VDMA's Photonics Forum appoints industry-focused steering committee

11 Dec 2013

Committee will define strategic direction for the photonics division of the German engineering group.

Industrial flavor: the VDMA's new photonics steering committee

High-ranking representatives from six of the most influential German companies and institutions active in photonics have been appointed to the new steering committee of the VDMA (German Engineering Association) Photonics Forum.

According to the VDMA, the nature of the committee will help to integrate it better with the needs of industry, while enhancing intra-association awareness and promoting the already strong position of photonics across both business and scientific policy in Germany.

The VDMA’s Photonics Forum comprises some 400 member companies and institutions that are active in the field, in applications ranging from photovoltaics to flat-panel displays.

The new six-strong committee, which will serve to define work programs and the future strategic direction of the forum, comprises:

• Stephan Geiger (Rofin-Baasel Lasertech GmbH & Co. KG)
• Dr. Rüdiger Hack (Laser 2000 GmbH)
• Dr. Susanne Heun (Merck)
• Dr. Michael Vergöhl (Fraunhofer IST)
• Dr. Thomas Rettich (Trumpf GmbH & Co. KG)
• Jürgen Valentin (NanoFocus AG).

Gerhard Hein, the head of the VDMA Photonics Forum, said of the appointments: “With this new, industry-led steering committee, we want to integrate the perspective of the industry even more directly into our activities and into the process of establishing the future fields of action of the forum.”

The organization, which publishes periodic data on the size and economic impact of the photonics industry, comprises a number of other VDMA-affiliated groups, namely:

• The German Flat Display Forum (Deutsches Flachdisplayforum, or DFF)
• The Industrial Image Processing Sector “Machine Vision” (Fachabteilung Industrielle Bildverarbeitung)
• The Working Group Lasers and Laser Systems for Materials Processing (Arbeitsgemeinschaft Laser und Lasersysteme für die Materialbearbeitung)
• The Micro Technologies and Components Association (Fachverband Mikrotechniken und -komponenten)
• The Organic and Printed Electronics Assocation (OE-A)
• The Working Group Photovoltaic Equipment (Arbeitsgemeinschaft Photovoltaik-Produktionsmittel)
• The Productronics Association [Electronic Production] (Fachverband Productronic [Elektronikfertigung]).

More than 500 companies and research institutions throughout the various supply chains involved are represented in the umbrella organization – of which some 400 members are primarily active in the field of photonics.