Marburg on the upswing: innovative strength secures the future of the region!

Marburg on the upswing: innovative strength secures the future of the region!

On March 18, 2025, Minister of State Kaweh Mansoori visited the city of Marburg to find out about developments at the innovation location and to understand its importance for the region. Marburg is internationally recognized as a renowned research, innovation and business location. Representatives from business, research and city administration emphasized the key role that the city, the university and the local pharmaceutical companies play in the regional and international competitive landscape. Mayor Dr. Thomas Spies underlined the fruitful cooperation between these actors and appealed to the state government in Wiesbaden to support Marburg as an innovation location financially and structurally in order to further promote its growth.

Marburg has established itself as a center for life sciences and biopharma, characterized by a dynamic research landscape and innovative strength. As part of the visit, Minister Mansoori spoke to various stakeholders about the extensive opportunities that Marburg offers and the necessary measures to support and strengthen the location. Prof. Dr. Thomas Nauss from the Philipps University of Marburg emphasized the university's responsibility towards the region and the need for support from the state. Nauss introduced the Center for Synthetic Microbiology (Synmicro), which produces groundbreaking research results in this field.

Research projects and infrastructure development

Another highlight of the visit was the exchange with Prof. Dr. Tobias Erb from the Max Planck Institute, who presented current research projects, including the Cluster of Excellence “Microbes4Climate”. These projects demonstrate Marburg's strength in the area of ​​scientific research and innovation. In addition, CSL Innovation pointed out the need for an open innovation ecosystem, which is crucial for the competitiveness of the location.

The operator of the pharmaceutical park, Pharmaserv, called for, among other things, support for the expansion of the infrastructure, especially for cycle paths and local public transport. A future-oriented concern is the implementation of renewable energies, but this requires investments and the recruitment of skilled workers. The business representatives also expressed the desire for a reduction in bureaucracy in order to intensify cooperation between the ministries.

Education and collaborations

Another central point of the conversation was the promotion of cooperation with schools in order to expand international offerings. State Minister Mansoori recognized the city's potential and promised further support and exchange between the actors. Marburg also aims to position itself as the preferred address for start-ups in the fields of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and life sciences. The Behring site is particularly important, as it acts as a production facility for companies such as GSK, Siemens, CSL and BioNTech, particularly in the development of vaccines and therapies.

The Philipps University of Marburg adapts its courses to the requirements of the labor market. In 2023, a new master's degree program in molecular biotechnology was accredited, which includes practice-oriented research offerings and collaborations with industry. In the future, school training for pharmaceutical-technical assistants will also start at the Adolf Reichwein School, which is moving from Frankfurt to Marburg in August 2024.

At the same time, joint marketing activities are planned for Marburg, which were also presented at the Expo Real in Munich. These initiatives aim to position the city as an attractive location for start-ups and skilled workers. A promising project is the planned transformation of the Berghof area in Marbach by Pharmaserv into an innovation hub with an area of ​​11,500 square meters for biotech and life science start-ups.

In summary, Marburg is on a promising path, with a variety of initiatives and collaborations that will further strengthen the innovation and research environment. A targeted focus on the development and equipment of innovation structures as well as harmonized cooperation between all those involved appear to be the key to the future success of the location. uni-marburg.de reports that the “Building Bridges” initiative has been promoting collaboration in specialist training and research since 2023. cslbehring.de highlights the importance of infrastructure for competitiveness. The mayor concludes by noting that the city's economic development will be beneficial for its citizens and takes a look at the development of Behring, which once started as a start-up and now makes a significant tax contribution.