Alumni at Fraunhofer

Before Zarin Shakiabaei got her decisive chance as a scientist at the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Systems and Design Technology IPK, as an "international student" she had considerable problems implementing her research interests. This was mainly due to the fact that Shakiabaei is from a country that is subject to international sanctions. However, the IPK-Team recognised the potential of this ambitious scientist and took on the additional expense of extensive background checks and export control checks. At the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft Shakiabaei was not only given the opportunity to ask the question "What's next?" and to develop further as a researcher, but also learned to work on concrete problems and questions of companies in an application-oriented way.

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Dr.-Ing. Rodrigo Pastl wanted to "learn just a little German" when he came to Berlin from Brazil in 2013. He stayed for almost five years and fulfilled his greatest dream at the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Systems and Design Technology. Equipped with a "black belt" and the right mindset, he is now back home as a climate saver. He is an ambassador for the UNIDO economic program of the United Nations, optimizes biogas plants and he brings German technologies to the tropical region.

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A good and safe car does not necessarily have to be expensive and not necessarily equipped with a combustion engine. The manufacturer e.GO Mobile is turning the German car market upside down, a market previously dominated by traditionalists. Unlike well-known car brands, the young Aachen-based manufacturer concentrates primarily on production technology and thus manages to produce high-quality and affordable electric cars. Dr. Nils Klingbeil brings with him from his time at the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT know-how in additive manufacturing and as a process technologist in wire-based deposition welding. In an interview with Fraunhofer alumni, he explains what drives him, why he is fascinated by electromobility and what he has taken with him from Fraunhofer to his new mission as team leader for pre-development.

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Marcus Lehmann spent eight months at the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft headquarters in Munich from the end of 2011. Today he runs a company that could make a decisive contribution to humanity's energy supply in the future. The company CalWave Power Technologies Inc., which was co-founded by the Fraunhofer alumnus and which he also chairs as CEO, is developing a power plant that generates electricity from ocean waves. In comparison to wind or solar energy, this process offers various advantages. If the energy of all ocean waves could be captured it would be possible to produce the amount of energy that was consumed worldwide in the entire year of 2008. It is estimated that by 2050 up to 10 percent of Europe's electricity requirements could realistically be covered by energy from the sea.  

The power plants of the young Californian enterprise float under the ocean's surface some distance away from the coastline. This has several advantages: Unlike wind turbines, these plants are under water and thus not visible. They can produce energy even during storms and do not depend on sun and wind. Above all, however, the energy yields from these power plants can be reliably predicted over a long period of time. CalWave Power Technologies was runner up to the U.S. Department of Energy's Wave Energy Prize and is a project of Cyclotron Road, a start-up incubator from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.  

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Would you like to support a young team with your expertise and industry knowledge? Your company is interested in new developments and young talents? Or are you planning to set up a young company yourself? For former Fraunhofer employees and industry experts, the commitment to Fraunhofer technologies will become even easier. Together with Fraunhofer Venture, the central spin-off department of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, the Fraunhofer-Alumni e.V. offers its members numerous opportunities to get involved in start-ups at any time.

The program consists of an initial bootcamp followed by a two-stage support phase for the participants. These camps will take place three times a year.

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The 3rd Fraunhofer Alumni Summit began with the welcome speech in front of Aachen's landmark building. Touring the cathedral, the place of Charlemagne's coronation, the delegates attuned themselves to the varied two-day event programme and the exchange of interesting ideas. The alumni gained insights into current activities at Fraunhofer during their subsequent visit to the three Aachen-based Fraunhofer institutes – the ILT, the IPT and the IME. Researchers presented the latest interesting research projects concerning laser technology, additive manufacturing and industrial plant cultivation. Excited to see one another again, the delegates saw out the first day together at Aachen's Tivoli stadium, where lively discussions ensued.

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