Small size - large impact - Nanowerk

SusTech Darmstadt offers each partner an ideal platform
to pursue joint efforts; as such, it is the ideal foundation
for successful development in a cross-disciplinary field
such as chemical nanotechnology. Given that foundation,
the partners can focus on the second challenge of
selecting and elaborating on the most attractive
development projects. Rather than in a evolutionary,
step-by-step manner, research is conducted in a highly
coordinated way; all the various aspects are considered
by a variety of different experts in a timely manner.
Developments in any new technology take their time;
a long time-to-market can be anticipated, hence the
respective activities must be separated from the usual
business activities. University and research institutes’
start-up companies offer the necessary expertise and
perspective for such long-term activities; and the
necessary seed- and venture-capital financing decreased
dramatically over the past few years, particularly for
activities in chemical nanotechnology.
Large investments in sophisticated research equipment
can handicap young start-up companies: either supporting
technology consumes all the capital gathered in the
first and second financing round, or the developments
are carried out ineffectively. Yet within the network of
universities and research institutes, equipment and
infrastructure are readily available and may indeed be
working at less than capacity. Furthermore, the running
costs of state-of-the-art equipment are extremely high
and normally not covered by a start-up’s operating budget.
As with every new kind of material, the question of
manufacturing and production costs will arise sooner
or later. The earlier these aspects are considered, the
more likely a successful transfer of basic developments
into commercial products will be. In addition to
classical expertise in chemistry, physics and materials
science, expert involvement in engineering, processing
and formulation technology is mandatory.
Given all these parameters, chemical nanotechnology is
far more than just the development of some kind of new
material. Researchers must work on all the steps of the
development chain and need a comprehensive overview.
This challenge offers access to a broader business model
where materials are an integral part of the end product,
not a small item on the far end of the value chain.
Establishing an organization to cover all these of
integrated development issues yields a platform which,
in turn, bridges the development gap between basic
research and industrial product development. For
some 25 years, that gap has been widening in light
of increasing sophistication in basic development and
focus on very basic activities. Further, industrial product
development is increasingly driven by short-term
business requirements. A problem arises on both sides
of this gap. Researchers at universities and institutes
lose their handle on real-life applications, and experts
in industry have few breakthrough innovations.
Needless to say, there are various models of cooperation
between academia and industry which are well
established. Ranging from direct cooperation to public
funded joint activities, and the spin-off and start-up
companies which may have been acquired by bigger
partners and strategic venture capital over the past
few years, a greater number of spin-out activities from
industry are tapping into unused technologies and
developments. Depending on the partners and the
objectives, there will be a unique approach to
organising the activities.
Within the framework of such a public-privatepartnership,
SusTech Darmstadt successfully develops
new products and technologies based upon functional
materials and/or chemical nanotechnology. It took only
some four years for the company to implement a new
bonding technology for the accelerated adhesion of
plastic parts in the automotive industry. Actually, this
step is one of the typical bottlenecks in car manufacturing;
it limits the application of plastic parts and demands
parallel set-ups and large investments. Developments
in this field covered all the different production aspects
– from materials to products, processes to technologies
– and their speed and quality clearly proved the
effectiveness of the partnership.
As a second example, SusTech Darmstadt also developed
a class of innovative oral care products which effectively
reduce the sensitivity of hypersensitive teeth caused by
receding gums, a widespread problem among the ageing
population of western societies. Classical treatments
range from polymeric sealants applied by the dentists,
to precipitation of low soluble inorganic salts or
desensitizers in oral care products. Those methods
promise neither durability nor convenience, and overall,
the problem is treated in a less than a natural manner.
Scientists at SusTech Darmstadt developed a new
material which simulates the composition of natural
material such as teeth and still has the activity to induce
a process called “neomineralization”. Upon treatment
with oral care products containing the biocomposite
material Nanit®active, a natural process is induced and
furthered. The resulting closure of exposed dentin tubuli
leads to a remarkable reduction in hypersensitivity.
Independent double blind clinical trials against a positive
standard have proven its superiority, and initial products
will be launched in 2005.
Clearly, the basic requirement for any of those developments
is a perceivable benefit for the customer. An increased
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