Bayer names 'Factory of the Future' boss
20 May 2011
Leverkusen, Germany – Dr. Thomas Bieringer is to take over as managing director of the INVITE GmbH research company, which works on new production concepts for the “Factory of the Future”, as of 1 July.
The PhD physicist succeeds Michael Lorenz , who led the Chempark Leverkusen-based technology centre since the joint venture between Bayer Technology Services (BTS) and Technical University Dortmund was established in 2010. The departing MD is assuming new duties at BMS’ industrial operations unit.
Bieringer, who obtained his PhD from University of Bayreuth in the field of optical data storage in polymers, has been working at Bayer since 1997, including Central Research, Bayer Technology Services and BMS. He has headed an innovation section within Bayer’s corporate development department since 2004.
As spokesman of Bayer’s ’innovation community’, he was involved in the strategic alignment of the research units of the Bayer subgroups. Bieringer has also worked to enlarge the network to research bodies and ministries worldwide. He also teaches innovation management at the University of Cologne.
Technical University Dortmund is one of Europe’s leading faculties for biological and chemical engineering, and has collaborates Bayer on R&D projects.
Both stakeholders of INVITE are participants in the F³ ((Flexible, Fast and Future Factory) initiative – a Euro30m EU research project coordinated by BTS. This project marks has linked 25 partners from industry and academia into a consortium dedicated to new technologies and production concepts.
“The consortium aims to strengthen the European chemical and pharmaceutical industry’s technological competence and global competitiveness in the long term through modular and more efficient and flexible production methods,” BMS explains.
