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Fraunhofer Venture
Newsletter
- Managing director - Questions and Answers
- Spin-off Profile
- Current News
- Trainings and Workshops
Coping With Obstacles?! Views of a Managing Director
Katrin Petersen, managing director of Prolupin GmbH, a spin-off of the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV in Freising, Germany, talks about her experience as a managing director.
The company's business activities focus on the manufacturing and marketing of purely vegetable, lactose-free milk-replacement products from blue sweet lupines. With the processing technologies developed by Fraunhofer IVV and Prolupin GmbH researchers, it is possible to adapt the lupine proteins flavor profile in such manner as to achieve a milk-like taste. This enables the production of delicious foods from lupine proteins that are able to offer the taste value of milk products to those suffering from lactose intolerance or a milk allergy. Possible products include, besides ice cream, lupine milk, and pudding, also yogurt and curd.
Ms. Petersen, you are the managing director of Prolupin GmbH. How did you acquire this position?
The company was founded in 2009. Due to the acquisition of venture capital, Prolupin GmbH was in the position to establish a management level. As far as I am concerned, I have been familiar with the cultivation and utilization of lupines since 2005 through the research association "PlantsProFood". The result was that I was offered to support the realization and implementation of Prolupin GmbH in the position of managing director. And I was very happy to accept that challenge.
Would you please briefly explain the Prolupin GmbH innovation. What are the differences to other producers?
The topic bears great potential and I am convinced that in the context of health as well as of environmental and climate protection high-quality vegetable products will gain increasing significance. Our LUPINESSE ice cream impressively shows the advantages. Instead of milk ingredients, the ice cream contains the high-quality protein of domestic blue sweet lupines. LUPINESSE ice cream has a convincing, extraordinarily creamy taste and is milk-protein, lactose, gluten and cholesterol-free.
To what extent are you still connected to Fraunhofer Venture? How exactly did Fraunhofer Venture support you?
Fraunhofer Venture actively and efficiently supports Prolupin GmbH with its know-how. It covers everything from simple questions of how to draw up a contract to complex business-management and market economy considerations.
What do you like best as a managing director?
The variety of tasks and duties is a challenge. Prolupin GmbH covers the entire process chain: from contract cultivation, seed reprocessing, extracting the essential proteins to selling the products. I am prepared to familiarize myself with new topics and want to be actively involved in shaping the processes. This is what makes the work as managing director particularly attractive for me.
What was the most important task since the foundation of Prolupin GmbH?
Consumers are almost completely unaware of Prolupin as a company as well as of the LUPINESSE brand. Thanks to the close cooperation with Fraunhofer and the intensive collaboration with EDEKA, we were able to realize many things in the first business year. It is motivating to see that our market entry in 2011 was successful and that we were very close to our economic targets already in the first business year.
What have been the greatest challenges since you have started to work for Prolupin GmbH from your personal point of view?
The great challenge was to coordinate all the processes that came thick and fast. In 2011, we witnessed an impressive development taking into account that we had commissioned our production facilities at the Neubrandenburg site no earlier than in January. So we also had to make important decisions for building a 'sustainable' team of employees. We were able to cope with these great challenges because we set about implementing solutions with technical know-how and the necessary self-confidence.
Would you confirm or deny the statement that everybody with a good idea could venture into self-employment or what are in your opinion the prerequisites that someone who wants to found a company must have?
Most important are the founders' and managing directors' ambition and know-how as well as a persistent enthusiasm to believe in the idea.
What are the goals of Prolupin GmbH for the next years?
Next year, we will be producing lupine proteins on a larger scale. The demand for vegetable foods exists and the community of consciously living people is very big. Our aim is to further conquer the German and the European market with a larger product variety.
Looking back: Are you glad you took this step?
I would be prepared to take that step again.
Ms. Petersen, thank you very much for the interview.
Spin-off Profile
Greasoline GmbH - Fuel from Waste Fats
Since the failed attempt of establishing E10 fuel on the German market, the discussion about "filling up the bio way" has been omnipresent. For years, scientists have been doing research on how to win fuel without the use of fossil fuels. Researchers of Fraunhofer UMSICHT have now succeeded in developing a procedure providing for the production of high-quality biofuel from waste fats and oil residues. The great advantages of this process: The raw materials used do not compete with food supplies in any respect and are available in large quantities and short-term – and all with reduced CO2 emissions. With the support of Fraunhofer Venture, the scientists founded Greasoline GmbH in August 2011 for the purpose of marketing this patented technology.
With the application of this technology, high-quality fuels may be produced from bio-based oils or fats of any quality without the need for hydrogen or conventional catalysts. Greasoline's so-called waste-to-fuel process, therefore, allows for using numerous alternative substitute materials of unlimited natural resources such as for example algae. Furthermore, residual materials may be utilized whose cultivation does not compete with the cultivation of foods. The chemical process is as follows: At a temperature of more than 400°C and by means of activated carbon, the raw materials used are transformed into hydrocarbons with a composition corresponding to the chemical compounds of conventional fuels such as gasoline, diesel, or liquid gas – eliminating the need for retrofitting the engines.
The team's successful participation in the Climate-KIC Venture Competition awarding promising concepts focusing on climate, energy, and sustainability again proves that this innovative technology is convincing. The promising start-up was able to win the German preliminary competition in September 2011 and came in fourth among the European-wide competition. Over the next years, the Greasoline team intends to focus on further developing its technology and entering the European as well as international markets. Fraunhofer Venture will continue to support the start-up.
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Current News
German Future Award: Two Fraunhofer Start-Ups Nominated
On August 27, 2011, Federal President Christian Wulff announced the three nominees for the final round of the German Future Award 2011 at IdeenExpo in Hanover. The presented projects deal with future topics such as mobility, energy production, environmental protection and conservation of natural resources. Among the nominees are also two Fraunhofer start-ups.
Nominated for the German Future Award 2011, the award of the Federal President for technology and innovation, are:
- Novaled AG, a spin-off of the TU Dresden and the Fraunhofer IPMS, with their project: "Organic Electronics - More Light and Energy From Ultra-Thin Molecular Layers"
- Soitec Solar GmbH, a spin-off of the Fraunhofer ISE, with their project: "Bundled Sunlight - Used Efficiently"
- Daimler AG with their project: "6D Vision - Recognizing Dangers Earlier Than Humans"
The jury will announce its decision on December 14. Federal President Christian Wulff will present the German Future Award 2011 to the winning team during the award ceremony.
Growth From new Ideas - bwcon Is Looking for Innovative Concepts
To give a solid base to innovative ideas, a business plan as the central communications and management instrument is essential. The bwcon Hightech Award CyberOne managed to develop into the central business plan contest of the high-tech industry in Baden-Württemberg. More than 650 innovative business concepts have been assessed by the expert CyberOne jury since its founding.
This year, the jury will again award start-ups and medium-sized high-growth companies from all technological industries in Baden-Württemberg who set new standards and revolutionize the markets with innovative concepts and strategies. The CyberOne is a trend measuring instrument creating a platform for knowledge exchange and valuable contacts.
Since October 10, you may register without obligation and gain a first overview of the online competition tool. So upload your business plan today. Use the login on the right side and with your individual password you will have access to your documents to edit and optimize them step by step until January 9, 2012.
Kick-off for the Munich Business Plan Competition 2012
The way from an idea to financing is not always easy. But for innovative start-ups, evobis provides a comprehensive "navigation aid". The first step is a good business plan. Participants of the Munich Business Plan Competition, therefore, again have the possibility in 2012 to receive feedback from successful entrepreneurs and investors in order to find an answer to the question: How strong is my start-up position? Throughout the three-stage competition, the participants are intensely supported with the development of an optimum business plan - and have the chance to win a total of more than 50,000 euros in cash!
The due date for stage 1 is January 31, 2012; prior to that, free workshops on how to draw up a business plan are offered. The current evobis program focusing on coaching and financing also starts in fall. Individual coaching, the training program, and related events help start-ups to significantly increase their chances for success with investors and on the market.
German Equity Forum in Frankfurt on the Main from November 21-23, 2011
From November 21-23, 2011 the 16th German Equity Forum will take place in Frankfurt on the Main. Deutsche Börse and the KfW bank group have been organizing the German Equity Forum since 1996. With more than 5,000 participants from the financial community, German and international entrepreneurs as well as investors and analysts, the 3-day event has become Europe’s largest platform for equity capital financing.
The exhibition and presentations of companies looking for equity capital and of financial intermediaries will again constitute the forum's core. They present their business activities and products and inform about the expected future prospects for business development. Companies have the possibility to campaign for an investment and profitable contacts at their own booths and to present their company to a large circle of investors in individual presentations.
The event in particular addresses unlisted, fast-growing companies, listed companies from the Prime Standard, investors/analysts/venture capitalists/private equity investors as well as financial service providers.
Trainings and Workshops
bwcon: Creative Financing Day in Stuttgart on November 29
For founders and entrepreneurs from the creative industry, the way to sources of financing that really fit is often long and exhausting: low equity capital and missing securities, a specific need for capital and business models that are difficult to assess are the reason why traditional capital providers often rate creative concepts as insecure investments that carry risk.
For this reason, unconventional financing solutions for the creative industry are in the focus of the bwcon: Creative Financing Day: What are the possibilities of micro credits, crowd funding platforms, etc.?
While the morning is reserved for presentations explaining different financing options, the participants are invited to get actively involved in the selection of topics and the definition of the flow for each 60 minute session in the afternoon.
WakeUp! Networking Breakfast in Munich on December 15
WakeUp! is a network event of Munich Network. Each WakeUp! is dedicated to a specific topic. An expert will share his knowledge and personal experience with the participants in a 20 minutes presentation. All participants will introduce themselves and will also have the possibility to exchange their own experiences, ideas and perspectives with respect to the topic of the day.
Are you looking for capital or cooperations? Then you may want to present your enterprise at WakeUp! During each WakeUp!, 3 companies have the possibility to present their company and concern in a 3 minutes pitch with a maximum of 3 slides.
The fee for non-members is EUR 30.00 incl. 7% VAT. Munich Network members will be charged EUR 25.00 incl. 7% VAT.
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