Jun 24 2015
At STARTUP WORLD – part of the LASER World of PHOTONICS trade fair in Munich, Germany – winners have just been announced in the two categories of the first-ever PHOTONICS Award.
The competition seeks to recognise the best product innovations from up-and-coming companies in a broad spectrum of optical technologies. The products entered by start-ups from all over the world this year address an array of application fields, from biophotonics and medical technology to optoelectronics and additive manufacturing.
A jury of experts chaired by Falk Strascheg evaluated all of the submissions before selecting finalists in two categories: the 3D Printing Award and the Photonics Technology Award.
The winners of both categories were then announced on Wednesday during the LASER World of PHOTONICS Forum. The corresponding awards ceremony began with opening speeches held by Dr. Reinhard Pfeiffer, deputy chairman of the Messe München International executive board; Thorsten Rudolph, CEO of Anwendungszentrum GmbH Oberpfaffenhofen; and Dr. Andreas Nitze, CEO of Berliner Glas Group.
The prizes for the competition's outstanding product innovations were presented by Dr. Ronald Mertz,Head of the Innovation, Research, and Technology Office of the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs and Media, Energy, and Technology.
FEMTOprint® 3D printing for glass microdevices wins 3D Printing Award
An innovative and promising 3D production system for glass microdevices took home the top prize in the 3D Printing Award category presented by Messe München International. This compact tabletop instrument offers 3D printing functions for manufacturing nanostructures in microsystem components using glass or other transparent materials. The technology involved uses precision lasers to assemble complex 3D microstructures, such as those needed for advanced medical equipment.
Nanolive's 3D Cell Explorer takes home Photonics Technology Award
The first prize presented in the Photonics Technology Award category of the PHOTONICS competition went to Nanolive SA, a start-up based at the EPFL Innovation Park (Switzerland). Founded in 2013, the company has developed a revolutionary microscope – the 3D Cell Explorer – which makes it possible to examine living cells in 3D without damaging them. For the first time, scientists will now be able to observe the inner workings of cells, including their nuclei and organelles.
The second and third place in the category 3D Printing Award went to the Swisslitho AG for NanoFrazor and the polish Sandmade for the LS ONE printer; and in the category Photonics Technology Award to the danish Norlase ApS for the AuroraOne laser and the US company 8tree LLc for dentCHECK®.
STARTUP WORLD: A new marketplace for innovation debuts at LASER World of PHOTONICS
The winners and finalists in the PHOTONICS Award competition will be exhibiting until 25 June at STARTUP WORLD, the new marketplace for innovations at LASER World of PHOTONICS.
Through this new trade fair platform and its corresponding innovation competition, Anwendungszentrum GmbH Oberpfaffenhofen and Messe München International are giving young companies the chance to raise their profiles at leading global events.
"In its very first year, STARTUP WORLD has already been a complete success," declares Dr. Reinhard Pfeiffer. "We're glad to see it resonate so well with people and are looking forward to implementing this new trade fair format along with AZO and our other technology conference partners."
"The impressive quality of the products submitted underscores just how innovative young companies can be," adds Thorsten Rudolph. "In cooperation with Messe München, we believe we're taking the first step towards establishing an international marketplace for high-tech start-ups at the world's top trade fairs."
The first STARTUP WORLD was sponsored by the Strascheg Center for Entrepreneurship gGmbH and the BERLINER GLAS GROUP.
For further information about STARTUP WORLD and the winners and finalists in this year's PHOTONICS Award competition, please visit www.start-up.world.