1. September 2009: Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) / OSRAM Opto Semiconductors

Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ

Research to protect our natural environment
Researchers at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) are investigating the causes and effects of the far-reaching changes to our environment. In this way, they are developing concepts and processes to help conserve our natural environment for future generations. In the area of environmental technologies, the UFZ specializes on decentralized water treatment systems and uses new processes and monitoring technologies to conduct research on the ground and on groundwater. A further focus is groundwater decontamination and the development of decontamination technologies using microorganisms.

Tapping water resources and knowledge about water
In many countries, access to clean water is not a matter of course. Plants can clean wastewater with their rhizospheres, but more knowledge is still needed about these processes. The researchers at the UFZ are investigating how rhizospheres work, with their complex interactions between plants, microorganisms and contaminants. Since decentralized wastewater treatment using constructed wetlands is cost-effective and simple to implement, this method has great potential for developing and emerging economies.

Integrated water resource management for the Jordan river
In the catchment area of the Jordan river in the Middle East, drinking water is in short supply. In the SMART project (Sustainable Management of Available Water Resources with Innovative Technologies), which is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, UFZ researchers are working together with partners from Jordan, Palestine and Israel. They are trying to find ways of using the region's limited water resources in a sustainable way.

 

OSRAM Opto Semiconductors / Siemens AG

OSRAM: A visit to one of the world's leading lighting manufacturers
OSRAM belongs to the Industry sector of Siemens AG and is one of the two leading lighting manufacturers in the world. Its subsidiary, OSRAM Opto Semiconductors GmbH in Regensburg, offers its customers solutions based on semiconductor technology for the illumination, sensing and visualization sectors.

Research on tomorrow's sources of light
OSRAM Opto Semiconductors develops light-emitting diodes (LEDs) amongst others, a technology that will, in future, contribute to saving energy in a targeted way. In theory, the use of highly-efficient LEDs could almost halve the amount of energy used for lighting. To create even more energy-efficient components, the researchers of OSRAM from the fields of chip, converter and package development have joined. The efficiency of LEDs has been increased significantly thanks to a new chip technology: now, an LED lamp only consumes 8 watts to produce the brightness of a 40W bulb.

Winner of the German Future Prize
OSRAM Opto Semiconductors works together closely with German and international institutes and universities and is involved in international funding projects. As a result of one of these partnerships, the company won the 2007 "German Future Prize - the Federal President's Award for Technology and Innovation". OSRAM and the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering (IOF) in Jena were given this award for the development of a particularly high-performing and efficient LED.