.

1.2 Natural and Bio-Materials

Maize cob boards –

lightweight palettes

of corn cobs

(Source: Kompetenz-

Zentrum Holz GmbH)

Moss mat products (Source: Xeroflor)

17

There are also interesting biomaterial-based productofferings in Hessen. Biowert Industrie GmbH runsgrass improvement facility in Brensbach (Forest ofOdes), based on the ‘green bio-refinery’ principle.Without the addition of solvents, damp, fibre richbiomass is transformed into an injection mouldablegranular composite consisting of up to 50-70% cel-lulose fibres and 25-50% polyethylene and/orpolypropylene. The grains are pourable and are suit-able for use in conjunction with any conventionalinjection moulding equipment to create cast formssuch as flush-mounted sockets, stacking crates,drinking beakers etc. These are 20% lighter in com-parison with components made of 100% polyethyl-ene and/or polypropylene. The facility can processup to 5000 tonnes of grass silage per year. Therequired energy is produced in a biogas plant. Inaddition to the bio-plastic sold under the nameAgriPlastBW, the company also sells the insulationmaterial AgriCellBW, which is based on natural bio-mass.

One of the first producers to include bio-plastics inits product catalogue, which, due to their outstandingmechanical qualities, compete well with traditionalartificial, petrochemical-based plastics, is the Neu-Isenberg based DuPont de Nemours (Germany)GmbH. The concern has already launched severalbrands: thermoplastic plastic (Sorona® EP), thermo-plastic polyester-elastomere (Hytrel® RS), plolyamide(Zytel® RS) and the packing plastics, Biomax® andSelar® VP.

Biomax® Strong, which was the first member of theproduct family to be introduced in 2007, is an impactresistance modifier for biodegradable Polylactate(PLA), which is manufactured from bio-based rawmaterials. This was followed by the market launch ofthe first plastic made of renewable raw materials soldunder the name Biomax® PTT 1100 (poly tremethylterephtalate). It is a polyester based on 35% maizestarch with a similar properties profile to those ofpolybutylene terephtalate (PBT) and polyethyleneterephtalate (PET). The raw material was specificallyoptimized for use in injection moulding, is easy todye, enables high gloss surfaces and is highly scratchresistant. In contrast to ABS or SAN no additionaloptimization using solvent containing substances isrequired.

Biological plastics

based products

(Source: DuPont de

Nemours GmbH)

Cellulose plastics

based products

(Source: Biowert

Industrie GmbH)

Selar® VP is a raw material from which one can man-ufacture breathable membranes. Areas of applica-tion are packaging for foodstuffs which needs to“breathe”, e.g. fresh fish, fruit and vegetables.Through the incorporation of a vegetable fatty acid,Selar® VP consists of up to 30% renewable rawmaterials. Fish and seafood can now be packed insealed packaging, whereas it is currently the casethat unsealed polyethylene packaging is used forthis. In case the fruit and vegetables Selar® VP is analternative to micro perforated membranes.

Moulded components, for container and case man-ufacture, made of plastic reinforced with naturalfibres have for some time now been part of theJacob Winter GmbH of Nauheim product range. Incollaboration with leading research institutes, thecompany has optimized the relevant process engi-neering over the past decade. It has mastered theprocessing of such natural fibres as hemp, sisal,albaca, kenef and flax using injection moulding,extrusion or compression moulding. The total offer-ing is marketed under the Green LinE brand. Apartfrom ecological reasons, the use of natural fibresmakes sense primarily because of the reducedweight of the moulded parts as well as their goodmechanical properties and similar production costs.Aside from synthetic plastics, 100% oil free biopoly-mers are used as for the matrix material, from whichbiodegradable products are fashioned.

One innovative develop still currently in the researchphase is the manufacture of polymethylacrylate(PMMA) from raw materials such as sugar, alcohol orfatty acids. PMMA is one of the classic polymer mate-rials with properties similar to those of glass, alreadymarketed under the name of ‘Plexiglas’ by OttoRöhm in 1933. It is made by the polymerization ofmethylmethacrylate (MMA). Scientists at the Univer-sity of Duisburg-Essen and the Helmholtz Centre forEnvironmental Research (UFZ) have discovered anenzyme in a bacterial culture, which could be usedto produce a precursor to MMA. Evonik took upthese results within the framework of a research proj-ect aimed at the biotechnological production ofMMA. MMA is the foundation monomer for acrylicglass, the production of which from sustainable rawmaterials will therefore be realized for the first time.In a few short years Evonik Röhm GmbH is plans tobe operating a pilot facility for the production of sev-

eral tonnes with a minimum impact on the envi-ronment. The discoverer of the process, Dr.

Thore Rohwerder of the University of Duis-burg-Essen was nominated in 2008 as

one of three candidates for the EvonikResearch Prize.

Bacteria for the production of precursor materials

for PMMA manufacture

(Source: Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research)

18

Products with natural fibres

(Source: Jakob Winter GmbH)

19

The polymers offered by Evonik Degussa GmbHunder the trade name of Vestamid® Terra are largelybased on vegetable fatty acids. Thus far the mainsource for the manufacture of polyamides is castoroil, the production of which can have no negativeimpact on the development of food prices. Vestmid®Terra DS is completely biologically based polyamide1010 with a property profile somewhere betweenthose of long chain high performing polyamidessuch as PA 12 and PA 1212 and the shorter chainedstandard polyamides PA 6 and PA 66. It is thereforeprimarily suitable for the production of glass fibrereinforced moulding compounds. Vestamid® TerraJS is a polyamide 610. It consists of about 60%renewable raw materials and has better technicalproperties than the standard polyamides PA 6 andPA 66. Evonik is currently carrying out research intoother polyamides of renewable raw materials drawnfrom other vegetable oils.

“With Vestamid® Terra we have a biologicallybased alternative for high value polyamide components as used in sports, electronics orautomobile manufacture”.

Dr. Joachim Leluschko (Director of the High Performance Polymers Division of Evonik)

Whilst for some businesses bio plastics represent thegreat market opportunities of the future other com-panies are attempting to reactivate the use of naturalmaterials no longer produced in Germany for manyyears. Close to the university town of Giessen, farm-ers located in Central Hessen have begun plantingbio-linen, i.e., native flax, under the auspices of thenatural fashion label hessnatur in conjunction withthe Institute for Biological Dynamic Research (IBDF)e.V.. The experiment, which began in 2005 was spon-sored over a period of four years. Now over 30% ofthe linen required for the company’s fashion collec-tion is grown in Hessen. Since 2009 this amounts to100 tonnes of flax straw over a cultivated area of c. 25 hectares.

From the beginning of 2005 to the end of 2008, scientists and engineers of the BMBF sponsoredresearch project BIOTEX oriented themselves onnatural structures in the development of fibre com-posite structures, with the goal of optimizing the fitof material properties to their intended stresses.Examples were trees, grasses or bones, which haveevolved to be almost perfectly adapted to externalstresses. Using nine methods of calculation based onobservations of biological growth, the developerswere able to optimize fibre-reinforcing geometriesto achieve as even a structural loading as possibleby homogenizing the stresses and the orientation ofthe fibres towards the main stress axes. The resultwere structures with optimized light constructionpotential for use in aircraft construction, automobileproduction, wind power farms, ship building and ingeneral mechanical construction. Hessian compa-nies involved were KSL Keilmann Sondermaschinen-bau GmbH and Dipl. Eng. H. Moldenhauer GmbH.

Bio-linen from Hessen (Source: Hess Natur Textilien GmbH)

20

Stone veneers that are as flexible as paper and havethe appearance of a masonry wall; products madeof wood-plastic composites (WPC) manufacturedusing the injection moulding technique and have awood surface due to the integration of wood parti-cles, or carbon fibre stone, a carbon fibre coveredrock materials that, because of its vibration free

behaviour, is particularly well suited to the construc-tion of rotor blades for wind power plants or sportsequipment: the field of composite and lightweightconstruction materials is becoming noticeably big-ger. Because the demands these days haveincreased to the point at which a single classicalmaterial cannot usually cover them. In addition,increasing product differentiation, new legal direc-tives and mounting environmental constraints areleading increasingly to the requirement for materialswith bespoke properties that can only be achievedthrough the combination of two or more materials.It is now possible to use textiles in architecture, tomake concrete permeable by light and shadow andpaper based aircraft seats. One also speaks in termsof composites, whose structure covers the disadvan-tageous properties of one material with the advan-tageous features of the other element of the com-posite. According to the spatial arrangement of thecomposite components one differentiates betweenpermeation-, layer-, particle- or fibre-composites.

1.3 Lightweight Construction Materials and Composites

Carbon fibre stone CFS

(Source: Techno

CarbonTechnologies)

Structural principles of composites

(Source: Manual for technical product design)

Structure of composites

Permeation compositesSoaked hollows

Sediment structure

Cover layers

Cover layers

Basis material

Compound

Compound

Fibre reinforcement

Reinforcement particles

Layer composite

Particle composites

Fibre composite

21

The fact that fibre reinforced plastics are becomingincreasingly important as an alternative to metallicmaterials in aircraft construction was shown by theFulda-based development service provider EDAG atthe 79th International Automobile Salon in Geneva in2009. For the first time ever, the designers and engi-neers used a new type of basalt fibre as a light-weight, high tensile, chemical and heat resistant andabove all 100% recyclable material in automobileconstruction in their concept car ‘Light-Car – OpenSource’ (see page 47).

Fibre reinforcements are not only being used as ahighly loadable lightweight construction compo-nents in aircraft and automobile construction butalso in architecture. In July 2008 for example, glassfibre reinforced plastic (GFK) was used for the con-struction of a road bridge in Friedberg (Hessen) forthe first time ever in Europe. The bridge is 27m longand 5m wide. The basic design is made up of twosteel girders upon which a road surface of glass fibrereinforced plastic was glued. The construction com-ponents were made by pultrusion, a process for thecreation of continuous fibre reinforced plastic pro-files with a glass fibre component of up to 60%. Thehigh durability of the new material and the quickassembly were the decisive factors in the choice ofmaterials.

The road surface is a c. 4cm thick layer of polymerconcrete, a mixture of epoxy resin and silicatespread. In order to achieve a long life span and lowmaintenance expenditure, bearings and lane cross-ings were omitted. The construction is the result of amulti-year collaboration between the Hessian StateOffice for Highways and Transport (HLSV) and theInstitute of Building Structures and Structural Design(ITKE) lead by Prof. Dr. Eng. Jan Knippers at the Uni-versity of Stuttgart.

HLSV President Wolfgang Scherz emphasisesthe fact that: “Fibre reinforced plastics will play a significant role in bridge construction. Whilstconventional reinforced concrete bridgesinvolve lengthy construction phases and just aslengthy obstructions to traffic, a constructionwas found in the Friedberg bridge that wasmostly pre-fabricated and able to be trans-ported to the construction site and raised as a complete facility.”

Bridge reinforced

with fibre-glass

(Source: Hessian

State Office for High-

ways and Transport)

22

High performance fibre composite materials basedon carbon fibres (CFK) are, at low densities,extremely resilient, rigid and resistant to corrosion.Because it is possible to tailor the properties profilesto specific application areas, even metal compo-nents in machine construction can be replaced byCFK. Other typical areas of application for CFKs arein the fields of sport, medical engineering or robot-ics, in which high strength combined with low weightis required. Schunk Kohlenstofftechnik GmbH(Giessen) is one Hessen-based company that offersraw materials for the production of CFK-fibre com-posite construction components. The company hascomprehensive know-how in terms of sizing, manu-facturing and the application of fibre compositematerials and can provide support with the targetedselection of reinforcement fibres and resin systemsas well as the with reference to the most appropriatemanufacturing engineering process.

The Advantages of High Performance Fibre Composites

a High degree of design freedoma Low weighta High strength and rigiditya Service temperature range of between -270oCto +2700oC depending on reinforcement material

a Very good damping propertiesa Variable heat expansiona Very good corrosion properties

Sandwich structures with high rigidity and pressureresistance and low density are an alternative to fibrereinforced composite materials for lightweight struc-tures. They are made of two cover layers and a corematerial. Plastic or paper honeycomb-boards, cellu-lar metals, lightweight timbers or polymerpolyurethane foams can all be used as the corematerial. Whilst the cover layers absorb externalstresses, the middle layer is responsible for diffusingsheer forces and holding the entire constructiontogether. That is why Eurocopter uses the high per-formance sandwich core foam material ROHACELL®for the core layer in the rotor blade construction,which is made by Evonik Röhm GmbH (Darmstadt)using polymethacrylimide (PMI). ROHACELL® standsout through its high weight-specific mechanicalproperties and heat resistance and remains intacteven under continuous dynamic loading. Becausethere is no material fatigue, the life span of rotorblades made of composite materials is higher by afactor of 4 or 5 compared with that of metal struc-tures of aluminium titanium. This means that an oper-ational life of 15,000 hours (40 years) can beachieved using sandwich structures. Apart from air-craft construction, ROHACELL® foam material coresare used in automobile manufacturing, wind powerfarms, medical engineering and boat building.

Rotor blades of the

Eurocopter, EC 135

Police (© Eurocopter

Patrick Penna)

High performance fibre composite materials

based on CFK

(Source: Schunk Kohlenstofftechnik GmbH)

23

One material that is well known to science but notyet used often in industrial contexts as a sandwichcore material for the manufacturer of lightweightconstruction components for the automobile,machine tool or construction industries is metallic orceramic hollow sphere structures as offered by GlattGruppe (Wiesbaden, Binzen, Dresden). They aremade of high strength hollow spheres and thereforeprovide the possibility of a flexible alignment for fill-ing free mould geometries. EPS spheres are pro-duced using a fluidized bed process with a suspen-sion of metal/ceramic powder, binding agent andwater to coat them prior to being heated. The plasticevaporates leaving hollow spheres of a metallic orceramic material, which can be pressed into amould, sintered and/or glued together. As a matterof principle all sinterable materials can bemanipulated so that it is possible to configurea broad properties profile. This can bematched to a given application by adjustingthe thickness and porosity of the shell as wellas the geometry of the mould. Because of thehigh porosity and the many surfaces radiatingupon one another, the thermal conductanceproperties of hollow sphere structures are farlower than those of the full material. Very hightemperatures reduce this to a value of 5%.For this reason hollow sphere structures arewell suited as heat shields in kiln engineering.Sound and vibration damping properties andthe high internal surface area make theminteresting as crash absorbers, catalyser ele-ments, sound dampers or lightweight con-struction stiffening elements.

The potential of foam structures for lightweight con-struction have been known for years. Recently how-ever efforts seem to have increased towards makingthese actually available for use in a broad-spectrumindustrial context. To this end new manufacturingprocesses have been developed for metal andceramic sponges in addition to which, novel foamsof paper and wood have been introduced to the mar-ket. One of these foam materials is sold under thename Airmaxx® and was developed between BASFand Nolte Holzwerkstoff GmbH as an alternative tochipboard within the framework of the ‘Lighter Tim-ber Materials for International Furniture Production’project. The material is made of wood chips, a foam-ing polymer and a binding agent. Thus it weighs 30%less than the chip board currently used today.

Hollow sphere structure as crash

absorber with stabilising prop-

erties in the event of a crash

(Source: hollomet GmbH)

Manufacturing process of hollow structures (Source: hollomet GmbH)

Polystyrene EPS Coating

Shaping F

Hollow sphere structures Hollow structures

Heat treatment (debinding and sintering)

Green spheres

24

Next to lightweight construction applications foamstructures are also used in sound absorbing com-posite boards. Resopal of Groß-Umstadt for exam-ple sells a plate fabric under the name of resopal®-A2coustic with a blown glass core flanked by hole-boards. Noise gets lost in the fine pore-structure ofthe inflated recycled glass granules, which are pressmoulded together with an anorganic binding sub-stance.

Another future market for lightweight constructionmaterials are technical textiles. The ‘Techtextil’ insti-gated by the Frankfurt Trade Fair in June 2009, forthe 13th time now, which ended with a record num-ber of visitors, showed how important this materialsgroup has become. Now that the traditional textileindustry has almost completely disappeared fromEurope due to competition from Asia, an increasingimportance of textile fibres for technical areas hasbeen discernable for a number of years. For exampleturnover in technical textiles has grown from 17% to45% of the total textile industry over the pastdecade. German companies occupy one of the lead-ing technical positions in this market space. Predic-tions are based on the assumption that the achieve-ment potential of the West’s textile industry will shifttowards greater functionality.

Thus technical textiles today have special mechani-cal and weather resistant qualities that make themsuitable for use in architecture and vehicle manufac-ture. With its 2009 concept study, ‘GINA’, BMW pre-sented an initial experiment in the use of textiles inbodywork design. The shell consists of stabilisingsupport meshes and a water repelling hybrid textilethat is resistant to both high and low temperatures.The objective: are car that looks like it has been castin a single mould, with functional elements that onlybecome visible when they are needed. If the driverswitches on the lights, the headlamps open like eye-lids. If GINA needs to be cooled down the bonnetmaterial moves to the side. The textile skin also opti-mises the cost structure as the bodywork is onlymade of four instead of ten parts, which can bestretched tightly around the aluminium superstruc-ture in less than two hours.

Above: Airmaxx

(Source: Nolte Holz -

werkstoffe GmbH)

Low: Resopal plate

with blown glass core

(Source: Resopal

GmbH)

GINA Textiles in

vehicle construction

(Source: BMW)

25

In 2009 researchers at the Technical University ofDarmstadt (Fluid Systems Engineering Faculty)exhibited a fish robot at the Hannover Trade Fair,with a flexible outer skin of latex: the bionic fishrobot, ‘Smoky’. It is used to study the fluid mechanicsof a body wriggling in a fish-like manner as well asthe forward propulsion force it generates and itseffective range. The objective is to develop a drivesystem for water vehicles with environment protect-ing characteristics in terms of waterside structuresand lake and sea bottoms or riverbeds, plant growthand fish stocks. The scientists derived the shape ofthe robot from the gilthead sea bream. The fish robothas a 1.5m long flexible backbone with eight actua-tors. A computer guides the wriggly body move-ments through the water.

The goal of the EU-sponsored joint research project‘Contex-T’ (8/2006-8/2010) in which the FrankfurtTrade Fair organisation is involved, is to qualify tex-tiles as high-tech materials for the constructionindustry and to develop the value chain of textilearchitecture for future applications. Since August2006, 30 partners from 10 countries have beenattempting to exhaust the innovative potential oftechnical textiles in architecture and to obtaininsights for other areas of technical textile applica-tion (e.g. protective clothing, packaging, fibre rein-forced construction components). Shorter construc-tion times, a long life span and low costs are the fac-tors that will lead to an increased use of textiles inarchitecture. Thus, among other things, attempts arebeing undertaken to develop radically new conceptsfor multi-functional technical textiles using nano-technologically structured materials.

“Contemporary architecture and modern designare increasingly bound in to dynamic processes.Textiles are ideally suited materials in particularfor temporary surfaces and flowing forms”, saysthe Berlin architect, Jürgen Mayer H.

Right: Lounge land-

scape in spacer fabric

(Source: The Offenbach

College of Design)

Left: Skeleton of fish

robot “Smoky”

(Source: TU Darmstadt

Bernhard Köhler,

Qualified Biologist

Britta Abé, Qualified

Engineer (FH)

Bathing ship in

Berlin with textile

cover in winter

(Source: Bathing

ship Berlin)

26

Music is downloaded via the internet; a plane ticketis issued in email form. With the new electronicmedia, the digital flows of finance, the ubiquitousavailability of information, it appears that our societyhas moved closer to the digitalisation of our productworld so long prophesised by trend researchers – aproduct world that emerges without any hapticobjectification and without materialisation. At thesame time we expect that the products we use in oureveryday lives will satisfy our desires and needs inan individualised and autonomous manner. Clothingshould warm or cool down the wearer depending onthe ambient temperature, or release fragrances asrequired or alter its shape in response to our emo-tions. Wallpaper changes colour when we touch it,the concrete floor projects a floral pattern when wetand dents in our car’s bodywork disappear by them-selves, because the material has developed a dis-tinct shape-orientated memory.

Materials belonging to the next generation not onlyretain traditional mechanical properties, they alsohave a virtual “smart” aspect because they are intel-ligent. They possess indivisible additional functionsthat only become apparent when actually utilised bythe user. It thus appears that the long revised under-standing of materiality together with the virtual de-materialisation of our product world are being revo-lutionised by a new material culture. Within the con-text of this development, the “creative industries”, i.e.designers and architects, is assuming a significantrole in the development process. For who else cangive a purposeful application to an (invisible) func-tion and bring this to the perspective of the user.Electro-active polymers for forming car seats or forthe flattened musculature of airships, laminated glaz-ing with thermo-tropic properties, which canreversibly change their transparency and reflectivecharacteristics depending on the incidence of lightor self-healing materials, which autonomously rectifycracks in a material.

1.4 Reactive and Smart Materials

Left:

Floral concrete

(Source: Frederik

Molenschot)

Rechts:

Thermochrome Tapete

(Quelle: Zane Berzina)

27

“Electroactive polymers can adapt their intelli-gent design to the human body. Their use in carseats yields great potentials which will revolu-tionise our understanding of mobility.”Dipl.-Ing. Daniel Jarr, TU Hamburg-Harburg

Whereas the focus of researchers five years ago pri-marily lay on material processing, we appear to becurrently moving closer to the vision of ‘customisedmaterials‘ through development activities in relationto material with precisely determinable characteris-tics that can react to the environment. First and fore-most, radically diverging individual demands andnew environmental regulations sometimes make itnecessary to have materials that can reconcile con-tradictory properties. The conception of multifunc-tional materials with reactive characteristics hasbecome an important focal area within just a veryshort time, with the following distinctions beingapparent:

Shape-memory materials

Shape-memory alloys or plastics have the ability torecollect their initial geometry and store shape-related information within their molecular structure.At low temperatures shape-memory alloys can beplastically deformed. Once heated above the trans-formation temperature of the structure, they returnto their original form. They can for example by usedin medical technology to produce surgical cables.Interior design is already able to employ textiles withinterwoven threads made from shape-memory alloywith darkening and screening functions. With shape-memory plastics the recollection of the originalshape is stimulated through the application of heat.Model applications in this context include visco-elas-tic polyurethane foams for mattresses or carpetedsurfaces.

Electro-active poly-

mer acting as surface

layer muscle

(Source: EMPA aeroix)

28

Piezoelectric materials

The importance of piezoelectric materials for variousapplications has increased in recent years. Itdescribes the creation of an electrical field throughthe deformation of certain material surfaces.Although discovered back in 1880 it is only throughthe promulgation of new legislation and environ-mental regulations that the demand for materialswith piezo electrical qualities has increased. Relatedapplications include vibration damping and airbagcontrols and there are other fundamentally impor-tant areas such as medical diagnostics and materialtesting. Piezo electrical polymer films are used aslarge-area sensors or as flat profile loudspeakers.They are used in construction, mounted under floorsto detect the movement of people.

Electro-active polymers

Electro-active plastics are still a very new class ofworking material. This group encompasses polymersor composites of polymer materials, the volume ofwhich changes upon application of a voltage, i.e.they expand or contract. Scientists from across theworld for example are working on the vision of anartificial muscle or car seats with respond to thebody shape while others are seeking to change theshape and properties of an aircraft during flightthrough the use of “morphing materials”. Differentobjectives are being pursued in the form of softdielectric elastomers (DE) or ionic polymer metalcomposites (IPMC).

Left:

Carpet made from

memory foam

(Source: kymo GmbH)

Right:

Shape memory yarn

in textile and fashion

design

(Source: Max Schäth,

UDK Berlin)

Structure of a piezo element Structure of an IPMC

Pressure, shock or jolt

Negative charge

Positive charge

Crystal

Metal

Alternating voltage

High-voltage flashover

PolymerElectrodes

Out In

29

Photo, thermo and electrochrome materials

These materials react to light, heat or electrical volt-age, changing their colour and transparency. Theycan be found in numerous applications such as fash-ion, e-paper or the design of magazines and wallpa-per. Electrochrome mirrors will be used as self-dim-ming rear-view mirrors in the car industry. Ther-mochrome laminated glass changes the degree towhich it admits sunlight upon the incidence of light.This capacity enables glass façades to automaticallyadjust themselves to the climatic conditions.Whereas sunlight is deflected during summer, inwinter it is admitted to the interior through the crys-tal-clear transparency of the glass.

Self-healing materials

The development of self-healing materials is one ofthe current interesting research fields, because thesematerials enable bicycle wheel tubes, boot hulls andoffshore wind generators to have a longer lifetime.A self-healing bio-concrete is currently being devel-oped at the Delft University of Technology, which willrepair cracks after hardening. Dampness penetratinggaps will trigger micro-organisms to produce cal-cium oxide. The yeast extract and peptone requiredfor this process are added to the concrete at the out-set. Another example is that of the fluid-filled nanos-pheres developed by Fraunhofer IPA for integrationinto the galvanised coating of metal chassis ele-ments. If the surface is damaged by a fissure, thesespheres burst open releasing the liquid carrying var-ious chemicals to protect the material from oxidationand rust. These nanospheres can also be used tocarry lubricants to increase the short-term life of ball-bearings, or they may even contain two-componentadhesive that seal the cracks in boat hulls withoutany external involvement.

Thermochrome glass facade

(Source: Fraunhofer IAP)

30

Electro and magneto-rheological liquids

These liquids react to the introduction of an electri-cal or magnetic field through the direct and univer-sally adjustable setting of viscosity between liquidand solid. Polarisable micro particles within the non-conductible carrier fluid become aligned under theinfluence of electrical or magnetic fields and formchains; the viscosity of the fluid is thereby increased.This collapses once the field is removed; fluidity isagain restored. Application areas for these intelli-gent fluids include vibration dampers (absorbers) inclutches, brakes, engine mounts and controllablevalves. Magneto-rheologic fluids can also be used inthe construction of earthquake-proof buildings andbridges.

Fludicon GmbH based in Darmstadt specialises inthe development and marketing of industrial prod-ucts and systems the function of which is based onelectro-rheologic fluids (ERF). Sample productsinclude dampers, clutches and actuators. Car shockabsorbers can benefit from the comfort and safetyprovided by ERF. This is because the absorptioneffect can be adjusted to the relevant conditionswithin a fraction of a second. The eRRide® chassiswith Fludicon shock absorbers can be optimallyadjusted in alignment with speed and the road sur-face conditions. This results in reduced fuel con-sumption due to the decrease in body movement aswell as longer tyre lifetimes because of the evennessof the distribution of contact with the carriageway.Fitness equipment can also benefit in this context.The conventional weights stack is replaced in thisinstance by an electro-rheologic damper whichenables the training program to be individually tai-lored to the needs of the particular sportsperson.Fludicon GmbH is the commercial supplier of anelectro-rheological fluid RheOil®, unique anywherein the world. Numerous intellectual property rightssecure the feasibility of further development in co-operation with industrial and scientific partners andthe subsequent transfer into marketable products. In2009 Fludicon GmbH was the recipient of the Euro-pean Automotive Advanced Suspension Technolo-gies Excellence in Research Award for its efforts indeveloping shock absorbing systems.

Functionality of electro-

rheological fluids

(Source: Fludicon GmbH)

Electro-rheologic fitness device

(Source: Fludicon GmbH)

31

The solar bags produced by Berlin-based SunloadGmbH are in no way a gimmick, but instead repre-sent a trend that can be currently detected in numer-ous applications: power generating, optical as wellas energy-efficient materials, which aid us in usingour energy resources carefully. Stitched-in thin-filmsolar cells found in bags, rucksacks and suitcasesgenerate energy for mobile applications, afterglowmaterials increase safety in underpasses and lifts in the event of power blackouts. Light-conductingarchitectural façades with a high level of heat insula-tion, OLED for the manufacture of extremely flat andenergy-efficient displays or phase changing materi-als, which are integrated into construction materialsin order to significantly reduce the cost of interior cli-mate control: all these are examples of the trendtowards the development of materials which con-centrated on one primary concern – the desire to useenergy more carefully.

Thin film solar cells

Now that conventional solar cells with a siliciumwafer base are used in a wide range of applications,thin-film technology represents the next develop-ment step in relation to solar modules. What we aretalking about here are flexible solar cells which are100 times thinner than the conventional wafer-basedones. While the initial efforts at producing thin filmsolar cells in the 1990s were based on vapour dep-osition techniques, various printing techniques arenow used in production to achieve layers less thantwo millimetres thick. The physical properties andthe effectiveness of the new generation of thin filmsolar cells are differentiated according to the mate-rials used for the semi-conductors and substrates aswell as the selected printing technique and the thick-ness of the layers. Suitable semi-conductor materialsinclude not only silicium gallium arsenide (GaAs) butcadmium telluride (CdTe) and micro-crystallised sili-cium. A whole range of manufacturers currentlypromise good results through the use mainly of cop-per indium (gallium)-sulphuric-selenium compounds(CIGS solar cells).

According to the EU Commission there are some200 companies in Europe currently active in thedevelopment and production of thin film solar cells.One such example is that of the scientists and engi-neers working with Evonik-Projekthaus FunctionalFilms & Surfaces in Hanau-Wolfgang to producepolymer film coatings using nano and micro-scalecoating systems with the objective of reducing theweight and costs of solar cells and to make thin filmtechnology marketable.

1.5 Optical and Energy Efficient Materials

Practical mobile application

of solar films.

(Source: Sunload GmbH)

Afterglow metal

sheets application

(Source: Novelis

Deutschland GmbH)

32

Solar Decathlon 2009

The Solar Decathlon Prize is awarded by the US Min-istry for Energy and is regarded as the unofficialworld championships of company working in thesolar industry. Under the guidance of Prof. ManfredHegger, in 2009 students from TU Darmstadt 2009again won the prize following their previous successin 2007. Both institutions produce more energy thanthey require due to the clever design and ultra-mod-ern technology. The tremendous success underlinesGermany's position as a leader in energy-efficientconstruction. The energy gained is used by a heatingpump for heating and cooling. One new develop-ment is the cooling ceiling, which was equipped withphase change materials (PCMs).

Phase change materials

One of the most interesting examples of materialsthat are transformed by energy are the so-calledphase change materials (PCM). These have alreadybeen in use for some time as hand and pocket warm-ers. In 2009 researchers from Fraunhofer ISE anddevelopers at BASF added new possible applica-tions to the range developing PCM products for theconstruction industry. The basis here are microscop-ically small synthetic spheres marketed under thebrand name Micronal®, consisting of a core made ofwax which forms a carrier medium. When the tem-perature increases heat is absorbed once the waxhas melted, and this will be released back into theenvironment when the temperature decreases again.PCM can be integrated in a non-obvious fashion intodiverse construction materials, such as wall plasteror construction slabs – it can then positively used toinfluence the climate of the environs. The cost of air-conditioning systems is greatly reduced, enablingthe supplementary costs of the construction materialto be recouped within just five years. PCM productsfor the construction industry were nominated for theDeutscher Zukunftspreis in 2009.

1st wave

Silicium/wafer-based cells

2nd wave

Thin film solar cells (vacuum technology)

3rd wave

Printed thin film solar cells

Process: Silicium wafer processing

Vacuum methods (e.g. sputtering)

Roll-to-roll printing techniques

Process control: Fragile wafers Narrow process window Integrated repro -ducibility (bottom-upnanotechnology)

Process yield: Robust Vulnerable Robust

Prop. Materialconsumption:

30% 30–60% Over 97%

Manufacturing process for

thin film solar cells

Submission by TU Darmstadt to Solar Decathlon 2009

Microscope image of Micronal® (Source: BASF)

33

Desertec Industrial Initiative

October 2009 saw the commencement of a uniqueindustrial initiative with the aim of achieving a reli-able, sustainable and climate-friendly supply ofenergy from the Middle East and North Africa(MENA). Twelve companies – with Deutsche Bankand Schott Solar AG numbered among them – havecome together to form the Desertec Industrial Initia-tive (DII) GmbH. The long-term objective is to usesolar and wind power plants based in the deserts ofNorth Africa to generate a significant part of thepower needs for the MENA Region and 15% of theEuropean power requirement. Following the estab-lishment of the requisite political, economic andtechnical parameters, the first power plants areplanned for construction as early as 2015. The totalinvestment to 2050 is estimated to be in the regionof 400 billion Euro.

Solar thermal power plants have already beendeployed for more than twenty years in Spain andthe USA. The core element of each plant is thereceiver, which is located in the focal line of agroove-shaped parabolic mirror. The solar radiationis collected heating the formal oil flowing in thereceiver up to temperatures of between 350-400 °C.This is then pumped to the generating unit creatingsteam, which ultimately drives the turbines of thepower plant. Schott Solar AG has developed a spe-cial solution for these requirements. The Schottreceiver consists of a specially coated absorptionpipe made from metal, which is embedded in a vac-uum-tight glass tube. Just a few hundred nanome-tres thick the coating of the absorber is designed toaccommodate particularly wide-ranging tempera-ture fluctuations, thereby ensuring that a given solar-thermal plant can be commercially operated for atleast twenty years. In response to the differingexpansion coefficients of glass and metal, Schott hasdeveloped a special type of glass which possessesthe same thermal expansion properties as the metal.A special construction design was developed tobind the two materials. A bellow compensates forthe differing expansion lengths of the glass hull andabsorber pipe so that the two materials can be con-nected together in a tension-free manner.

Desertec Projekt

Solar thermal power plant

(Source: Schott)

34

Light-conducting building façades

Light-conducting façades are currently one of themost significant development areas in architectureand the construction industry. With their transparent,heat-insulation and noise-dampening properties, itis Aerogele products that have proven especiallysuccessful for these kinds of applications, due totheir ability to remain extremely airtight with largeenclosed volumes of air. Cabot Nanogel GmbHbased in the Industriepark Frankfurt-Höchst manu-factures Nanogel®, a highly porous translucent silicaAerogel with water-repellent, mould-resistant quali-ties. This is now used by the specialist glass-makerOkalux in the inter-pane cavity of its Okagel® insu-lating glass for energy-efficient applications in muse-ums, sports centres and event arenas. It exhibitsremarkable U-valves irrespective of the angle ofmounting, unlike conventional air or gas-filled insu-lating glass. With a nanogel intermediate layer of 60mm, the U-valve is actually less than 0.3 W/m2K,thereby satisfying the requirements of a low-energybuilding. Integrated into thin wall constructions,Nanogel® provides a high level of thermal insulationcombined with outstanding background brightness.

Bayer Sheet Europe (Darmstadt) markets polycar-bonate transparent sheets filled with Nanogel® thatboast extreme thermal insulation, a high level of lightpermeability and optimal light diffusion in the formof ceiling glazing. With a Ug-value of 1.0 W/m2K,when installed overhead they have the same insula-tion characteristics as triple glazing. The utilisationcharacteristics are underpinned with an extra thickexterior layer, optimised UV protection and translu-cent panels. The product is marketed under theMakrolon® Ambient label.

Nanogel insulation in

transparent panels

(Source: Bayer Sheet

Europe GmbH)

Nanogel insulation in glass

(Source: Okalux GmbH)

35

OLED

The next generation of light diodes, known asOLEDs (organic light emitting diodes), for the man-ufacture of extremely thin displays and flat-screens,can also be attributed to the nanotechnology sector.This is because the construction is comprised of sev-eral thin functional layers, some of which are just 100nanometres thick. The result is a flexible luminousfilm with a radiation angle of 170°. Possible uses aselectronic paper or luminescent wallpaper havealready been envisaged. The tremendous invest-ments made in research and development duringthe last ten years has resulted in considerableadvances in performance and stability, due not leastto the efforts of companies such as the Darmstadt-based Merck KGaA with its OLED activities. Onestudy undertaken by an American market researchinstitution estimates the total market volume to bearound 15.5 billion US dollars. The primary returnsgained from OLEDs today are in the area of produc-ing small displays in mobile devices such as MP3players and mobile phones; the revenue generatedhere is already in the region of 1.3 billion US dollars.It is estimated that by 2014 this will rise to 7.1 billionUS dollars in the mobile sector and approximately 6billion US dollars in the TV monitor sector. It is fore-casted that 2.8 million OLED televisions will be soldin 2013.

It was due to this large potential that Merck joinedwith well-known partners in the worlds of industryand science to launch the “New materials for OLEDs”-Project (NEMO). The object of this project financedby the Federal Ministry for Education and Research(BMBF) is the development of innovative solublematerials for applications in large-area componentsfor OLEDs, such as may be found in televisions, elec-tronic road signs and lighting systems.

OLED lamp

(Source: Ingo Maurer)

Structure of an OLED

(Source: F. Erler;

N. Seidler)

Metal cathode2-10 V DC

Anode

Electron transport layer

Organic emitter

Hole transport layer

Light output

Glass substrate

36

“The integration of innovative materials in massproduced applications is an extremely difficultbusiness, which is only feasible if large playersget involved. Otherwise experience shows thatthey will remain isolated in top-priced high-endniche applications.”

Jose Delhaes, Design Planet, Guest Professor,The Offenbach College of Design

Although the number of material innovations andtechnologies being processed is increasing, it alwaystakes a long time until a new material becomes usedin a mass product. This of course is due to thelengthy development work required to make a mate-rial-specific function viable for a specific application.But if we look at the process by which marketablesolutions for the quality profile of certain materialsare identified in this country, some deficits becomeapparent which impede the transfer of technicalmaterial innovations into the marketplace.

One problem is clear in relation to the education ofmaterial scientists, which still lacks adequate inter-disciplinary focus. The emphasis here is on theteaching of technological skills, which are doubt -lessly required for the development of material-spe-cific functionalities. But the identification of novelapplications in new areas and working together withother disciplines demands that engineers have otherabilities, which are usually not explored adequatelyduring training and degree courses.

Thus we have the situation where material and appli-cation developments take place sequentially in iso-lation from one another. Connections to future appli-cation scenarios (so important for material develop-ment) are usually not identified or formulated intime, and are only taken into consideration when thematerial is revised. It is precisely these connectionswhich can give a company an advantage over itscompetitors and its survival in the marketplace. Sowe see in the study “Global Innovation 1000”, per-formed by the consultants of Booz Allen Hamilton in2006, the conclusion that an early strategic focus on

2 The Gap between Material Innovations andthe Market – How can it be closed?

Model application for

Bayer polycarbonate

material

(Source: Rinspeed)

37

R&D activities in the market and towards customerbenefit will increase the success probability of newdevelopments and, parallel to the functional materialtechnology, the link to practical uses should also bedeveloped in the form of model applications.

This is fundamentally dependent on one thing – theintegration of people from the creative industry, i.e.designers and architects into the developmentprocess at a very early stage, who, due to their train-ing, can potentially make crucial connections for thefuture application contexts of material innovations.People working in both the creative and technicaldisciplines should be trained in inter-disciplinarydevelopment, moreover, and be able to bring therequisite communication skills to the table. Thiscould prevent problems in working partnershipsfrom arising and facilitate inter-disciplinary workingin open innovation processes over and beyond theboundaries of the enterprise.

Bayer Material-Science pursues a functional modelwith its Creative Center. Since 2004 future applica-tions have been derived there from new userrequirements, which give transparency to the devel-opment requirement for new materials and tech-nologies across various disciplines. The Robotics,Logistics, the Construction Industry scouting fieldsand the optical and light areas future scenarios aredeveloped with the participation of designers, archi-tects, trend researchers and technologists to serveas the bases for the derivation of model markets andfor the visualisation of new production concepts forexisting material solutions or future material devel-opments.

Model application

for afterglow rock

particles

(Source: Ambient

Glow Technology)

LED-illuminated

Bayer tower in

Leverkusen

(Source: Bayer

MaterialScience)

38

The EcoCommercial Building (ECB) Program is anexample of how such an analysis can lead to thedevelopment of new innovative business models.This program was established by the chemical groupas a response to the increasing energy-savingrequirements in the construction sector and in par-ticular to the economic development in emergingeconomies such as India and China and the associ-ated imminent improvement in life standards thatthis will bring. Through an integral planning processextending from idea generation and conception tothe implementation of product and system solutionsending with certification, the aim is the optimumadaptation of building constructions to the locallyprevailing climate conditions in order to enableenergy-efficient and economic construction with aneutral impact on the climate. The potential isindeed enormous given that one-third of globalgreenhouse emissions is caused by buildings. Fur-thermore, some 40% of the final energy consump-tion throughout the world is due to the constructionand operation of buildings. In relation to industrialbuildings in particular, there is currently a trendtowards standard solutions that demand a highamount of energy.

Bayer MaterialScience is therefore combining withpartners in the construction sector to realise future-orientated model projects for various climate zones.A cross-sector knowledge platform is being estab-lished to provide architects and designers, the con-struction materials industry and construction compa-nies with access to the knowledge gained in relationto building and running right up to the analysis ofthe respective operation situation. The use of renew-able energies such as solar energy for the genera-tion of power and geo and solar thermals for heatingform part of the focus as does the development ofsuitable heat insulation for building shells in orderto satisfy the requirements for zero emissions build-ings. Insulation materials with a polyurethane hardfoam base, water-based raw materials for paintingsystems, photovoltaic modules with thermoplasticpolyurethanes, fibre-reinforced construction ele-ments with a fibre glass concentration of up to 80%,insulation for refrigerators and freezers or applica-tions in lightweight vehicle construction are justsome of the examples where existing material solu-tions are already been used. One of the partners inthis network is Bayer Sheet Europe based in Darm-stadt. This Bayer subsidiary markets polymer sheetmaterial in diverse versions for use in façadecladding, roofing and glazing.

Model project – BMS

Innovation Centre

in Diegem, Belgium

(Source: Bayer

MaterialScience)

39

“The crucial step for energy-efficient, economicand well designed construction is a holisticapproach incorporating the intelligent linking of the various disciplines: an integral planningprocess is based on a network of experts.”

Dr. Thomas Braig, Head of The EcoCommercialBuilding Program in the EMEA region Europe,Middle East, Africa

Evonik Industries with its subsidiaries, EvonikDegussa GmbH (Frankfurt) and Evonik Röhm GmbH(Darmstadt), is also pursuing a similar objective withits strategic research and development unit, Creavis,which involves a focus on identifying new marketsfor new developments. In “science-to-business cen-tres” all the disciplines involved in the value creationchain are including in examining high risk futureissues, with this process ranging right across fromthe basic research to the product development tothe pilot production. The aim is the accelerateddevelopment of new businesses right up to the pro-duction of finished systems for end users and thetransfer of fundamental results into the market. Theindividual areas actively work in an integrated, openand dynamic corporate culture. Furthermore, poten-tial target customers are involved in the develop-ment process, in order to achieve a better under-standing of the requirements in future markets andof new products and in order to significantly reducethe timeframe from invention to market viabilitywhen compared to conventional methods.

Medium risk research issues that overarch businessareas are worked out in “project houses”.Researchers from the business areas involved in theproject house come together for a period of threeyears. One such example is the Systemintegrationproject house that was launched on 1st January 2009in Hanau-Wolfgang. The objective here is to developthe respective product with the requisite processingtechnique and to align the two together in such away that the customer can integrate the system intoits current production process simply and perfectly.This comprehensive approach is intended to speedup the development process, hone additional skillsalong the entire value creation chain and facilitatethe market launch of new products. The issues arenumerous and for example include “push-buttonbonding” for automotive and industrial applicationsor the production of nano fibres for filtration appli-cations. Alongside the technical aspects, new busi-ness and marketing models are also being devel-oped and implemented. In order to achieve an opti-mum result, the group is deploying all the necessarydisciplines – from architects to natural scientists topower plant engineers. The industrial player is pro-viding about 15% of the annual budget of 300 mil-lion Euro for research and development in relationto overarching research projects.

The interaction between market, applications andtechnology development is therefore giving rise toimpulses and information both in Bayer Material -Science’s Creative Center as well as Evonik’s Creavisto close the gaps between material innovation andthe market and to develop products with a low levelof innovation risk. Functional aspects in this contextrequire the modelled development of new markets,whereas user expectations of future scenarios influ-ence the technological innovation process. Materialinnovations are aligned towards market and cus-tomer requirements at any early stage with the inclu-sion of people from diverse disciplines. Both internaland external resources are involved.

40

Providing the potential is focused upon, the newmaterial developments for designer and architectsare highlights within the marketplace and at thesame time there is an analysis of the difficulties thatGerman companies in particular have in relation totransforming new technologies into marketableproducts, there can be no plausible justification forthe question about the reasons for the all too seldomintegration of creative professionals into the innova-tion process at any early stage.

The possible explanations are numerous. One initialhurdle to the working partnership between technol-ogists and creative professionals arises where themajority of decision-makers in the industrial contextprimarily view the services of designers and archi-tects as the opportunity for aesthetic qualities to beenhanced and which is a phase that takes place afterthe technical development process has been com-pleted. But current studies clearly underline thevalue of designers for successful product develop-ment and of architects for the transfer of innovativematerials from alien sectors into the constructionindustry. For example, Dominique Perrault in the1990s was one of the first architects to use wire meshthereby creating a wholly new market. Furthermore,in the industrial context designers, in particular, actas significant sources of inspiration within the prod-uct development process, in that apart from gener-ating product ideas they ever more frequently alsodeliver methods for the solution of technical con-struction problems. And in recent times architectshave become established in developing materialsand processing techniques themselves. Examples inthis context include translucent concrete developedby the Hungarian architect, Áron Losonczi, in part-nership with Schott in 2004 or the free internal high-pressure forming technique (German abbreviation –FIDU) by the Polish architect Oscar Zieta at the ETHZürich.

3 Creative Professionals as Partners. TargetedDeployment of Designers and Architects.What are the Strengths of the Creative Professionals in the Process?

Left:

Translucent concrete

(Source:Áron Losonczi)

Right:

Freely blown metal forms

(Source: Oscar Zieta)

Velodrome, Berlin

(Source: Velomax

Berlin; Photo Werner

Huthmacher; Architect:

Dominique Perrault)

41

It is precisely in connection with material-intensivedevelopments that designers and architects ensurethe communication of the innovative substance andthe quality of a product and who establish the recog-nisability and delineation of the portfolio in the mar-ket. One very vivid example (see too the Success Sto-ries, page 56) is the work of the interior designerSylvia Leydecker for Evonik Degussa GmbH duringthe development of ccflex stardust®, with which shemade the properties of a wall covering finished witha ceramic nano coating (water-repellent, UV-resis-tant, fire-resistant) visible to the user from outside.

“We pursued three core objectives during thisdevelopment from 2003 to 2007: ccflex had tobe able to cope with applications in heavilyused wet areas. It also had to be easily workablefor the tradesman and finally, the end customerhad to receive an emotional impulse.”

Dr. Frank Weinelt, Evonik

It is in this context that designers and architects areclearly to be regarded as essential partners in mate-rials-based innovation processes and should there-fore be linked as strategic components with the cen-tral areas of the business such as research and devel-opment, production and marketing. For in the cur-rent market situation many companies, in competi-tion with providers in emerging economies, are find-ing innovative success by pursuing an inter-discipli-nary rather than a single-dimensional approachwhich could result in long-term increases in sales.The most recent examples confirm that the openingup of innovation process and the integration ofexternal resources can increase the success proba-bility of new developments. These factors are all toofrequently ignored by manufacturers in the contextof long-term innovation programs.

“The potential of design is recognised andexploited first and foremost within the area ofinter-disciplinary research. Design is the linkbetween disciplines as diverse as technologyresearch and sociology. Design establishes thelink between the hi-tech and the everyday. Theaim here is to establish a better and direct linkbetween the society and our everyday lives.”

Prof. Gesche Joost, Chairman of the DeutscheGesellschaft für Designtheorie und -forschunge. V. and Head of Design Research Labs atDeutsche Telekom Laboratories in Berlin

Design dimensiona Application scenarios and product conceptsa Product design with holistic form languagea Consolidation of ergonomic and

communicative requirementsa Securing the recognition-factor and conciseness

Technical dimension a Description of user-orientated

material requirementsa Optimum utilisation of the material technological

and constructive possibilities a Securing functionality and product quality

Economic dimensiona Model and future marketsa Comparison with company range

and product strategy a Consideration of cost/

benefit aspects

Services provided by

creative professionals

in material-intensive

innovation processes

42

The question as to the strengths of creative profes-sional in materials-based innovation processes canbe much more cogently explained based on thedevelopment history of the Myto chair, designed forBASF AG by the designer Konstantin Grcic (manu-factured by Plank in Italy). The objective was to visu-alise the functionality of a nanoparticle additive forthe technical plastic PBT for improving fluidity whenused in the injection moulding process and to makethe new qualities of this material apparent to cus-tomers. Firstly the designer proceeded on the basisof the erroneous assumption that the material couldbe hard and soft at the same time. The confusionmay have been clarified by the BASF technologistsbut Grcic used the tension in these contradictions asthe method by which to approach the product devel-opment. The remit was to create a cantilever chair,the backrest of which – “stretched like a pillow” –would curve in response to the body. This then wasthe approach focused upon by the customer and thetechnical function and physical efficiency were usedas the parameters for the innovation process.

Because of their day-to-day work and their training,people in the creative industries have the ability tobe better able to visualise products from the per-spective of the future customer. Due to their inten-sive activities in the product markets, they noticesocial developments at any earlier stage than per-sonnel from the technical disciplines and so act as“seismographs” within the development process.They work using ethnographic methods in order toidentify hidden user requirements and to placethese in context with the technical possibilities. Inthis sense the process is directed towards a singularevent – the search for the “unique” in the “multitudeof possibilities”. A product is given a special charac-ter, a sense and a symbolic-communicative effectspecific to a particular target group – i.e. a uniqueselling proposition within the market which ensuresthat the material-technical innovation has a success-ful and financially profitable transfer into a mar-ketable product.

Myto Chair

(Source: Konstantin Grcic)

Due to the very diverse area of activity, designersand architects are very flexible in tackling conceptualwork. They are readily able to establish linksbetween different areas of knowledge and can dis-mantle them just as quickly. This ability firstly andforemost makes them useful for the fundamentalresearch as they can act as intermediaries betweendevelopers and users, when years after the knowl-edge was discovered it is necessary to communicatethe benefit of the research focus by means of a clearimage and to prepare model product concepts. Oneexample is the fire-fighting robot which was devel-oped by designers in Magdeburg as a potentialapplication for a vehicle conceived by FraunhoferIFF. The concept is to have autonomous robotspatrolling forested areas in order to prevent fires andother situations hazardous to people. The scientistswere enthusiastic, because following the publicationof this clear image their developments were beingdiscussed all over the world.

A step further was taken in the “The worst case – high-rise fire” project during the winter semester 2007/08at the Offenbach College of Design. In conjunctionwith the building safety department of the Com-merzbank Tower, Fraunhofer IAIS (St. Augustin), the fire-prevention experts from HHP Süd, the fire insurance company FM Globalas well as the fire services fromOffenbach and Frankfurt, thisproject developed productsand resources to ensuresurvival in the event of ahigh-rise fire.

Fire-fighting robot OLE

(Source: Hochschule

Magdeburg-Stendal,

Design: Henner Hinze,

Jana Peterschmidt)

43

Respiratory mask with

integrated data projection

(Source: The Offenbach

College of Design, Design:

Mykhaylo Falkovych)

44

The numerous partners ensured a realistic estima-tion of a catastrophic scenario and provided anoverview of the current capabilities of fire-fightingmethods. By means of an iterative process the stu-dents delineated the problem areas, developed con-ceptual solutions and derived concrete product con-cepts. These ranged from a fire analysis robot thatascends steps to a respiratory mask with integrateddata projection, façade elements that serve asescape routes from the building and a mobile fire-fighting unit.

“I deliberately chose not to speak to individualindustrial partners as I wanted to open up thestudent project as much as possible. From what I have heard from fire-prevention experts after-wards, the results display a very realistic visionof fire-fighting in high-rises in the future.”

José Delhaes, Design Planet, Guest Professor,The Offenbach College of Design

The approach taken by designers can be charac-terised as an iteration process with small steps. It isprecisely this ability that makes them important forthe current innovation climate, which features shortdevelopment cycles and radical changes within themarkets. Notably the wish of many innovationresearchers to have the development objective con-tinuously aligned to the current development situa-tion can be more easily realised by involving creativeprofessionals in the innovation process. Further-more, the ability to work with imprecise processesand to apply indistinct specifications, i.e. factors ofinfluence, which is a phenomenon experienced inevery successful innovation process, appears to bemuch more apparent in designers and architectsthan in other professions.

Fire analysis robot

(Source: The Offenbach

College of Design,

Design: Raphael Krug,

Andre Federico Look)

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Rigid processes and overly exact specifications inthe initial development phases hinder the later suc-cess of the product and the timely alignment of aninnovation project to the market. Moreover, the “ten-dency towards rigidity and oligarchisation inherentin all societies” (Gustav Bergmann) is a counter-weight against interdisciplinary development plans.For the organisation of multidisciplinary processesfor innovative products based on innovative materi-als and material technologies to be successful, it istherefore necessary to have the arrangements insti-tuted within an open environment free of rigid para-digms. In this connection current innovationresearchers like to talk about innovation islands orunits, the functionality of which (especially in smallercompanies) is fostered through allowing self-organ-isation to prevail. The management only holds thefunction of meta control, sets out the framework andaccepts the permanent realignment of the processand the objectives to the development status. Inlarge organisations small units usually have to beseparated by allocating a separate space in order toenable the innovation objective to be achieved.One example is the concept of project houses oper-ated by Evonik Industries, where up to 15 employeeswork for periods of three years focussing solely onhow customers can utilise future technologies.

IInnovation process based on a co-operation betweentechnical and market-orientated disciplines with thecreative industries should always be aligned towardsa people-centred understanding of innovation. Theterm “human centric innovation” is one of the buzzwords used by the current international innovationresearch movement. It indicates a philosophy thatcombines knowledge and methods from the designand ethnography fields with methods found in thetechnology development and economics fields. Theobjective is to identify the hidden needs of users, toco-ordinate these with the parameters of technicalfeasibility and financial profitability and to directresearch activities determinedly towards the marketrequirements. Here in Germany the discussion aboutthe future of innovative activities is lagging behindthe international knowledge process. In Finland forexample during the course of a radical educationalreform the Helsinki School of Economics, the Univer-sity of Art and Design Helsinki and the Helsinki Uni-versity of Technology were amalgamated and in Jan-uary 2010 the Aalto University was opened boastingan educational slant towards multidisciplinary part-nerships and user-centric innovation processes. Butthere is also one such example in Germany too: theHasso Plattner Institute in Potsdam. Since the wintersemester 2007 /08 it has been offering an additionalqualification in “design thinking”. What is revolution-ary about this approach is that four to five students ineach working group and their professors and lectur-ers all come from different disciplines. The conceptwas one of the locations chosen in 2008 under the“Germany – Land of Ideas” initiative.

4 The Process of Collaboration between Technical and Market Oriented Disciplineswithin the Creative Industries

46

All the approaches are based on the objective ofbreaking up the arrangement of sequential and sepa-rately implemented technology and application devel-opments, in order to exploit mutual interactions andsynergies for the success of the product. As long asmaterial developments require a significantly longerlead-time than the resulting products, all materials-based innovation processes will also be performed inadvance of the functional material development. Thepotential of creative disciplines in the early materialdevelopment phases has until now been underesti-mated however, something which has led to a unilat-eral division of work on the part of the technical engi-neering disciplines. But if we are to pursue the idealof the multidisciplinary innovation process, other dis-ciplines should from the very outset have receivedinformation about the development approaches in thematerial laboratories. It is possible at an early stage toformulate the methods for future product conceptsand future markets, which could positively influencethe technological material development.

In the majority of cases material manufacturers waituntil the latter stages of the material developmentbefore preparing application scenarios to enableindustrial customers to see the particular functionalqualities. Designers and architects could be impor-tant partners for this development. They are able tocontribute a user-orientated perspective to thedevelopment process. This frequently leads to the sit-uation where product concepts with a direct cus-tomer benefit are developed, which can also bemore easily communicated as a result. For examplethe Myto chair was developed in order to demon-strate the functionality of a nano additive developedby BASF for the product process (see page 42).Because this was successfully implemented in theform of a cantilever chair, it led to the possibility ofpresentations at numerous design fairs and to aspread of knowledge among designers and interiordesigners about BASF’s nano-technology skill set.

Members of market-orientated disciplines are assum-ing an increasingly important role not least in relationto the development of future markets and new prod-uct concepts. They create images for the possiblewidespread use of the new material or technologyand convey a future vision by means of a functionalproduct. The development at an early stage of modelproduct concept accelerates the transfer of a materialinnovation in the marketplace and is an importantinstrument for the market development. One exam-ple from 2007 is the Merck-initiated development bythe designers Hannes Wettstein und Ingo Maurer oflighting systems based on OLED technology. As aresult the first OLED lamps were launched on themarket in 2008.

A heat exchanger is

a functional model

application for

metallic foam

(Source: hollomet

GmbH)

OLED lamp

(Source: Hannes

Wettstein)

47

Proof that a combination of existing technologiesand materials can generate products for a new mar-ket was provided by Bayer MaterialScience in theform of the EcoCommercialBuilding Initiative. Theprincipal objective here is to inform all partiesinvolved in the building of a zero-emissions buildingof the possibility of using existing solutions and toredevelop the market on that basis (see page 38).

The necessity of developing a future market for inno-vative materials and technology solutions throughmultidisciplinary development teams was alsorecognised by the decision-makers at EDAG. In Jan-uary 2009 at the 79th car show in Geneva, the devel-opment services provider from Fulda unveiled avehicle research project, “Light Car – Open Source”,based on a close working partnership betweendesigners and engineers, featuring the same threeapproaches for future markets within the frameworkof a resource and energy-efficient motor and chassisconcept.

“The electric engine provides designers anddevelopers with tremendous potential to realisetruly innovative vehicle concepts and to positiona unique type of electric car on behalf of theend customers.”

Jörg Ohlsen, Spokesman for the Board of theEDAG Group

For the chassis EDAG used basalt fibre as light-weight, stable and, most importantly, a 100% recy-clable material – the first time it was deployed inautomotive construction. The propulsion is providedby intelligent, electrical drive units in the wheels,which are not only highly effective in transporting thepower of the lithium ion battery onto the road butthey also allow more scope for the design of thevehicle package. With its innovative light concept,the “Light Car – Open Source” will also be one of thefirst cars to use (O)LED technology as an individuallymodifiable design and communications element.

Light Car

(Source: EDAG)

Light Car – vehicle construction

(Source: EDAG)

48

“We have transferred the current standards ofmulti-media and lighting technology to the carand want in future to offer the end consumer thescope to configure their vehicle precisely howthey would like to – after all the entire surface ofthe vehicle functions like the screen of a multi-media device and can be used intelligently andindividually.”

Johannes Barckmann, Head of EDAG Design Stu-dios, talking about the idea behind the Light Car.

Due to its choice of innovative materials, the entirevehicle concept was awarded the Design Plus Prizeat the Material Vision event in June 2009. EDAG alsoclearly demonstrates the excellence of the resultsthat can be achieved through parallel technologyand application development in multidisciplinaryprocesses and how an open innovation approachtogether with partner companies can unlock whollynew potential in relation to development. Alongsideits vehicle project, the EDAG Group has also pre-pared a proposal for an innovative product concept,which accommodates the specific requirementsexisting in relation to the production of an electric car.

Factors for fostering cooperation between technicaldisciplines and the creative industries:

a Respect for the work of other disciplinesa Participation in the materials-based innovationprocess by all disciplines involved in the valuecreation chain

a Organisation of development teams allowing for free self-organisation

a Avoidance of rigid and linear process philosophies

a Tolerance of fuzzinessa Continuous alignment of innovation objectivesto the current development results

a Regular communication of information to all the disciplines involved in the developmentthrough the medium of visualising the development status

Partially parallelised

process steps in rela-

tion to multidisciplinary

materials-based devel-

opment processes

e Model application for functional aspects

r Future markets

t Product scenarios

u Model markets

i Specific product development

process

product

resear

ch

dev

elopmen

t

creativeindustries

49

Plenty of time should be allowed for researching andselecting people from the creative industries. Thereare no clear criteria which could simplify the selec-tion process. The decision is rather based on animpression comprised of numerous pieces of infor-mation. A fundamental distinction can be madebetween two research approaches: firstly there isonline research to enable the company to get anoverview of what is available or to make a prelimi-nary selection. On the other hand there is the quali-fied search undertaken during workshops and sem-inars, during which institutions such as GermanDesign Council or Hessen Design (see page 50) willreadily provide assistance.

Online research

Many companies evaluate the qualities of a creativeservice provider primarily on the basis of referenceprojects and professional experience. The majorityof designers and architects therefore carefully usetheir websites to extensively document the projectsthey have undertaken and the successes they haveenjoyed in development. Other information aboutthe areas of activity in which particular creative pro-fessionals are involved can be found from onlineplatforms, publishing houses and institutions. Archi-tects are also showcased via the various architectchambers.

Alongside the core activities, selected references,education, training and equipment, the size of theparticular studio can be determined according tothe number of employees working there. This infor-mation is usually enough to enable a decision to bequickly taken as to whether a particular creative pro-fessional is suitable for a certain project. If unconven-tional development methods are anticipated, it ishelpful to work with a newer studio, from whichextensive references cannot of course be expected.Following the initial meeting and a discussion of thejob specification, final clarity can be secured byrequesting the submission of a written elucidation ofthe project.

Designer search

a www.designer-profile.dea www.industriedesign.dea www.agd.de(Alliance of German Designers)

a www.vdid.de(Association of German Industrial Designers)

a www.vdmd.de(Association of German Fashion and Textile Designers)

Architect search

a www.architonic.dea www.architektenweb.dea www.architektenscout.eua www.bda-bund.de(Association of German Architects)

a www.bda-hessen.de(Association of German Architects in Hessen)

a www.bak.de(Federal Chamber of Architects)

a www.baunetz.dea www.german-architects.com

5 How do I find the right Partner? Selection Criteria for Representatives of the Creative Industries

© Nicolas Loran, istockphoto.com

50

Qualified search

One concrete approach to finding a designer orarchitect comes in the form of a workshop or semi-nar on particular issues. Institutions such as GermanDesign Council and Hessen Design are experts inthis context. Accessing a qualified network canenable the respective specifications and parameterscan be taken into consideration at the very outset.

In order to transform a design into a valuable brandambassador, many requirements have to be identi-fied and satisfied. With its many years of experience,German Design Council for instance is able to assistcompanies to promulgate their brands throughdesign. It is only on the basis of thorough analysesthat tailored brand and design strategies can bedeveloped and the requisite specialists pinpointedwithin the creative industries. Apart from relaying thebases for strategic implementation with the designpartners, where requested the service can alsoencompass supervision of the design process.

“It’s all about the chemistry! Irrespective ofwhich method is chosen – the working partner-ship with a designer or architects studio ultimately depends on the chemistry betweenthe customer and the creative services provider.The innovation process in its early stages is crucially dependent on a free and open atmos-phere, promoted by the unrestrained interactionof the various parties together.”

Dr. Sascha Peters, haute Innovation

Hessen Design

Hessen Design e.V., based in Darmstadt, is an expertpoint of contact for all issues relating to designs. Therange of services extends state-wide and encom-passes companies, designers and students as wellas a wide section of the public. Comprehensive consultancy services, lecture series, workshops, symposia and exhibitions all form part of the portfo-lio of Hessen Design.

Hessen Design is funded by companies and designstudios in Hessen, the Hessian universities, the cham-ber of trade and industry in Hessen, the consortiumof Hessian chambers of crafts and trade associations,the Hessian Ministry of Economics, Transport, Urbanand Regional Development, the Hessian Ministry for Science and Art and the City of Darmstadt.

www.hessendesign.de

German Design Council

The German Design Council was founded in 1953upon a resolution taken by the Deutsche Bundestag,in order to meet the growing demand from industryfor information about the issue of design. The insti-tution is now numbered among the world’s leadingcentres of excellence for communication and trans-fer of knowledge in relation to design. Through itscompetitions, exhibitions, conferences, consultancyservices, research and publications, it opens up newhorizons for players in industry and the design disci-plines. The sponsors of the German Design Councilare now made up of 160 of the most influential Ger-man companies.

www.german-design-council.de

© Rat für Formgebung, photo: Lutz Sternstein, Frankfurt am Main

51

At the outset there was the experiment, playing withdifferent materials and the question of how this greyheavy-looking rock material could be made to allowthe passage of light and shadows. As part of a post-graduate course at the Kungliga KonsthögskolansArkitekturskola (Royal University College of FineArts) in Stockholm, the Hungarian architect, ÁronLosonczi, tackled the issue of glass in architecture,learned about optical fibres and made contact withSCHOTT, one of the world’s leading manufacturersof optical glass fibres. Based in the Rhine-Mainregion, the company provided him with glass fibres,thousands of which he cast in concrete.

The result of this unusual combination of materialswas the invention of a new construction material withlight-permeable and carrying properties. The fibreglass proportion of 4–5% enables the transport ofabout 70% of the light incidental on one side of aconcrete block, with thicknesses of up to two metres,straight through the inside to the other side, whereis appears luminescent on the surface. And con-versely shadows will appear on the other side of thestone surface as distinct outlines. In this way a con-crete wall is transformed into a mixture of a projec-tion wall and a light experience. It is able to conveythe silhouettes of trees, houses and passers-by ontothe interior wall of the building in question.

Called “LiTraCon” (Light-Transmitting Concrete) byLosonczi, this construction material was named Inno-vation of the Year by TIME magazine in 2005 and ittriggered a trend within the cement industry result-ing in a number of imitation products. And so we areindebted to the innovation capacity of an architectfor the formation of numerous enterprises andwhose product, according to the architects, will soonbe on the shelves of every builders store. For along-side the construction industry, others to have discov-ered the material include advertisers, furnituredesigners and media designers.

“If trying to describe how a mighty wall suddenlyloses its heaviness, then ‘luminescence’ isprobab ly not even the right word, because theaesthetic of the material is much more complex“,says the Hungarian architect, Áron Losonczi.

“We are constantly searching for new applica-tions for optical glass fibres, but this applicationsurprised even us. This new building materialcould immensely add to the design possibilitiesavailable to architects. But it may also be veryinteresting for light planners.”

Patricia Alter, Product Manager Lighting & VisualMerchandising at SCHOTT Architecture & Design

www.litracon.hu; www.schott.com

6 Success Stories:From Raw Material to Product

6.1 Glass Fibres make Concrete Translucent

Translucent

concrete (Source:

Áron Losonczi)

Hessisches Ministerium für Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklungwww.hessen-nanotech.de

Einsatz von Nanotechnologienin Architektur und Bauwesen

Hessen Nanotech

For more details see the

brochure “Einsatz von Nano -

technologien in Architektur und

Bauwesen”, Volume 7, issued by

Aktionslinie Hessen-Nano tech.

52

Seidel GmbH & Co. KG is a global leader in alu-minium packaging products for the cosmetic andpharmaceutical industries (customers include HugoBoss, Procter&Gamble, Avon, L’Oreal). High-gradedesign components such as perfume caps, crèmejars, or lipstick devices constitute the core businessof this Marburg-based company, which possesseswide-ranging expertise in processing aluminiumdesign articles and top-quality finishes. The addi-tional manufacture of plastic components and theextensive decoration variations and the fully auto-matic assembly enable the implementation of com-plex projects and the realisation of high-grade prod-ucts. By concentrating on aluminium as a material,the company is pursuing a strategy towards the opti-mised use of resources and the avoidance of haz-ardous wastes. Aluminium can be recycled with verylittle energy being expended. Seidel has thereforefocused its research on this particular material. In the

company’s new research centre, projects are system-atically carried out in partnership with the universi-ties of Marburg, Giessen and Hamburg for the devel-opment of surface finishing techniques for the opti-misation of aluminium products. The primarily objec-tive of these projects is the realisation of micro- andnano-structured ceramics to create material compos-ites with aluminium in order to achieve functional,optical and tactile properties. By lending surfaces anano-structure it may be possible to achieve newoptical and tactile effects. The functional objectivesare to improve the control between containers them-selves and the surrounding container surface. Thecompany maintains various partnerships for thedevelopment of new product concepts. It now offerscontract research in relation to ceramics.

6.2 Access New Markets with Design

Carus Candela

(Source: Seidel GmbH)

Carus Esencia Room Fragrance System

(Source: Seidel GmbH)

53

Honeycomb boards, such as those used in aircraftconstruction, three-dimensional technical webbing,LED lights on glass sheets or membrane film – Form -vielfalt GmbH from Gross Umstadt has made a namefor itself in recent years through the use of innovativematerials and design elements for trade fair applica-tions. The reasons are numerous. For one thing thehigh consumption of materials at trade fairs makesit logical to use materials with light-weight construc-tion properties, and the product developers and

material producers exploit this opportunity to communicate their innovative strengths to visitorsthrough the utilisation of innovative materials in theconstruction of a trade fair stand and to gauge reactions to new developments. The most recentexample is the trade fair stand for Fulda-basedEDAG at the IAA in Frankfurt, where the exhibitionsinclude the “Light Car” concept car (Hessen-Nano -tech NEWS 5 /2009).

The development of technological expertise withapplication possibilities in various product areasserves the strategic aim of the management toexpand the role of Seidel GmbH & Co. KG as a con-ventional supplier to the cosmetic, pharmaceuticaland stationary industries through new productranges and new marketing structures. In order toachieve this objective, since 2005 the expansion ofan internal design department has been advancedto facilitate the transfer of technical potential intomarketable products. The results are quite apparent.Seidel has marketed a series of design articles since2009 under the CARUS brand. With these “Made inGermany” design articles, the company has createda distinct new field of action in which new develop-ments and growth may be boosted.

“We have taken this step quite deliberately inorder to make ourselves less exposed to marketfluctuations and to significantly expand the waysby which we can influence our growth. In thiscontext, we regard the enhancement of our tech-nological expertise as being just as important as the development of concrete applications our R & D activities. We want to bring our designexpertise to bear on these results in order todevelop attractive products.”

Dr. Andreas Ritzenhoff, Managing Director ofSeidel GmbH & Co. KG and materials and nano-technology representative for the State of Hessen

www.seidel.de

6.3 Communicating Material Innovations

EDAG trade fair stand

(Source: formvielfalt GmbH)

54

Metallic foam is one material that the trade fairservic es provider has already used many timesthereby demonstrating the ways in which it can beapplied in the context of interior design and archi-tecture. Even though the principle for the manufac-ture of metallic foams has been around for some 30years now and designers and architects are all veryappreciative of its light-permeable properties andformal aesthetic qualities, it nevertheless has failedto make the leap into successful applications outsideof the industrial contexts. While closed-pore foamstructures have been used in the last decade as alight-weight construction material in the automotivesector, e.g. for stiffening cabriolets, for truck cabs, intram cars or in the aerospace industry and the goodabsorption characteristics have been useful in colli-sion protection applications, the open-pore qualitieshave yet to find their way into mass-produced appli-cations. This is mainly due to the complex produc-tion processes and the high cost, because the ben-efits of its characteristics profile is very evident. Apartfrom the high stiffness / low mass ratio, which makemetallic foams a light-weight construction materialalso suitable for the building industry, they possessexcellent noise-absorption qualities. The potentialfor interior applications are therefore just as obviousas the uses in wall cladding construction.

Architects will be particularly delighted that the GlattGroup (which also has a site in Wiesbaden) is nowable to supply a new metallic foam from its sinterproduction chain-based plant with structures rang-ing from the large to the small-pored and all at awholly affordable cost. The plant was put into oper-ation in October 2009 and promises a breakthroughin the materials sector. Designers will be particularlyenthused by the freely selectable form geometry,enabled by the production method. For the basis of

the sinter process chain is a plastic foam, the shapeof which can be altered and which is initially coatedwith a metallic powder binder suspension. The poly-mer material is then removed at 300°C and the metalis sintered. What is left is a metallic foam structure ofvariable thickness with many finer structures thanwould not be possible using conventional methods.Because the powder can be processed from almostany metallic material, the application scenarios areboundless.

www.formvielfalt.dewww.edag.dewww.hollomet.com

Open-pored metallic foam

(Source: hollomet GmbH)

Lampshade made from metallic foam

(Source: Zoon Design)

55

A new material developed at the chair of artist Prof.Heike Klussmann at the University of Kassel is thereflex concrete known as “BlingCrete”. It combinesthe positive properties of concrete (fire-safety, stability, construction method) with the property ofretro-reflection. Retro-reflective surfaces reflect inci-dental rays of light (sunlight, artificial light) preciselyin the direction of the light source. This optical phe-nomenon is usually created by embedding micro-glass beads in a carrying medium.

The qualities of BlingCrete open up a wide variety ofdesign possibilities both in architecture and in trafficsafety-relevant contexts. The benefits compared tolacquers and paints include its abrasion resistance,the inherent quality of the surface and (based on theconcrete matrix used) the possible approval for useas a construction product. The new material isplanned to be used for the technical safety markingof edges and dangerous locations (e.g. the edges ofsteps, kerbs, train platforms) as well as the design ofcontrol systems integrated into structures and novelwide-area construction elements (façades, floors,ceilings). Because of its particular haptic properties,BlingCrete can also be utilised for tactile guidancesystems for the blind.

The dematerialised aesthetic originates from a con-tinuous integrated dialogue between material andlight. BlingCrete therefore represents a category ofnew material with its own special logic of cause-and-effect. Financed by the Zentrale Innovationspro-gramm Mittelstand (ZIM), BlingCrete was created inpartnership with the medium-sized company, HeringBau International, high-performance concrete devel-opment specialised engineers from G.tecz and thechair for functionalised thin layers of Prof. Dr. ArnoEhresmann, an experimental physician at the Univer-sity of Kassel, whose nano-technical process for themagnetisation of aggregates was for the first timeused to control the crystallization and hardeningprocess and for positioning the micro-glass beads inthe material matrix.

“We observed how the demands on modernmaterials are ever increasing. I think that, giventhe continuing technologisation, some potentialfor ideas can be generated from the both themethodological and material exchange of experiences between researchers, – such asthose found in experimental physics and nano-technological research – architecturally-relateddesign and artistic research.”

Prof. Heike Klussmann, University of Kassel

“Material research has now arrived at the molec-ular level. Attention is shifting from the proper-ties of materials to their performance. Designersshould tackle the issue of the technologisation ofmaterials. It enables them to increasingly deter-mine the behaviour of materials rather thanmerely take it into consideration.”

Thorsten Klooster, Architect

www.asl.uni-kassel.de; www.klussmann.org

6.4 Art and Science Light up Concrete

Reflex concrete (Source: University of Kassel)

56

„ccflex star-dust” is the first ceramicwall covering that can be applied like wall-paper. With a water-repellent and simultaneouslyvapour-permeable, impact-resistant, UV-resistantand fire-resistant surface, it exhibits the range ofcharacteristics lying between those of a ceramic tileand conventional wallpaper. But packed into rolls itis easy to handle. The high water-repellent propertymeans that ccflex first and foremost is suitable forwet area applications (e.g. to provide a hygienic fin-ish to baths and showers cubicles), because it can beapplied quickly and easily to walls and does not formjoints. The outstanding qualities are due to the nano-structured particles, which the developers fromEvonik Degussa GmbH integrated into the surface.Water, oil and chemical substances are not absorbedbut instead form droplets and run off the surface.The licence to market the ceramic wall covering wasacquired by the Marburg-based wall covering makerEvonik Degussa GmbH in the summer of 2009.

“The development of the ccflex wall coveringwas a spin-off of a separator material found inthe modern lithium-ion battery. During a strate-gic brainstorming session the idea for ‘tiles on aroll’ was born, with the idea being to simplyaffixed these to a wall like wallpaper and ensur-ing that the characteristics required of a tile, e.g.in a shower, were also met.”

Dr. Frank Weinelt, Evonik Degussa GmbH

The persons involved in the development projecttrace the success of the innovation to what wasalmost a perfect working partnership between mar-keting, research and interior design. The designerSylvia Leydecker (100% interior) discovered thematerial at an industry trade fair and noted that anoptimised communication and a new product designcould be used to make the outstanding qualities andinnovative strength of the product much more visible.Working on behalf of the Evonik Degussa Group shethen joined forces with a small team of marketingspecialists and technicians to draft a product collec-tion, which received numerous prizes and awardsduring 2009 (e.g. Design Plus Award, Ruhr 2030Award). The flood of publications and press articlesthis unleashed was a decisive factor in enabling themarketing rights to be assigned to the Marburg-based wallpaper maker, J.B. Schäfer GmbH & Co. KGin Kirchhain.

www.marburg.com

“Unlike researchers and developers, creativeprofessionals are working constantly with thedesires and requirements of customers. Theytherefore possess a wide-ranging knowledge ofthe market and have a nose for sensing whichproducts might even be useful in the nearfuture. So, when integrated into a developmentteam, it is they who can lend suitable forms to anew technological achievement and transmute afunctional benefit into an emotional one.”

Sylvia Leydecker, 100% interior

6.5 Ceramic Wall Covering enters Internal Architecture

Structure of ccflex: Four layers of “marble on a

roll”: The basis (1) consists of a polymer non-

woven, which possesses the requisite flexibility.

Unto this is directly applied the ceramic mate-

rial (2) consisting of a metallic oxide mix which

can also be coloured even at this stage. Alter-

natively a wide variety of motifs can be

embossed (3). Finally the transparent topcoat

layer (4) is applied, which is also ceramised.

(Source: Evonik Industries)

57

Merck is the world’s leading manufacturer of OLEDmaterials. Organic light diodes are regarded as oneof the future markets due to their potential in themanufacture of ultra thin displays and light emitters.The main sales with OLEDs are currently beingearned in the area of small displays in mobiledevices such as MP3 player and mobile phones. Dueto their extremely thin construction and the possibil-ity of producing flexible qualities, it is to be expectedthat there will be future innovations in the lightingmarket, in particular. In OLED displays and OLEDlighting there are currently two types of OLED mate-rials being used: the “small molecules” and polymerswhich are present in solution form and which can beprinted on. Polymer systems suggest themselvesover the medium term due to the simple coating oflarge areas or flexible substrates using the roll-to-rollmethod. To date the vapour deposition process, withwhich small molecule-OLEDs are produced, hasproven the more efficient production method. In thisinstance the goal of generating a brightness of 100lumen per watt was also achieved (R&D result), whichis something still to be attained with the solution-based systems.

“Our activities in the OLED lighting sector werestrategically directed towards creating an exemplary demonstration of the fascinating possibilities of OLED materials by means of ahigh-quality designed light.”

Alexander Biebel Liquid Crystals Division, Merck

Since 2007 Merck has therefore been working closelywith renowned designers Hannes Wettstein and IngoMaurer in order to visualise the potential of OLEDtechnology in designer lights. Wettstein developed amobile light made from white plastic, which like amodern nightlight can be removed from its baseand moved around the room. Its luminous sheetwith integrated OLED exudes an atmospheric,shimmering light. Another thing of interest arethe OLED gold bars. In this case the 120x40 mil-limetre OLED-glass mini-panels are enclosed bya ceramic surround covered with a Plexiglas skin.The thickness is due to the battery compartmentwhich stimulates the OLED into emitting light.Only by rotating the bar can the ultra thindesign of the light be seen under the cover.

The design of Ingo Maurer describes a light as a typeof luminescent sky, which is created by integrating anumber of OLED light panels into a flexible plasticfilm. The results were presented in 2007 during aspecial show at the Design Annual of the MesseFrankfurt. Maurer in the meantime has launched thefirst OLED lamps on the market.

“The creativity possibilities are boundless – we are excited to see what new technologicaldevelopments will bring over time.“

Ingo Maurer, Industrial designer

www.merck.de

6.6 Designers Smooth OLEDs Route to Market

OLED lamp

(Source: Ingo Maurer)

3

Hessisches Ministerium für Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklungwww.hessen-nanotech.de

NanotechHessen

NanotechHessen NanotechHessen

Nanotechnologie in KunststoffInnovationsmotor für Kunststoffe, ihre Verarbeitung und Anwendung

For more details see

the brochure “Nanotech-

nologie in Kunststoff”,

Volume 15, issued by

Aktionslinie Hessen-

Nanotech.

58

A kit for a hat with a cut-out patternand instructions – all that printed

on tear-proof, water-repellentpaper-like PE spun-

material – theseare the spe cialaspects of the

Susanne Schmitt’sdesign (Schmitthut),

with which she intro-duced an innovative material

made by DuPont (Neu-Isenburg)into the world of fashion. Tyvek® was

developed a few years ago as a functionaltextile for protective clothing and as a packag-

ing material for sterile products. The material pos-sesses a paper-like flexibility and can be written onor used for printing. It is highly tear-resistant andwater-resistant, which makes it eminently suitable forrain-proof maps for cycling or watersports. Duringthe manufacturing process polyethylene fibres areinterwoven and pressed when heated. Unlike paperthe material only loses just a very few fibres. It isextremely robust, which underlines its suitability forsterile environments. Thanks to its vapour-perme-able structure, it can also be used in under-roof cov-ers and underlays in order to protect buildings fromclimatic conditions.

The fashion designer Susanne Schmitt from Schmit-thut in Darmstadt found inspiration for her hat kit inqualities comparable to those of Japan paper. Theindividual parts are printed on DIN A0 Tyvek materialand can be cut out using a sharp knife before beingstitched together. The hat is practically indestructibleand can be cleaned in any washing machine. It there-fore constitutes a model example for an allocationof tear-proof synthetic non-woven in the fashionmarket.

The kit received the Design Plus Prize in 2007 andwas nominated for the German Design Prize in 2009.There was no direct contact with the manufacturerDu Pont however, as the fashion designer discoveredthe material at Modulor GmbH, a wholesaler ofmaterials for design and architecture in Berlin.

www.schmitthut.de

“An envelope made from synthetic fabric gaveme the idea of using the same material todesign a hat that anyone could make”, explains Susanne Schmitt (Schmitthut).

Hat kit made from

tear-proof paper

(Source: Schmitthut)

Right: Microscopic

non-woven structure

of Tyvek

6.7 Tear-proof Paper for the Fashion Industry

59

“Rush hour in the capillary system”, “Snorkelling in thegene pool” and “Proton ballet in the power plant” arejust some of the 33 stages awaiting visitors on a jour-ney through invisible tiny worlds. The nano tourist canchoose from three different methods – on the arm ofa person, in the processor of a computer or in theLED of a futuristic car headlight – to gradually shrinkever smaller and make their into the smallest dimen-sion of our known universe. And just like any properjourney, a suitcase is also near to hand containinguseful utensils for on-the-go, including a virtual travelguide as well as a route planner with which visitorscan jump within and between the routes.

The idea and concept for nano travel first occurredin 2002 as part of a dissertation prepared at theTechnical University in Wiesbaden (since 2009 theRheinMain University of Applied Sciences). Scientistsfrom the VDI Technologiezentrum GmbH in Dussel-dorf then realised the potential of the project andcommission the design office Lekkerwerken of Wies-baden to completely realise the interactive journey.

The aim was to generate interest among younger target groups for scientific matters via an active andemotional mode of communication, without givingthe impression of actually instructing them aboutsomething. Nano journeys combine knowledge withentertainment in a high-quality package. It is bymeans of an explorative and interactive journeythrough the various sized dimensions that a wide target audience can learn about complex interrela-tionships in relation to the structure of the universe.Users are actively included with the aid of anima-tions, audio and interactive features.

The project clearly highlights the potential fordesigners to communication scientific and technicalrelationships in a manner that is comprehensible tothose new to the topic. The project was realisedunder a commission issued by VDI Technologiezen-trum GmbH with funds from the Federal Ministry forEducation and Research (BMBF).

The journey can be embarked upon by visitingwww.nanoreisen.de and is available in four languages.

6.8 Grasp the Invisible on a Nano-Journey

Excerpt from the

nano journey

(Source: Lekkerwerken)

60

When talking about manufacturing tools and con-structing buildings, then stone and concrete aresome of the oldest materials that even exist. It is allthe more astounding that, particularly in recentyears, classic construction materials have inspireddesigners to create unusual new potential products.Drawing upon the wealth of knowledge possessedby the concrete specialists from G.tecz of Kassel, Dr. Thomas Teichmann and Dr. Gregor Zimmermann– the project was successful in bringing ultra-hardconcrete into our living and dining rooms.

Whereas concrete applications to date have resultedin large objects, the form language of which was rad-ically impaired by a minimum thickness in the side,wholly new results are now being achieved today.The designer Alexa Lixfeld from Hamburg was one ofthe first to dismantle the former barrier through com-bining high-performance concrete with a special sur-face coating to transform the material into an elegantcomponent for kitchen and bathroom. She achievedsurfaces with permanently shiny, hydrophobic, abra-sion and acid-resistant qualities that would simulta-neously be suitable for using with food.

International designers also sought the expertise ofthe G.tecz specialists, in order to utilise concrete inelegant product designs for porcelain and furniture.For example, Doreen Westphal, a renowned designerfrom Amsterdam, developed thin-sided cups andvases and presented her ceramic-like collection dur-ing the Milan Design Week 2009. The use of concreteshortens the production process in comparison toceramic kiln processes. Energy consumption andcosts are significantly reduced. For the first time everthe products of Doreen Westphal are being manu-factured in series and are available to an internationalmarket.

Caroline Swift also used concrete in designing pic-ture frames and cutlery, and Greta Hauer from Kasselunderlined the potential through numerous designsfor bowls and plates. In the summer of 2010 atdeadal.de, a large design shop in Kassel, furnituredesigned by Gregor Zimmermann was showcasedthat presented concrete as a material in a wholly dif-ferent light. Heavy-set, ponderous concrete furniturewas now a thing of the past.

The Monolithic Concrete Design Competition hasenabled students of architecture at the University ofKassel to develop visionary application ideas for thenew cement-based hi-tech material “Quantz” fromG.tecz – from initial draft to the prototype-readystage. The results of the Concrete Advanced Projectwere presented in February 2010 at an exhibition inKassel.

The direct working partnerships with designers andarchitects are a focal area for G.tecz alongside itsown material development and research activities.Direct exchanges of ideas and thoughts with design-ers such as UNStudio, NOX, Splitterwerk, LOMA andothers have resulted in visionary projects for archi-tecture and design, which could not have beenimplemented by more conventional means.

www.gtecz.com

6.9 Living Environments with Ultra-Hard Concrete

Left: Tableware made

from concrete

(Source: Alexa Lixfeld)

Right: Concrete wall

cladding (Source:

Doreen Westphal)

61

In a time during which the German constructionindustry is importing bricks from the Netherlandsand Poland, cement from Spain, steel and marblefrom India, aluminium from Brazil, wood fromCanada and tropical rain-forest regions, the utilisa-tion of local building materials appears atypical andout of tune with current trends. However, withincreasing transport costs and the ever-increasingimportance of sustainably using our energy andmaterial resources, more and more experts withinthe construction industry are demanding a return tothe use of locally produced building materials. ThusRoy Antik (Development Manager Sustainability inthe Swedish construction group, Skanska) declaredin October 2009 that Skanska was planning toreduce its consumption of energy and resources by50% in coming years. Local recycling and the use oflocally available materials were important elementsof this strategy, it was said.

While the construction of a house simply by excavat-ing the foundation site was a somewhat romanticideal until very recently, the approach is gaining evermore in support. And this is not just a matter of pre-serving resources. For it is a fact that using globallyavailable materials and price-efficient humanresources as a matter-of-course has also led to along-term change in the quality of our architecturalenvironment and our culture of craftsmanship.

It is due to this that the Rang architects studio inFrankfurt, in constructing the Tower of Bhaktapur inNepal, was not just following the objective of acquir-ing the building material wholly from the foundationsite, but was also looking to combine Hessian build-ing culture with the centuries old craftsmanship skillsof the Newars. Thus, brick moulds were exportedfrom Frankfurt to Nepal, but the building materialwas locally produced. Even the bamboo for the scaf-folding was cut from a grove in Bhaktapur. The build-ing described by the architects as a “brickworksculpture” could stand as an inspiration for therevival of brick production fired from local clay.There are many parallels to the architectural historiesof Hamburg or Amsterdam. Given the context of thecurrent developments, the idea of imitation appearsto be practically demanded.

“The flow of the free selection of material for aspecific place, its design and coloration, needsto be set against the displacement of materialscaused by the global market economy. Inter-changeable places with no place in time arebeing created, places that the French anthropol-ogist, Marc Auge, also termed ‘non-places’”,says Prof. Wolfgang Rang.

www.atelier-rang.de

6.10 Resource Protection and Material Cultural Dialogue

Tower of Bhaktapur

Above: details

Left: Front view

(Source: Rang studio)

7 Material Research: Who can provide me with Informationabout new Materials and Inspiration?

62

Materials are bearers of innovation. Their intelligentdeployment among other things is decisive for thedurability, comfort, design and therefore the com-mercial success of products. Use and design possi-bilities of materials offer tremendous developmentpotential today. The technical development in thiscontext is only ever part of an innovation, with itswell-timed practical application being of equalimportance. It is precisely at these interfaces thatMaterial Vision, the international industry’s trade fairand conference, tackles material-related issues con-nected with product development, design and archi-tecture. Material Vision is attended by representa-tives from manufacturers of modern materials andresearch institutions, who are seeking to establishdirect contact with designers, product developersand architects. There is where creative heads canfind a platform in order to get to know about newmaterials and to discuss the possibilities for usingthem. The common objective is to transfer knowl-

edge from research and development into practicalapplications in a more speedy, better directed andimproved manner. Material Vision is the vehicle bywhich Messe Frankfurt and its co-operation partner,the German Design Council, are fostering the inter-disciplinary exchange of ideas between industry,researchers and creative thinkers – for the benefit ofall. Material Vision is run parallel to Techtextil, theinternational industry trade fair for technical textilesand non-wovens.

More information from: www.material-vision.messefrankfurt.com

Material Vision:Materials for product development, design and architecture

Material exhibition

at Materia

(Source: Materia)

Range of colours in the

Colour & Material Lab of

designaffairs (Source: Berlac)

63

Architonic Switzerland

Architonic has established itself as an internationalseal of quality for selected, high-grade designproducts, materials, architecture projects and infor-mation supply. The online platform is managedfrom Zurich and is numbered among the top threemost popular websites for architects.

Architonic AG Müllerstrasse 718004 Zurich, Switzerland www.architonic.com

designaffairs Germany

Design Affairs is a design agency, which has beenrunning the “colour&material lab” since 2001.With a permanent exhibition, various partner com -panies are afforded the opportunity to present thelatest developments in relation to coloration, sur-face finishes and production processes.

designaffairs GmbHRosenheimer Strasse 145b81671 München, Germanywww.designaffairs.com

Innovathèque France

Innovathèque is a team of material experts who con-stantly examine the market for innovative materials.They have to date entered some 2000 materials intoa database and a permanent exhibition.

Innovathèque10, avenue de St-Mandé75012 Paris, Francewww.innovatheque.fr

Materia The Netherlands

Materia is a know-how platform for material inno-vations and applications in relation to architectureand design. Alongside a permanent exhibition, adatabase is also provided free of charge. Newdevelopments and around 1500 material samplesare presents in the setting of an inspiration centre.

MateriaBinnenhof 62D1412 LC Naarden, Netherlandswww.materia.nl

Material ConneXion Germany /USA

As the link between material manufacturers andusers, Material ConneXion offers consultancy services in relation to material and product devel-opment. The consulting aspect is supplemented byan extensive materials library, which is expandedeach month with the addition of new materialsselected by an independent panel of experts. The company’s HQ is in New York.

Material ConneXion CologneLichtstrasse 43g50825 Köln, Germanywww.materialconnexion.de

Materialarchiv Switzerland

Collections aimed at the design-orientated pro-fessions. The objective is to interlink the individ-ual collections by means of a common onlinedatabase. The initiators are: GewerbemuseumWinterthur, Hochschule Luzern, Sitterwerk St. Gallen, Zürcher Hochschule der Künste

www.materialarchiv.ch

Materialbiblioteket Sweden

Materialbiblioteket was established following twoyears of research and development work at theSwedish University for Art, Crafts and Design inStockholm. It provides expert information, a data-base and communication forums in connectionwith complex materials and material applications.Materialbiblioteket is based with its permanentmaterial exhibition at the Stockholm Design Cen-tre, a growing centre close to the centre of Stock-holm and the trade fair site.

MaterialbiblioteketTellusgången 4126 37 Hägersten (Stockholm), Swedenwww.materialbiblioteket.se

Material libraries, exhibitions and databases

64

Materialsgate Germany

The technology agency, Materialsgate, has beenup and running since 2000 and it offers a servicefor the online researching of the technical charac-teristics of materials by using so-called materialcards. The company has main offices in Dieburgand Munich and regards itself as a facilitatorstanding between the research, technology andapplication fields.

MaterialsgateGrenzstrasse 22a64807 Dieburg, Germanywww.materialsgate.com

matériO France, Belgium, Spain

matériO is an independent information centre formaterials and innovative products with branchoffices and permanent exhibitions in Paris, Antwerpand Barcelona.

matériO Paris74, rue du Faubourg Saint-Antoine75012 Paris, Francewww.materio.com

Modulor Germany

More than 20 years ago Modulor was establishedas a small specialist enterprise for architecturalmodel construction material. Today it is the no. 1in Europe, supplying everything that creativeheads required for the construction of models,prototypes and for providing samples. Materialscan be selected and accessed via and onlineshop or a catalogue with detailed descriptionsalso being supplied. All materials can also besearched and purchased in the outlet based inBerlin-Kreuzberg. For 2011 an extensive materialslibrary is also being planned for the future “PlanetModulor” to be sited in Kreuzberg’s Moritzplatz.

Modulor GmbHGneisenaustrasse 43-4510961 Berlin, Germanywww.modulor.de

Ravara Sweden

Ravara is a platform for materials and innovativetechnologies that are aimed towards designers andarchitects. The company operates an online data-base and markets small series of material samples.

RavaraGötaforsliden 17Kvarnbyn431 34 Mölndal (Göteborg), Swedenwww.ravara.se

Raumprobe Germany

Raumprobe runs a materials database and main-tains a permanent exhibition in Stuttgart boastingmore than 10,000 material samples.

raumprobe OHGHohnerstrasse 2370469 Stuttgart, Germanywww.raumprobe.de

Stylepark Germany

Stylepark provides information about contempo-rary designs via an extensive online service, a prod-uct database and the quarterly published StyleparkMagazine. The service (which also encompassesthe possibility of researching materials) is aimed atarchitects, developers, interior designers and otherdesigners as well as end customers with an interestin design matters.

Stylepark AGBrönnerstrasse 2260313 Frankfurt am Main, Germanywww.stylepark.com

Material exhibition at

Innovathèque in Paris

(Source: Innovatheque)

a Achilles, Andreas: “Glasklar – Produkte undTechnologien zum Einsatz von Glas in derArchitektur”, Deutsche Verlagsanstalt, 2003.

a Ambrozy, H. G.; Giertlová, Z.: “Holzwerkstoffe – Technologie, Konstruktion, Anwendung”, Springer-Verlag, 2005.

a Ashby, Michael F.; Johnson, Kara: “Materials and Design: The Art and Science of Material Selection in Product Design”, Butterworth-Heinemann, 2002.

a Bäuerle, Hannes; Stumpp, Joachim: “Raumproben2 – Aktuelle Materialien für Design und Architektur”, Callwey Verlag, 2009.

a Beylerian, George M.; Dent, Andrew; Quinn, Bradley: “Ultra Materials: How Materials Innovation is Changing the World”,Prestel Verlag, 2007.

a Beylerian, George M.; Dent, Andrew; Moryadas,Anita: “Material ConneXion: The Global Resourceof New and Innovative Materials for Architects,Artists and Designers”, Prestel Verlag, 2005.

a Braungart, Michael; McDonough, William: “The Next Industrial Revolution: The Cradle to Cradle Community”, European Publishing House, 2008.

a Hirsinger, Quentin: “Materiology – The CreativeIndustry`s Guide to Materials and Technologies”,Birkhäuser Verlag, 2009.

a Klooster, Thorsten: “Smart Surfaces – and theirApplication in Architecture and Design“,Birkhäuser Verlag, 2009.

a Lefteri, Chris: “Making It. London”, Laurence King Publishing, 2007.

a Lefteri, Chris: “Materials for InspirationalDesign“, Roto Vision, 2006.

a Lefteri, Chris: “The plastics handbook“, Rockport Publishing, 2008.

a Leydecker, Sylvia: “Nano Materials – Applica-tions of Nano Materials in Architecture andDesign“, Birkhäuser Verlag, 2008.

a Peters, Sascha: “Material Revolution – Sustain-able Multi-Purpose Materials for Design andArchitecture“, Birkhäuser Verlag, 2010.

a Peters, Sascha; Kalweit, A.: “Handbuch für technisches Produktdesign – Material und Fertigung“, Springer Verlag, 2nd edition, 2011.

a Ritter, Axel: “Smart Materials in Architecture andDesign“, Birkhäuser Verlag, 2006.

a Sauer, C.: “Made of ... New Materials Source-book for Architecture and Design“. Die GestaltenVerlag, 2010.

a Schmidt, Petra; Stattmann, Nicola: “Unfolded: Paper in Design, Art, Architectureand Industry“, Birkhäuser Verlag, 2009.

a Thompson, Rob: “Manufacturing Processes forDesign Professionals“, Thames & Hudson, 2007.

a Zijlstra, Els: “Materia – Material Index 2009“,Architectenweb bv, 2009.

Appendix A – Specialist Literature

modulor, Berlin

65

66

Be it vases made of algae fibre, wall paper made oftree bark, coffins made of almond shells or bikeframes made of bamboo, the world of materials isabout to experience a decisive change. At the latestafter it became clear that fossil fuel resources shalldwindle in the coming decades and many raw mate-rials shall only be available in limited amounts, inten-sive work has been undertaken to find alternatives.The material achievements of the twentieth century,which are mainly owed to crude oil, will lose in theirimportance in the near future. The awareness of theenvironmentally sound treatment of materials andthinking in material cycles have reached consumersmeaning that investment in sustainable products isnow profitable. The use of environmentally soundmaterials with multifunctional properties and theimplementation of sustainable production proce-dures are already expected by society.

The book gives a brief overview of sustainabilityaspects for designers and architects concerning theimportant issues. At the same time it not only coversnatural and biodegradable materials, but also mate-rials with multifunctional properties (e.g. thermo -chromic glasses or surfaces that purify the air) as wellas the potential to reduce the amount of energy used(e.g. lightweight construction and phase changingmaterials).

In the sustainability discussion designers and archi-tects bear a particular responsibility because theyare often the ones, who select the materials used inmany development projects. As such they have adecisive influence on the sustainability of our prod-uct range. The book is written in a confident manneras regards style and content that supports thedesigners´ and architects’ way of thinking and work-ing. It also makes important references to materialqualities and uses of material techniques as well aswhat is offered by the manufactures.

It is shown that the design factor is currently of greatimportance for companies in the industrial com-modities sector by the results of the research project“Markenbildung durch Industrial-Design: Konzeptefür kleinere und mittlere Investitionsgüterhersteller”(brand identity through industrial design: conceptsfor small and medium sized capital good manufac-turers). From 2007 to 2009 this project was spon-sored by the Stiftung Industrieforschung and wascarried out by the research group “Industrial –Design and Innovation Management” at the Euro-pean Business School’s Strascheg Institute for Inno-vation and Entrepreneurship.

However, many industrial enterprises still neglectproduct design. Nevertheless, in recent years com-panies, such as Bosch, Festo, Gildermeister, Heidel-berg, MAN and many others, have proven thatdesign is of great importance precisely in the sectorof industrial commodities. This does not only applyto the development of new product solutions, butalso to the general development of the companybecause design positively influences the perceptionof quality, the willingness to pay a set price, the suc-cess of innovation, the brand strength, thus also theturnover and profit of industrial enterprises.

“Material Revolution – Sustainable Multi-Purpose Materials for Design and Architecture,” by Sascha Peters, Birkhäuser Verlag, 2010

“Strategisches Industriegüterdesign“ (Strategic design of industrial commodities), by Guenter E. Moeller, Christof Herrmann, Ronald Gleich and Peter Russo, Springer Verlag, 2009

67

The book assesses these exact challenges andreveals ways for a new and strategic-orientatedunderstanding of design in industrial enterprises.Starting with a comprehensive overview of the cur-rent state of research and practice, the authors pres-ent numerous cases studies, in which industrialenterprises use strategic design to increase theirown power of innovation and growth. For this purpose important methods, instruments and pro -cedures are presented so that a practitioner ofindustrial commodity design could consistentlyimplement them in his own company.

One of the case studies is the company Angell Dem-mel that was established in 1998 as a joint venturebetween Angell Manufacturing and the DemmelGroup with the goal of producing high-quality trimsmade of metal for the inside of vehicles. Thanks toinnovative design, material and production solu-tions, the Angell Demmel GmbH quickly became themarket leader for metal application in the autoindustry.

“Angell-Demmel can be regarded as an excellentexample for a strategic innovation and design man-agement because it is precisely the association ofthe technological know-how and design compe-tence that has evoked the company´s enormousgrowth since its establishment in 1998,” accordingto Prof. Roland Gleich, Academic Head of theresearch project “Markenbildung durch IndustrialDesign im Industriellen Mittel-stand” (Brand identity throughindustrial design in small andmedium-sized industrial enter-prises) and Managing Director ofthe Strascheg Insistute for Inno-vation and Entrepreneurship atthe European Business School,Oestrich-Winkel.

Design

a Darmstadt University of Applied Sciencesa University of fine arts Kassela The Offenbach College of Design a Academy Rhine-Maina Academy of visual arts Frankfurt

Architecture

a University of Kassela Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences a Technical University of Darmstadta Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences

Materials Courses at Hessian Colleges

a University of Kassela Technical University of Darmstadta Justus-Liebig-University Giessena Philipps-University Marburga Giessen University of Applied Sciencesa Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences

Appendix B – Courses of Study for Design, Architecture and Material Sciences in Hessen

Appendix C – Contact Details of the MaterialManufacturers and Creative Service ProvidersReferenced

68

Alfred Clouth Lackfabrik GmbH & Co. KG

Otto-Scheugenpflug-Strasse 263073 Offenbach am Main, Germany

Alexander EisenacherPhone +49 (0)69 89007-0alexander.eisenacher@clou.de

www.clou.de

Architonic AG

Müllerstrasse 718004 Zürich, Switzerland

Nils BeckerPhone +41 (0)44 297-2020becker@architonic.com

www.architonic.com

Atelier Rang

Höhenstrasse 16 –1860385 Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Prof. Wolfgang RangPhone +49 (0)69 949456-0mail@rang-volz.de

www.atelier-rang.de

BASF AG

E-EDK/BP – H 20167056 Ludwigshafen, Germany

Dr. Stephan M. Altmann Phone +49 (0)621 60999-72stephan.altmann@basf.com

www.micronal.de

Bayer MaterialScience AG

Building K13, Room 032 D51368 Leverkusen, Germany

Thomas BraigHead of The EcoCommercial Building Program – Region EMEACorporate Development – New BusinessPhone +49 (0)214 30-23810thomas.braig@bayermaterialscience.com

Eckart FoltinHead of Creative CenterPhone +49 (0)214 30-53052eckard.foltin@bayermaterialscience.com

www.bayermaterialscience.com

Bayer Sheet Europe GmbH

Otto-Hesse-Strasse 19 /T964293 Darmstadt, Germany

Dr. Norbert PingelPhone +49 (0)6151 130-3102norbert.pingel@bayersheeteurope.com

www.bayersheeteurope.com

BDA im Lande Hessen e.V.

Landessekretariat Braubachstrasse 10 /1260311 Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Prof. Dr. Manuel CuadraPhone +49 (0)69 283156landessekretariat@bda-hessen.de

www.bda-hessen.de

Biowert Industrie GmbH

Ochsenwiesenweg 464395 Brensbach /Odwald

Dr. Michael GassPhone +49 (0)6161 877006m.gass@biowert.de

www.biowert.de

69

Cabot Nanogel GmbH

Industriepark Höchst, Gebäude D 66065926 Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Georg GertnerPhone +49 (0)69 305-29331georg_gertner@cabot-corp.com

www.cabot-corp.com

Caparol Farben Lacke Bautenschutz GmbH

Rossdörfer Strasse 5064372 Ober-Ramstadt, Germany

Dr. Stefan KairiesPhone +49 (0)6154 71-0 stefan.kairies@caparol.de

www.caparol.de

Design Planet

Hausener Strasse 263165 Mühlheim am Main, Germany

José DelhaesPhone +49 (0)6108 7967-0info@designplanet.de

www.designplanet.de

Deutsche Bank

Mainzer Landstrasse 10–1260325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Dr. Thomas RüschenGlobal Head of Asset Finance & Leasing

www.deutsche-bank.de

Deutsche Telekom AG, Laboratories

Design Research LabErnst-Reuter-Platz 710587 Berlin, Germany

Prof. Dr. GeschePhone +49 (0)30 8353-58357gesche.joost@telekom.de

www.designresearchnetwork.org

Dominique Perrault Architecture

6, rue Bouvier75011 Paris, France

Phone +33 (1)44060000dpa@d-p-a.fr

www.d-p-a.fr

DuPont de Nemours (Deutschland) GmbH

Hugenottenallee 173–17563263 Neu-Isenburg, Germany

Thomas WernerPhone +49 (0)6102 18-2767 thomas.werner@dupont.com

www.dupont.com

Dura Tufting GmbH

Frankfurter Strasse 6236043 Fulda, Germany

Stefan HohmannPhone +49 (0)661 82-394stefan.hohmann@dura.de

www.dura.de

Dykerhoff AG

Dyckerhoffstrasse 765203 Wiesbaden, Germany

Dr. Klaus DrollWilhelm Dyckerhoff InstitutPhone +49 (0)611 676-1740klaus.droll@dyckerhoff.com

www.dykerhoff.com

EDAG GmbH & Co. KG

Reesbergstrasse 136039 Fulda, Germany

Reinhard BolzPhone +49 (0)661 6000-681reinhard.bolz@edag.de

www.edag.com

70

EPEA Internationale Umweltforschung GmbH

Trostbrücke 420457 Hamburg, Germany

Prof. Dr. Michael BraungartPhone +49 (0)40 4313-490 braungart@epea.com

www.epea.com

European Business School (EBS)

International University Schloss ReichartshausenWiesbaden /RheingauEBS Campus RheingauRheingaustrasse 165375 Oestrich-Winkel, Germany

Professor Dr. Ronald GleichStrascheg Institute for Innovation and EntrepreneurshipPhone +49 (0)6723 8888-310 ronald.gleich@ebs.edu

www.ebs.edu

Evonik Degussa GmbH

Rodenbacher Chaussee 463403 Hanau-Wolfgang, Germany

Dr. Joachim LeluschkoLeiter des Geschäftsgebiets High Performance Polymersjoachim.leluschko@evonik.com

Creavis Technologies & InnovationPaul-Baumann-Strasse 145772 Marl

Dr. Frank Weineltsmart coatingsPhone +49 (0)2365 49-9337frank.weinelt@evonik.com

Dr. Nicolas RudingerbiotechnologyPhone +49 (0)2365 49-2337nicolas.rudinger@evonik.com

www.evonik.com

Evonik Röhm GmbH

Kirschenallee64293 Darmstadt, Germany

Dr. Günter SchmittDirector – New Business DevelopmentPhone 06151 18-3524guenter.schmitt@evonik.com

www.evonik.com

Fludicon GmbH

Landwehrstrasse 55Gebäude 864293 Darmstadt, Germany

Lucien JohnstonPhone +49 (0)6151 2798-800johnston@fludicon.com

www.fludicon.com

formvielfalt GmbH

Albert-Einstein-Strasse 164823 Gross-Umstadt, Germany

Thea RiemannPhone +49 (0)6078 9306-0t.riemann@formvielfalt.de

www.formvielfalt.de

Franz Carl Nüdling Basaltwerke GmbH + Co. KG

Ruprechtstrasse 2436037 Fulda, Germany

Dr. Werner TischerPhone +49 (0)661 8387-0werner.tischer@nuedling.de

www.nuedling.de

FIT Fraunhofer Institut für angewandte Informationstechnik

Schloss Birlinghoven53754 Sankt Augustin, Germany

Markus KlannPhone +49 (0)2241 14-2152markus.klann@fit.fraunhofer.de

www.fit.fraunhofer.de

71

G.tecz – German technologiesand engineering conceptz

Angersbachstrasse 12a–b34127 Kassel, Germany

Dr. Gregor ZimmermannPhone +49 (0)561 8617-555zimmermann@gtecz.com

www.gtecz.com

Glatt GmbH

Nordenstadter Strasse 3665207 Wiesbaden, Germany

Wolfgang HungerbachHollometPhone +49 (0)160 963-64676wolfgang.hungerbach@hollomet.com

www.hollomet.com

Hessen Design e.V.

Eugen-Bracht-Weg 664287 Darmstadt, Germany

Lutz DietzoldPhone +49 (0)6151 159-1911info@hessendesign.de

www.hessendesign.de

Hess Natur-Textilien GmbH

Marie-Curie-Strasse 735510 Butzbach, Germany

Rolf Heimannrolf.heimann@hess-natur.de

www.hess-natur.de

Hochschule für Gestaltung Offenbach

Schlossstrasse 3163065 Offenbach am Main, Germany

Prof. Peter EckartPhone +49 (0)69 800 59-168eckart@hfg-offenbach.de

www.hfg-offenbach.de

Hochschule Magdeburg-Stendal

Institut für Industrial Design am Fachbereich IWID39011 Magdeburg, GermanyProf. U. Wohlgemuth

www.gestaltung.hs-magdeburg.de

Ingo Maurer GmbH

Kaiserstrasse 4780801 München, Germany

Ingo MaurerPhone +49 (0)89 381-6060info@ingo-maurer.com

www.ingo-maurer.com

Jakob Winter GmbH

Graslitzer Strasse 1064569 Nauheim, Germany

Francesca WinterPhone +49 (0)6152 630730francesca.winter@jakob-winter.com

www.jakob-winter.com

Jürgen Mayer H.

Bleibtreustrasse 5410623 Berlin, GermanyPhone +49 (0)30 644 907700contact@jmayerh.de

www.jmayerh.de

Konstantin Grcic Industrial Design

Schillerstrasse 4080336 München, GermanyPhone +49 (0)89 5507-9995press@konstantin-grcic.com

www.konstantin-grcic.com

KSL Keilmann Sondermaschinenbau GmbH

Bensheimer Strasse 101 64647 Lorsch, GermanyRobert Keilmann

www.ksl-lorsch.de

72

Lekkerwerken

Moritzstrasse 4465185 Wiesbaden, Germany

Sebastian PedersenPhone +49 (0)611 34109932pedersen@lekkerwerken.de

www.lekkerwerken.de

Litracon Kft. (Ltd.)

Tanya 832 6640 Csongrád, Hungary

Áron LosoncziPhone +36 (0)30 2551648a.losonczi@litracon.hu

www.litracon.hu

Marburger Tapetenfabrik J.B. Schaefer GmbH & Co. KG

Bertram-Schaefer-Strasse 1135274 Kirchhain, Germany

Dieter BuhmannPhone +49 (0)6422 81-0buhmann@marburg.com

www.marbug.com

Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH

Ludwig-Erhard-Anlage 160327 Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Anja DietePhone +49 (0)69 7575-6290anja.diete@messefrankfurt.com

www.messefrankfurt.com, www.material-vision.com

Merck KGaA

Industrial Park Hoechst, F82165926 Frankfurt, Germany

Alexander BiebelLiquid Crystals DivisionPhone +49 (0)69 305-13705alexander.biebel@merck.de

www.merck-chemicals.com

Modulor GmbH

Gneisenaustrasse 42–4510961 Berlin, Germany

Andreas KrügerPhone +49 (0)30 690 36-200krueger@modulor.de

www.modulor.de

Dipl. Ing. H. Moldenhauer GmbH & Co. KG

Im Brückengarten 9a63322 Rödermark, GermanyPhone +49 (0)6074 1394

Möller Medical GmbH

Wasserkuppenstrasse 29-3136043 Fulda, Germany

Mario GatterdamPhone +49 (0)661 869 778-82mgatterdam@moeller-medical.com

www.moeller-medical.com

Nolte Küchen GmbH und Co. KG

Anni-Nolte-Strasse 432584 Löhne, Germany

Bernd WittkePhone +49 (0)5732 899-0b.wittke@nolte-hws.de

www.nolte-kuechen.de

Oscar Zieta

Wolfgang Pauli Strasse 15Postfach 207CH-8093 Zürich, Switzerlandinfo@zieta.pl

www.zieta.pl

Okalux GmbH

Am Jöspershecklein 197828 Marktheidenfeld, Germany

Christian SchwabPhone +49 (0)9391 900-0info@okalux.de

www.okalux.de

73

Rat für Formgebung (German Design Council)

Dependance /MessegeländeLudwig-Erhard-Anlage 160327 Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Helge AszmoneitPhone +49 (0)69 747486-32aszmoneit@german-design-council.de

www.german-design-council.de

Resopal GmbH

Hans-Böckler-Strasse 464823 Groß-Umstadt, Germany

Donald SchaeferPhone +49 (0)6078 80-0info@resopal.de

www.resopal.de

Rinspeed AG

Strubenacher 2–4Postfach 181CH-8126 Zumikon, Switzerland

Frank RinderknechtPhone + 41 (0) 44 918-2323

www.rinspeed.com

Schmitthut

Arheilger Strasse 5864289 Darmstadt, Germany

Susanne SchmittPhone +49 (0)6151 9678-430post@schmitthut.de

www.schmitthut.de

SCHOTT GmbH

Architecture & Design Otto-Schott-Strasse 255127 Mainz, Germany

Patricia AlterProduktmanager Lighting & VisualPhone +49 (0)6131 66-7830patricia.alter@schott.com

www.schott.com

SCHOTT Solar AG

Carl-Zeiss-Strasse 463755 Alzenau, Germany

Lars WaldmannPhone +49 (0)6023 911811lars.waldmann@schottsolar.com

www.schottsolar.com

Schunk Kohlenstofftechnik GmbH

Rodheimer Strasse 5935452 Heuchelheim, Germany

Dr. Ulrich RinglebPhone +49 (0)641 608-1492ulrich.ringleb@schunk-group.com

www.schunk-group.com

Seidel GmbH + Co. KG

Rosenstrasse 835037 Marburg, Germany

Frank BeinbornPhone +49 (0)6421 604-279frank.beinborn@seidel.de

www.seidel.de

SolarArt GmbH & Co. KG

Würzburger Strasse 9997922 Lauda-Königshofen, Germany

Armin HambrechtPhone +49 (0)9343 627690

www.solarart.de

Sunload Mobile Solutions GmbH

Ullsteinstrasse 10812109 Berlin, Germany

Ulrik SchönebergPhone +49 (0)30 7430487-0info@sunload.de

www.sunload.de

74

task [architekten]

Charlottenstrasse 110969 Berlin, Germany

Thorsten KloosterPhone +49 (0)30 6130-7727klooster@task-architekten.de

www.task-architekten.de

Technische Universität Darmstadt

Fachbereich ArchitekturFG Entwerfen und Energieeffizientes BauenEl-Lissitzky-Strasse 164287 Darmstadt, Germany

Prof. Manfred HeggerPhone +49 (0)6151 16-6544hegger@ee.tu-darmstadt.dewww.architektur.tu-darmstadt.de/ee

FG FluidsystemtechnikMagdalenenstrasse 564289 Darmstadt, Germany

Dipl.-Biologe Bernhard KöhlerPhone +49 (0)69 559327bk@space3.dewww.tu-darmstadt.de

TU Hamburg-Harburg

Institut für Kunststoffe und VerbundwerkstoffeNesspriel 5 (THF)21129 Hamburg, Germany

Daniel JarrPhone +49 (0)40 42878-8256daniel.jarr@tuhh.de

www.tu-harburg.de/kvweb

Universität Duisburg-Essen

Biofilm Centre, Aquatic BiotechnologyGeibelstrasse 4147057 Duisburg, Germany

Dr. Thore RohwerderPhone +49 (0)203 379-1589thore.rohwerder@uni-due.de

www.uni-due.de

Universität Kassel

Fachgebiet ArchitekturHenschelstrasse 234109 Kassel, Germany

Prof. Heike KlussmannPhone +49 (0)561 804-2380klussmann@asl.uni-kassel.dewww.asl.uni-kassel.de

Institut für Physik /Experimental-Physik IVHeinrich-Plett-Strasse 4034132 Kassel, Germany

Prof. Dr. Arno EhresmannPhone +49 (0)561 804-4060ehresmann@physik.uni-kassel.dewww.physik.uni-kassel.de

Universität Stuttgart

Institut für Tragkonstruktionen und konstruktives EntwerfenKeplerstrasse 1170174 Stuttgart, Germany

Markus GablerPhone +49 (0)711 685-83280m.gabler@itke.uni-stuttgart.de

www.itke.uni-stuttgart.de

100% interior

Stammheimer Strasse 11350735 Köln, Germany

Sylvia LeydeckerPhone +49 (0)221 736-383interior@netcologne.de

www.100interior.de

75

Pilot Projects in Hessen

The Pilot Project Division of Hessen Agentur pro-vides support and advice to small and mediumenterprises (SMEs) that wish to partner with othercompanies from the private sphere to realise tech-nology oriented projects requiring high levels ofresearch and development in collaboration with col-leges and research institutes.

Hessian pilot projects provide a framework withinwhich between 30 and 49 percent of eligible expen-diture arising from research and development pro -jects undertaken by consortia are sponsored. Thiscontribution must be co-financed by individual con-tributions from all members of the consortium sub-mitting the application. Within the Hessian pilot proj-ect framework there are currently three courses ofaction available:

1 The State-Offensive for the Development of Scien-tific and Economic Excellence with funding route 3:LOEWE-SME- group projects.

This funding programme is financed by the stateand falls within the remit of the Hessian Ministryfor Science and Art (HMWK). Funding is pro-vided for projects carried out by Hessian SMEsin collaboration with colleges and publicresearch institutes.

2 SME-Model- and Pilot projects for technologyoriented research and development SME collab-oration projects (with the possible involvementof public research institutes) primarily in Northand Central Hessen and the Forest of Odesregion. Funding from the European RegionalDevelopment Fund (EFRE) are available for this,which are co-financed by the State of Hessen. In this context Hessen Agentur acts as projectsponsor for the Hessian Ministry of Economics,Transport, Urban and Regional Development(HMWVL).

3 Model-like research and development projectsfocussed on the automotive sector. Fundingfrom the European Regional Development Fund(EFRE) are available for this, which are co-financ -ed by the State of Hessen. This programme isconceived as an augmentation of programme 2with a specific sector focus. The project sponsoris Hessen Agentur on behalf of the Hessian Ministry of Economics, Transport, Urban andRegional Development (HMWVL).

The first step towards funding is the submission of ashort, meaningful project outline to Hessen Agenturprior to the start of the funding programme. A formfor this is available for download at: www.innovations-foerderung-hessen.de

www.innovationsfoerderung-hessen.de

HA Hessen Agentur GmbH Renate Kirsch Project Manager for Production and Material Technology Abraham-Lincoln-Strasse 38–42 65189 Wiesbaden, Germany Phone +49 (0)611 774-8665, Fax -58665 renate.kirsch@hessen-agentur.de

Funding Opportunities and Contact Networks in Hessen

LOEWE — Landes-Offensive zurEntwicklung Wissenschaftlich-ökonomischer Exzellenz

(State-Offensive for the Development of

Scientific and Economic Excellence)

76

Hessen-Nanotech – the Nano Initiative

The Hessian Ministry of Economics, Transport, Urbanand Regional Development launched the NanoTechnology in Hessen initiative “Aktionslinie Hessen-Nanotech” in the year 2005. This initiative bringstogether and coordinates all economic and technol-ogy-based activities involving nano and materials-based technologies throughout the State of Hessen.The objective of the initiative is to promote Hessiancompetence in nano technology and related fieldssuch as surface technology, micro-system technol-ogy and optical technologies, both nationally andinternationally. The intention is to improve interna-tional competitiveness and innovative capability ofHessian science and economy through technologyand location marketing and the promotion of net-working. In particular the Nano Technology in Hes-sen initiative supports networking between technol-ogy providers and users. Specific focal points arethose areas of application strongly developed inHessen – the automotive, chemical, pharmaceutical,biotechnological sectors as well as medicine, con-struction, environment and energy engineeringtogether with information and communications tech-nologies.

Hessen-Nanotech is working with NanoNetzwerk -Hessen on the interfaces to the nano sciences. Thestate-owned Hessen Agentur GmbH (HA) is the proj-ect sponsor of the initiative.

www.hessen-nanotech.de

Hessian Ministry of Economics, Transport, Urban and Regional DevelopmentSebastian Hummel Kaiser-Friedrich-Ring 7565185 Wiesbaden, Germany Phone +49 (0)611 815-2471, Fax -492471 sebastian.hummel@hmwvl.hessen.de

HA Hessen Agentur GmbH Alexander Bracht (Project Leader Hessen-Nanotech) Markus Lämmer Abraham-Lincoln-Strasse 38–4265189 Wiesbaden, GermanyPhone +49 (0)611 774-8664, Fax -8620 alexander.bracht@hessen-agentur.de www.hessen-agentur.de

NanoNetzwerkHessen

The NanoNetzwerkHessen (NNH) was founded inMarch 2004 with the support of the Hessian Stategovernment with input from the State’s five universi-ties and five universities of applied sciences, with aview to launching a tightly focused innovatively ori-ented collaborative effort in the nano science sectoron the basis of a cooperative agreement. The NHHaims to pool the existing competences at Hessianhigher education institutions, initiate collaborativeefforts and to expand and enlarge Hessen’s role as anano technology centre. The University of Kasselcoordinates the NNH. Researchers from the physics,chemical, biological, pharmaceutical, medical andmaterial sciences as well as the various engineeringand humanities faculties are working on nano tech-nology within Hessen’s higher education institutions.It is exactly this penetration by the classical disci-plines that is significantly increasing the innovativepotential of this science and creates excellent start-ing conditions for collaboration within the State ofHessen. A broad spectrum of technologies currentlyare currently represented within Hessen’s institutesof higher education extending from nano-scale andnano-structured raw materials as well as nano system

engineering, through nano-medicine, nano materialchemistry, nano biotechnology right up to nanoanalysis. A combination of scientists, developers andusers could therefore already carry out research anddevelopment in these areas during the pre-compet-itive phase thereby bringing the main players,resources and activities into contact. Not only doesthis provide networked parties access to comple-mentary resources, it also creates a stronger linkbetween the science and the economic applicationthan was previously the case, which contributes to amore rapid implementation of nana-technologicalknowledge in products, production processes andservices.

www.nanonetzwerkhessen.de

NanoNetzwerk Hessen (NNH) c/o Uni Kassel Dr. Beatrix Kohnke (Leitung der Geschäftsstelle) Christoph Schmidt (Projektmanager) Mönchebergstrasse 1934109 Kassel, Germany Phone +49 (0)561 804-2219, Fax-2226 management@nanonetzwerkhessen.de

NanotechHessen

77

Sources

a Bergmann, G.: “Die Kunst des Gelingens – Wegezum vitalen Unternehmen“, Sternenfels, 1999.

a Bergmann, G.: “Innovation“. Friedrichshafen:Kiel Verlag.

a Bonsiepe, G.: “Interface – Design neu begreifen“,Mannheim: Bollmann Verlag.

a Booz Allen Hamilton: “Innovationsstudie. Global Innovation 1000“. 12 /2006.

a Dörner, D.: “Die Logik des Misslingens“, Hamburg: Rowohlt.

a Duddeck, H.: “Die Sprachlosigkeit der Inge-nieure“, edited by Duddeck, H.; Mittelstraß, J.,Opladen: Leske + Budrich Verlag.

a Höcker, H.: “Werkstoffe als Motor für Innovationen – Gibt es eine Kluft zwischen Werk-stoffentwicklung und Umsetzung in innovativeProdukte?“ München: Fraunhofer Verlag, 2008.

a Lotter, W.: “Die Gestörten“. brand eins 5 /2007,Hamburg: brand eins Verlag.

a Peters, S.: “Nanotechnology and productdesign“, essay in the book “Nano Materials –Applications of Nano Materials in Architectureand Design“, Basel: Birkhäuser Verlag 2008.

a Peters, S.: “Das Jahrzehnt der Materialien – VomTechnologie- zum Innovationsstandort dank professioneller Kreativer“, speech on the confer-ence: Creative Industries – Made by Design,Welterbe Zollverein, Essen, October 16, 2008.

a Peters, S.: “Revolution der Materie“. form 226,Basel: Birkhäuser Verlag, 2009.

a Peters, S.: “Die Bedeutung von Designern fürtechnische Innovationsprozesse“. 3. SymposiumIndustrie-Design Dresden, 17. / 18. April 2009.

The volumes of the publication series Hessen-Nano tech on the following page provide compre-hensive information about the potential for innova-tion and fields of application for developmentsfrom the fields of nano- and materials technology.

78

Band 1 Einsatz von Nanotechnologie in der hessischen UmwelttechnologieInnovationspotenziale für Unternehmen

Uses of Nanotechnology in Environmental Technology in HessenInnovation potentials for companies

Band 2 NanomedizinInnovationspotenziale in Hessen für Medizin technik und Pharmazeutische Industrie

Band 3 Nanotechnologie im AutoInnovationspotenziale in Hessen für die Automobil- undZuliefer-Industrie

Nanotechnologies in AutomobilesInnovation Potentials in Hessen for the Automotive Industry and its Subcontractors

Band 4 NanoKommunikationLeitfaden zur Kommunikation von Chancen und Risiken der Nanotechno logien für kleine und mittelständischeUnternehmen in Hessen

Supplement zum Leitfaden NanoKommunikationInnovationsfördernde Good-Practice-Ansätze zum verantwortlichen Umgang mit Nanomaterialien

Band 5 Nanotechnologien für die optische IndustrieGrundlage für zukünftige Innovationen in Hessen

Band 6 NanoProduktionInnovationspotenziale für hessische Unternehmen durch Nanotechnologien im Produktionsprozess

Band 7 Einsatz von Nanotechnologien in Architektur und Bauwesen

Band 8 NanoNormungNormung im Bereich der Nanotechno logien als Chance für hessische Unternehmen

Band 9 Einsatz von Nanotechnologien imEnergiesektor

Nanotechnology Applications in the Energy Sector

Band 10 Werkstoffinnovationen aus HessenPotenziale für Unternehmen

Band 11 Sichere Verwendung von Nanomaterialien in der Lack- und FarbenbrancheEin Betriebsleitfaden

Band 12 Nanotech-KooperationenErfolgreiche Kooperationen für kleine und mittlere Nanotechnologie-Unternehmen

Band 13 Mikro-Nano-IntegrationEinsatz von Nanotechnologie in der Mikrosystemtechnik

Band 14 Materialeffizienzdurch den Einsatz von Nanotechnologien und neuen Materialien

Band 15 Nanotechnologie in KunststoffInnovationsmotor für Kunststoffe, ihre Verarbeitung und Anwendung

Band 16 NanoAnalytikAnwendung in Forschung und Praxis

Band 17 Nanotechnologie für den Katastrophen-schutz und die Entwicklungszusammenarbeit

Nanotechnologies for emergency management and development cooperation

Band 18 Material formt ProduktInnovations- und Marktchancen erhöhen mit professionellen Kreativen

Materials shape ProductsIncrease Innovation and Market Opportunities with the Help of Creative Professionals

Band 19 Patentieren von Nanotechnologien

Atlas Kompetenz- und InfrastrukturatlasNanotechnologien in Hessen

Competence and Infrastructure Atlas Nanotechnologies in Hessen

Atlas Kompetenzatlas Photonik in Hessen

Competence Atlas Photonics in Hessen

Information /Download /Orders:www.hessen-nanotech.de/veroeffentlichungen

BROCHURE SERIES

Nanotechnologien im AutomobilInnovationspotenziale in Hessen für die Automobil- und Zuliefer-Industrie

Hessisches Ministeriumfür Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklung

www.hessen-nanotech.de

Hessen Nanotech

Hessisches Ministerium für Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklung

www.hessen-nanotech.de

Einsatz von Nanotechnologienin Architektur und Bauwesen

Hessen Nanotech

Hessisches Ministeriumfür Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklung

www.hessen-nanotech.de

Einsatz von Nanotechnologienim Energiesektor

Hessen Nanotech

Hessisches Ministeriumfür Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklung

www.hessen-nanotech.de

Sichere Verwendung von Nano materialien in der Lack- und FarbenbrancheEin Betriebsleitfaden

Hessen Nanotech

Hessisches Ministeriumfür Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklung

www.hessen-nanotech.de

NanoAnalytikAnwendung in Forschung und Praxis

Hessen Nanotech

Hessisches Ministeriumfür Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklung

www.hessen-nanotech.de

Hessen Nanotech

Material formt ProduktInnovations- und Marktchancen erhöhen mit professionellen Kreativen

Nan

otec

hH

esse

n

Hessisches Ministeriumfür Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklung

www.hessen-nanotech.de

NanoProduktion Innovationspotenziale für hessische Unternehmendurch Nanotechnologien in Produktionsprozessen

Hessen Nanotech

Hessisches Ministeriumfür Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklung

www.hessen-nanotech.de

Kompetenzatlas Photonik in Hessen

Competence AtlasPhotonic in Hessen

Hessen Nanotech

Project executing organisation of the AktionslinieHessen-Nanotech of the Hessian Ministry of Economics,Transport, Urban and Regional Development

www.hessen-nanotech.de

www.saschapeters.com

NanotechHessen

DR. SASCHA PETERS