A festive gala with ephemeral works of art, amusing experiments, live music to dance to and the starting signal for the largest investment in TITK history - that was the anniversary event "30+3 years of TITK = 70 years of research institutes in Rudolstadt-Schwarza" on Friday evening (August 9) in the Bad Blankenburg town hall. After the celebration of the 30th anniversary in the Corona year 2021 fell victim to the pandemic, it was finally possible to make up for it. And with 200 guests - including more than 150 employees and other participants from business, science and politics - it turned into a very entertaining evening.
This was mainly due to the show program, which was kicked off by sand painter Iryna Bilenka Chaplin in a fascinating way. She conjured up artistic pictures on her light table, which gradually formed a whole and just as quickly gave way to new motifs. In front of the astonished eyes of the visibly moved audience, she told the story of TITK's roots, which go back to Thüringer Zellwolle AG in 1935, the founding of the predecessor institute ITC in 1954 and its re-establishment as TITK after German reunification, right up to the present day. At the end, there was an outlook on a major project that has been prepared with determination and was officially launched on Friday evening - the establishment of a new innovation center for textile circular economy - named DICE. With funding of no less than eight million euros and total expenditure of around 11.5 million euros, this is the largest single investment in TITK's history to date.
"Your concept has been proofed - and it has passed the test. That's why I can announce today that we can launch this innovation center. And I am sure you will be successful," concluded Thuringia's Minister of Economic Affairs Wolfgang Tiefensee, before handing over a funding decision worth millions to TITK Director Benjamin Redlingshöfer, Head of Department Philipp Köhler and his deputy Dr. Katrin Römhild to great applause.
In his speech, the TITK Director had previously referred to the milestones in TITK's history and thanked all former and current colleagues most sincerely for their contribution and their part in the success of the past years. Redlingshöfer emphasized that the courage to change and the will to look ahead will also be needed in the future in order to create something new together. "That's why we are now looking forward to the DICE innovation center to develop solutions for practical, holistic textile recycling. Within a very short space of time, over 60 companies, including Adidas, Vaude and Head, have pledged their support for this project. This means that business-oriented research is making a further significant contribution to the transfer of research results into innovations available on the market," says Redlingshöfer.
District Administrator Marko Wolfram and the Mayor of Rudolstadt Jörg Reichl also contributed warm words of welcome, both of whom emphasized the importance of the TITK as a location factor in the city triangle.
After the eagerly awaited "storm" of the buffet, things got entertaining and fast-paced once again. The evening's presenter - singer and entertainer Hendrik Püschel - announced the "Physikanten". With them, the audience experienced an informative two-man science show, during which there was also a lot of crashing and hissing. Last but not least, the evening was of course also an opportunity to get up and dance. The event band Annred, who alternated with Hendrik Püschel on stage, provided the best conditions for this.
