Necessity is the mother of invention - this also applies to Johannes Bohnert, the managing partner of Bohnert Technik GmbH. After the family-owned sawmill in Hinterseebach was hardly able to earn any money any more, he and his team developed a roller press for drying residual saw timber and therefore was awarded the Innovation Prize of the State of Baden-Württemberg 2019. His company from the Black Forest received prize money of 20,000 euros. On a yearly base, the "Dr. Rudolf Eberle Prize" - is awarded to medium-sized companies for their outstanding developments and applications of new technologies.
With the mechanical roller press developed by Bohnert Technik GmbH, wood shavings or wood chips are squeezed in such a way that approximately half of the water in the wood is wrung out. In the subsequent drying process, the energy required for this saves around 50 times the thermal energy and around 2.5 times the electrical energy compared to thermal processes. Other wet materials such as coconuts or fermentation residues can also be pre-dried for pyrolysis.
Furthermore, Wellenzahl Radar- und Sensortechnik GmbH & Co. KG from Karlsruhe, Signatope GmbH from Reutlingen and Gutex Holzfaserplattenwerk H. Henselmann GmbH & Co. KG from Waldshut-Tiengen were awarded 10,000 euros each. Additionally, Hybrid-Airplane Technologies GmbH from Baden-Baden received the special prize of 7,500 euros from MBG Mittelständische Beteiligungsgesellschaft for innovations from young companies. Four other companies were honoured with an award.
"The state‘s economy is facing major challenges. Nevertheless, the will to invest in new ideas and their successful implementation clearly proves - we are managing well. The Innovation Award shows the enormous potential of our medium-sized companies in the state," said Dr. Nicole Hoffmeister-Kraut, Baden-Württemberg's Minister of Economic Affairs, Labour and Housing, at the award ceremony. Innovative ideas are absolutely necessary in order to survive within global competition. "Today more than ever, our future depends on our innovative strength. And the Innovation Award once again shows the range of technical innovations. There are both young companies with innovative ideas that create new momentum and dynamism, and established companies, some of which have been run by the same family for generations."
Read the full report here.
Further information on the Innovation Award of the State of Baden-Württemberg
