IHK Technology Transfer Prize 2025: Clausthaler E-Bass delights the audience!

IHK Technology Transfer Prize 2025: Clausthaler E-Bass delights the audience!

On May 14, 2025, the 38th IHK Technology Transfer Prize was awarded at a festive event in the TRAFO Hub in Braunschweig. Tobias Hoffmann, President of the IHK Braunschweig, opened the gala. This year, three innovative best practice examples were selected for the competition by an expert jury. One of the finalists was the project “VARI process with natural fiber textiles: Spock – A new type of bass guitar” from Clausthal University of Technology.

The project team consists of Dr. Leif Steuernagel, Fabian Hartkopf and Carrie Schulz and works in cooperation with the renowned bass builder Gerald Marleaux. The newly developed bass guitar uses an innovative material, the “Marleaux Logic Mesh”, a composite of flax and synthetic resin that is manufactured in a special vacuum process. This material gives the instrument unique acoustic properties and allows for diverse design options. The jury also emphasized the international success of the electric bass model in the music world.

The winner and the prize

The winner of the prize was decided through live voting that took place during the event. The Clausthal team received great applause for their remarkable achievements. During the award ceremony, Dr. Steuernagel expressed his initial uncertainty about the competition, but was pleased and grateful about the win. University President Dr.-Ing. Sylvia Schattauer congratulated the award winners and highlighted the social added value of the project.

The prize, which is endowed with 10,000 euros, will be awarded fairly between Marleaux and Dr. Tax nail divided. Both have decided to invest the money in a 3D printer that will be used in an industrial project in the field of prosthetics. This shows the great importance of technology transfer for Clausthal University of Technology, which has received this award for the seventh time this year.

History of the Technology Transfer Prize

The IHK Technology Transfer Prize has been awarded by the Braunschweig Chamber of Commerce and Industry for almost 40 years. It honors outstanding achievements in the area of ​​transferring knowledge from research to industry. Historically, TU Clauthal has had previous award winners, including Dr.-Ing. Stephan Röthele (1985), Dr.-Ing. Susanne Mordike (1990), Dr. Joachim Hug (1995), Prof. Eberhard Gock (1998), Prof. Wolfgang Schade (2001) and Prof. Günther Frischat (2006).

The topic of technology transfer includes cooperation between business and science and takes many forms. These range from contract research to cooperative research to scientific reports. The subject areas that are covered are diverse and include technical disciplines as well as overarching issues such as market research and logistics, which of the Production development IHK is well summarized.

Cooperations with universities and research institutes offer companies an excellent opportunity to gain access to innovative ideas and technologies. Just that one Bonedo highlights the importance of technology transfer for the development of new products. These collaborations help to close gaps in research and development and make it possible to get to know potential employees from academia and integrate them into companies.

The awarding of the prize and the presentation of the projects as part of the event emphasizes the close connection between research and industrial practice and illustrates the social benefits of such innovative collaborations.