The Fraunhofer IAP’s PYCO research division has united its lightweight construction competencies, which were previously spread across several locations, under one roof in Wildau – the keys to the new building were recently handed over. This results in many advantages for industrial customers: In addition to laboratories for material development, the spacious premises also have room for manufacturing technologies for larger components. The Fraunhofer IAP thus offers complete solutions for lightweight construction from a single source.
Whether it’s for aerospace or the automotive sector, wind turbines or rail vehicles: The research division Polymeric Materials and Composites PYCO of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research IAP develops corresponding lightweight construction technologies with a focus on fiber composites based on duromer reactive resins, as well as thermoplastics that have to meet the highest demands. Whereas the technologies for synthesis, resin formulation, and component manufacturing were previously divided between two different sites in Teltow and Wildau, they were recently brought together under one roof – in a newly occupied new building at the Wildau site, where around 30 researchers are already working. The new office and laboratory buildings cover around 2,700 square meters and are equipped with state-of-the-art technology. The centerpiece of the Wildau Technical Center is, among other things, an impregnation plant that is modular in design and can be used for coatings, impregnation, and prepreg manufacturing. The new building was financed 80 percent by the European Regional Development Fund and ten percent each by the Federal Government and the State of Brandenburg.
“We now bring together all disciplines under one roof,” says a pleased Prof. Holger Seidlitz, who heads the PYCO research division, “and also have the spatial capacity for engineering disciplines. Our motto: From monomer to component — everything from a single source.” While the research division was previously heavily focused on materials science, the engineering perspective of lightweight construction is now also being incorporated: Pure material development was extended to include the manufacturing chain. Industrial customers are the main beneficiaries of this new relationship with components.
This expansion is also reflected in the organization chart: Prof. Christian Dreyer focuses on materials development in the “Tailored Materials” group, while Mr. Seidlitz takes the engineering perspective in the “Designs and Manufacturing” group - i.e. he devotes himself to lightweight construction designs, calculations, and manufacturing technologies, as well as test scenarios on components in large-scale format. In short: Engineers are able to work with partners and customers to develop parts and components for real-world applications. “With our solutions from a single source, we offer development for practical applications, something that industry in particular appreciates,” Seidlitz confirms.
In addition to heading the PYCO research division at the Fraunhofer IAP, Seidlitz holds a professorship at the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus - Senftenberg, i.e. in the “capital” of structural change in Lusatia. “The new location will allow us to play even closer to the Wildau-Cottbus axis in the future and offer a wide range of competencies,” says Seidlitz. “We will thus be able to support structural change activities even better than before.” The new location therefore offers numerous advantages, not only for research, but also for industrial partners and the region.
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