Interview with Christian Schmelzer

What were the highlights of 2024 for you in the “Biological and macromolecular materials” business division?

One particular highlight was the successful seed financing round for matrihealth GmbH, an innovative company founded in 2022 that specializes in the isolation and processing of elastin. With the seven-figure financing sum, provided by two well-known private investors and the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, matrihealth was able to start production in 2024, drive forward scaling and open up new market segments. Another highlight was the intensive exchange with our Industry Advisory Board. In two meetings, we discussed strategic issues, analyzed market developments and identified specific fields of action. The Advisory Board helps us to sharpen our strategic focus and address challenges at an early stage. Its input from various industries has had a decisive influence on our further development over the past year.

What portfolio does the business area have and what expertise can your customers benefit from?

We offer our customers in the medical, care, nutrition and environmental sectors comprehensive support in the development of future-oriented materials. We use our microstructural expertise to analyze and optimize materials down to the last detail and develop innovative, biofunctional solutions. Our services range from material characterization and active ingredient screening to the development of sustainable and highly specialized products. Through close cooperation with industrial partners, we combine the latest research with practical solutions and thus create real added value for our customers.

In the oral care sector, there is a trend towards the increased use of sustainable materials, from toothbrushes made of bamboo to mouthwashes with essential oils and toothpastes with plant extracts. How do you rate this?

The trend towards more sustainable materials in the oral care sector is an important step towards combining ecological responsibility with effective dental care. It is crucial that such materials are both functional and safe and guarantee a sustainable value chain. We have already implemented projects with well-known industry partners in this area, for example to develop bio-based polymers and innovative solutions such as probiotics for oral care. Another exciting area is personalized oral care, where we are working on approaches that enable products to be tailored to individual needs. In this way, we combine ecological and functional requirements and contribute to forward-looking innovations.

What are you looking forward to in the new year and what will be a particular challenge in 2025?

I am particularly looking forward to the commissioning of our new high-performance mass spectrometer arriving in January, which will enable us to take protein analysis to a new level. This device will enable us to further expand our expertise, which will not only drive our research forward, but will also benefit our partners and customers. The first few weeks will be exciting: from training staff to completing the laboratory and acquiring new projects, there is a lot to do. I see the current situation with public funding as a particular challenge. Funding new projects through public programs is becoming increasingly difficult, which requires innovative approaches and strategic partnerships in order to continue to be successful.