I studied at the Universities of Hanover and Göttingen, graduating with a master’s degree in chemistry, followed by a PhD in Macromolecular Chemistry at the University of Bayreuth. Since 2016, I've been working at Miele's R&D department in Bielefeld in the laboratory for rubber and plastics. Since the beginning of 2022, I'm main responsible for materials consulting in the field of elastomers for all Miele business units.
Elaheh Sedghamiz is a Senior Scientist in Schrödinger's Materials Science team, having earned her Ph.D. in computational chemistry from the University of Isfahan, Iran. Her Ph.D. research focused on molecular dynamics simulation of materials, highlighting her expertise in this area. During her three-year postdoctoral position at KIT, Karlsruhe, she developed a model to study the mechanical properties of crosslinked polymer networks obtained from 3D direct laser writing. Since joining Schrödinger in 2022, her research has centered around all-atom and coarse-grained MD simulation for different material groups.
I am 31 years old.
I did my engineering studies at the School of Chemistry in Strasbourg, specializing in polymers. Following my graduation, I further advanced my academic journey by completing a Ph.D. in Materials Science.
I have worked in Decathlon since 2022 in the Plastic & Composite department as a raw material engineer. My scope of work encompasses silicone elastomers, TPEs and polyurethane elastomers.
2014 - 2017 Apprenticeship as a process mechanic at BARLOG Plastics GmbH
2014 - 2019 Mechanical engineering studies in plastics technology
2017 - 2019 Employment as a process mechanic at BARLOG Plastics GmbH
2019 - 2022 Calculation engineer with a focus on component design and optimization using simulations at BARLOG Plastics GmbH
Since April 2022 Application Engineer at SIGMA Engineering GmbH
Daily tasks: Engineering projects, Training courses for our customers, Workshops for potential customer, Technical support for our customers, Development work for the ongoing improvement of our software
Nicola Latorraca is Head of Technical Management of Automotive & Thermoplastic Elastomers at Versalis
and has more than 15 years of experience in rubber sector, developing with passion different solution on
polymer production for Automotive non-tyre industry and Technical Goods application. He has held various
position in Cooper Standard Automotive and Versalis for EPR, NBR and TPR products for technical pre- and
post-sales activities. He is author of publications and joined some conference as speaker.
• 2011 – 2014 MSc studies of Chemistry at Technische Universität Darmstadt
• 2014 - 2020 PhD in Polymer Chemistry on Synthesis of dual responsive polymers and research transfer project on polymer additives
• 2020 – 2024 Product manager for Polymer modifications with Biesterfeld in Hamburg
• Since 2024 Market Development Manager for Technical Rubber Goods and Polymers with H&R
2005 - 2010: M.Sc. Chemistry (Universtit´a degli studi di Milano) 2010 - 2017: Different research position in Germany (Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster and Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg) Since 2017: ALLOD Werksoff GmbH & Co. KG
Joseph Scholes is the current Applications Development Chemist working on PCL (Capa) polyols serving the Elastomers market subsegment. Joe started his career at Lubrizol Advanced Materials (UK) working in both digital ink applications and hyperdispersant scale up in the first two years of his career prior to joining Ingevity in 2017. Since then, Joe’s work on developing the understanding of PCLs in PU elastomer systems and contributions to the applications labs have enabled the development of innovative solutions to market needs. Joe graduated with an MChem in Chemistry from Manchester Metropolitan University.
Dr. Aizeti Burgoa Beitia holds a PhD in Materials Science and Technology and has been working as a Polymers Technology Researcher at Leartiker since 2017. Her main research activities focus on the study of the thermomechanical behavior and durability of TPE materials. She currently leads R&D projects and activities related to the characterization, modelling and simulation of elastomeric materials and components, primarily for the automotive sector.
Sarah holds a PhD in chemistry from the Technion, Israel. She has previously held the Blavatnik Fellowship at Cambridge University, the role of Head of Chemistry at Photocentric Ltd and CTO of Polyfos 3D, showcasing her commitment to cutting-edge innovation. In 2021, Dr. Karmel joined RHEON Labs. In her current position as Chief Science Officer, she oversees the Future Technologies Function at RHEON Labs, focusing on the development of novel technologies, new materials and formats.
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Lennaert Klerk obtained a MSc in both Physics and Chemistry and a PhD in Analytical Chemistry from Utrecht University. Following this he made the move to Industry, first working at the resins business of DSM, then moving to AkzoNobel, where he had several roles first in the corporate analytical department, and later in a corporate open innovation role. In 2019 he joined Kraton as the European technical manager for Specialty polymers and since 2022 he is responsible for all product development activities for Kraton Polymers in Europe and India.
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Pratik A. Shah currently serves as Vice President, Engineering Plastics and Elastomers at Teknor Apex Company. He brings more than 20 years of experience in the high-performance polymers industry leading a strategic transformation of the global engineering compounds business. In addition to a proven track record of driving growth and profitability, Pratik is recognized for fostering innovation and commercializing advanced solutions across various sectors. Before joining Teknor Apex, Pratik held leadership positions at major engineering plastics producers, driving business development, marketing and strategic planning. Pratik holds a Master of Science in Plastics Engineering from the University of Massachusetts Lowell and a Bachelor of Technology in Polymer Engineering from the University of Mumbai.
Doctor in material science and technologies by the University of the Basque Country. After several years working for diverse R&D research centers focused principally in the development of polymers for batteries application, in 2018 joined Dynasol Group sited in Santander (Spain) working on the development and improvement of new styrene-butadiene block copolymers for the TPE compounds sector.
Satoshi Kamimura has his master’s degree in applied chemistry from Hiroshima Univiersity. In 2020, he joined Asahi Kasei Corporation, and now based in Dusseldorf office to provide technical support to customers. He is R＆D chemist responsible for developing new grades of hydrogenated styrenic thermoplastic elastomers.
Gaurav Kumar has over 20 years of experience in the polymer industry, wherein he has held various positions in Marketing, Sales and Technical groups. He graduated with a degree in Polymer Technology, and a MBA in marketing from NIBM (India). In his latest role he is associated with Avient Corporation, which he joined in year 2016, and is currently responsible for its TPE portfolio in EMEA. Before Avient, he spent 13 years in Application Development, Key account management, Product Development and Technical services at other Plastic Manufacturers.
Monika Kriete, 33 years old and based in Nuremberg, Germany. I’m currently working as Technical Marketing Manager for medical TPUs with Lubrizol. In this position I provide technical service to our medical TPU-customers in EMEA. This includes trials on-site to overcome processing challenges, consulting for material selection and workshops to deepen the knowledge about TPU’s unique characteristics.
Prior to this role I worked at Covestro for 5 years as a Process Development Engineer. I am holding a Master-degree in “Material Science” from TU Berlin and gained more practical experience in the field of polymers and composites during my student- time at Volkswagen AG, different Fraunhofer Institutes and Federal Institute for material testing (BAM).
SAlexander Schlede studied industrial engineering with a specialization in product engineering at the University of Duisburg-Essen. He gained experience in the manufacturing environment in the automotive industry at an OEM and suppliers as well as R&D regarding application engineering in the polymer industry. He is currently working at the Institute of Product Engineering as chief engineer of the department Engineering Design and Plastics Machinery and as research associate in the field of component and material testing.
Christoph Goegelein is working as a Principal Scientist at ARLANXEO Deutschland GmbH. He graduated in both Physics and Mechanical Engineering and received a PhD in Soft Matter Physics. Afterwards, Christoph stayed as a Postdoc at the Max-Planck-Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization in Goettingen and joined ARLANXEO in 2012. His current research focuses on rubber networks. He is a member of the German Physical Society and the IUPAC Subcommittee for Industrial Polymers.
Only a few people in the world share his level of composite knowledge. Dr. Alexander Chaloupka is a polymer expert at heart. After studying physics, he started his career at the Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology in Augsburg at the department of thermophysical & chemical analysis and rheology. Moving to the Analyzing & Testing Business of the NETZSCH Group he continued his professional journey. With 10+ years of experience in Research & Development, Sales and General Management, he founded sensXPERT in 2021, where he is running NETZSCH’s first Corporate Venture as CTO.
07/2019 Researcher and PhD student at the IPF working on the rheological behavior of thermoplastic elastomers
10/2018 Diploma thesis (materials science and engineering, TU Dresden) working on the rheological determination of material data and injection molding-relevant flow behaviour of copolymer-based TPE
10/2016 Practical work on the Characterization of the rheological properties and flow-induced morphology formation of thermoplastic elastomers based on SEBS-PP
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