Fritz Studer Award 2017 - Innovative Grinding Technologies

STUDER, one of the market and technology leaders in cylindrical grinding, awards its research prize, the "Fritz STUDER Award", for the fifth time. Applicants from several European countries have submitted their work.

The Fritz Studer Award is aimed at graduates of European universities and technical colleges. Creative ideas and solutions in the area of the machine tool industry are targeted.

"The goal behind the research award is, on the one hand, feasible solutions and ideas which strengthen the innovative power of the machine tool industry and, on the other, our desire to use this award to promote young scientists and technicians," states Dr.-Ing. Frank Fiebelkorn, Head of Product Development, Research and Technology Fritz Studer AG.

The work sent in for this Award should specifically focus around the following topics:

- Innovative machine concepts or components for machine tools for precision machining

- Alternative materials in mechanical engineering

- Simulation models for the dynamic and thermal behaviour of machine tools - Control and sensor concepts for machine tools

- New or advanced manufacturing techniques, especially in hard fine machining, such as grinding, hard turning, etc.

Several studies, master theses and dissertations have been received by STUDER. The work has been evaluated by an expert jury. The jury consists of the professors Prof. Dr. Konrad Wegener, Institute for Machine Tools and Production at the ETH Zurich, Dr.-Ing. Hans-Werner Hoffmeister, Head of Production Engineering at the Institute of Machine Tools and Production Technology of the TU Braunschweig and Dr.-Ing. Frank Fiebelkorn, Head of Product Development, Research and Technology at Fritz Studer AG.

But how were the various entries evaluated? "Criteria were for example the feasibility to implement the idea in the machine tool industry, the novelty and quality of the idea , the scien-tific content and form as well as the correctness of the statements and results", explains Prof. Dr.-Ing. Konrad Wegener.

"Many of the works received were of very high quality, the ideas very good and of high innovative strength," confirms Dr.-Ing. Hans-Werner Hoffmeister. The decision was therefore not an easy one to make.

The winner is Dr.-Ing. André Wagner from the Leibniz Institute for Materials-Oriented Tech-nologies - IWT Bremen. He convinced the jury with the topic "Fine grinding of gears with elastic grinding wheels".

His work deals with the grinding of gears with elastic grinding wheels. This process improves surface finish during the finishing process, has a very low risk of thermal damage and, more-over, does not require any additional finishing process down the line.

“I did not expect this decision. I am delighted that my work has been honoured to this extent ", says Dr.-Ing. André Wagner at the handover of the Fritz Studer Award and the check in the amount of CHF 10'000.-.