Dear Readers,
The state intervention in the energy and economic system and the associated structural change in the Upper Lusatia region continue to increasingly shape our research environment. The attempt to transform traditional industries that secure prosperity into fossil-free industries also presents us with a variety of challenges.
We see maintaining the skills of our employees, developing them further and applying them to new areas of application as a key to success. Furthermore, our institute is intensively involved in the qualification of specialists, the promotion of innovations and the strengthening of regional networks. Through targeted research projects and collaborations, we are helping the Zittau/Upper Lusatia region to build on its strengths and prepare for future challenges.
All of this goes hand in hand with the need to continuously adapt and expand our existing practical research facilities, our laboratories, in order to open up new horizons for research. In this context, our current efforts to develop a new location for us in Lusatia together with other research institutions are not commonplace and are therefore particularly worth mentioning. In the coming years, the research campus for a greenhouse gas-neutral circular economy (CircEcon)
will be established in the Schwarze Pumpe industrial area and will shape the long-term future of sustainable development in this traditional industrial region.
We cordially invite you to read our annual research report to find out about our work, projects and successes in the eventful past year.
Yours sincerely
Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Tobias Zschunke
Institute Director