PRESS RELEASE

DITF honored with JEC Composites Innovation Award

Hermann Finckh (DITF) and Andreas Kisselbach (Leitz GmbH & Co. KG) presenting the JEC Composites Innovation Award. Photo: Leitz
Award-winning planer cutter in extremely lightweight construction. Photo: DITF
    Dipl.-Ing. Hermann Finckh

    Deputy Head of Competence Center Staple Fibers, Weaving & Simulation
    Head of Numeric Simulation

    T +49 (0)711 93 40-401

Paris, 8.2.2024 - Hermann Finckh received the prestigious award in the category Equipment Machinery & Heavy Industries for the innovation MAXIMUM WEIGHT REDUCTION OF COMPOSITE TOOLS. The research team from the German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research Denkendorf (DITF) developed a new modular cutting tool for woodworking machines, which was produced and successfully tested by the industrial partner Leitz GmbH & Co. KG.

The extremely lightweight planing tool was made from carbon fiber-reinforced plastics (CFRPs) instead of aluminum using a completely new modular construction principle. As a result, it weighs 50 percent less than conventional tools. It enables significantly higher working speed, which enables a one-and-a-half-fold increase in productivity. The development of the extreme-lightweight principle was performed by numerical simulation and every solution was virtually tested in advance. A patent application has been filed for the concept.

JEC World in Paris is the most important trade fair of composites materials and showcases the entire value chain of the composites industry. Each year, the JEC Group recognizes the most innovative and creative projects that demonstrate the full potential of composites through the prestigious JEC Composites Innovation Awards.