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LaNDER³ - News

15. June 2020

LaNDER³ once again brings millions in funding to Upper Lusatia

The start-up phase of the partnership was successfully evaluated and is also being funded by the BMBF in the intensification phase.

The thematic focus of the highly interdisciplinary partnership is on material, energy and process chains relating to natural fiber-reinforced plastics.

On May 20, shortly before 6 p.m., Prof. Dr. Jens Weber received an e-mail from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) on behalf of the LaNDER3 team - with good news! The start-up phase of the LaNDER3 joint project has been positively evaluated and recommended for further funding. When the four-year start-up phase ends in December 2020 and the intensification phase starts in 2021, the BMBF will provide a further €4,800,000 as a planning framework until the end of 2024.

Looking back: In 2016, the HSZG was one of 10 universities of applied sciences to win the LaNDER3 joint project out of 80 other applications, making it the only university of applied sciences in eastern Germany to receive funding as part of the BMBF's "Strong universities of applied sciences - impetus for the region" (FH-Impuls) funding measure.

The overarching goal of LaNDER3 is to establish a vibrant network with regional roots in Lusatia with the aim of holistic material and technology development in the field of natural fiber-reinforced plastics (NFRP).

LaNDER3 stands for: Lusatian natural fibre composites, decentralized energy, raw materials, resources, recycling. Living and producing at the industrial level of the 21st century with what nature has to offer - natural fibers, biopolymers, circular economy and renewable energies - this is how the project stakeholders see the future. In line with this vision, the first years of the start-up phase were used to work on research projects, establish a new network, anchor it locally and nationally and make it visible.

The LaNDER3 partnership has its scientific basis at the HSZG and is strengthened by cooperation with regional and national companies as well as associations, societies and scientific partners. It pools technical expertise, brings together stakeholders from business, science and society, researches and breaks new ground, thus providing impetus for the region and the university.

The thematic orientation of the highly interdisciplinary partnership with a focus on the material, energy and process chains around natural fiber-reinforced plastics will basically remain the same in the intensification phase from 2021, but will be expanded to include the topics of consumables and additive manufacturing, among others. Many of the partners who have accompanied and actively shaped the partnership to date will remain part of the LaNDER³ consortium. New partners are also coming on board - further institutions have pledged their support.

The cooperation already begun with the transfer network of the five Saxon universities of applied sciences (Saxony5), which is also funded by the BMBF as part of the Innovative University funding program, is to be continued synergistically in the intensification phase.

Prof. Dr. Jens Weber looks to the future with optimism:

 "Thanks to the LaNDER³ partnership, the Zittau/Görlitz research location has visibly increased its scientific potential and significance as a driver of innovation for the region. LaNDER3 offers support for structural change in Lusatia and, together with traditional companies and start-ups, opens up new innovative business areas and products, which should ultimately also be reflected in new jobs. The partnership makes a direct contribution to environmental and climate protection. Last but not least, it increases the attractiveness of the HSZG for students: Students can participate in the projects as assistants and thus directly link theory and practice. The transfer of the results into teaching makes it lively and up-to-date - and also shows the opportunities offered by the regional economy of Upper Lusatia!"
Further information

News from the BMBF: Good news for FH-Impuls: All partnerships evaluated positively

Original version of this article on hszg.de

Photo: Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Jens Weber
Partnerschaftssprecher
Prof. Dr. rer. nat.
Jens Weber
j.weber(at)hszg.de
Faculty of Natural and Environmental Sciences
02763 Zittau
Külzufer 2
Building Z VI, Room 01
First floor
+49 3583 612-4705
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