Daniel Tyrkas is the director of automotive solutions at the regional headquarter EMEA of Mitsubishi Chemical. He drives collaboration, innovation, and solutions across all business units of Mitsubishi Chemical EMEA to meet customers’ needs across multiple automotive segments and material classes. Daniel received his master’s in mechanical engineering/Dipl.-Ing. from the Friedrich Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg. His studies focused on plastics, composites, processing, manufacturing, and design engineering. Previously, Daniel worked as business development manager automotive at the carbon fiber and composites division of Mitsubishi Chemical, focussing on materials and processes that enable high volume manufacturing of CFRP-composite parts. Before joining Mitsubishi Chemical, Daniel has held various technical and commercial positions within the plastics/composites/automotive industry ranging from technology consulting to sales and marketing director, engineering, application, and business development, contributing to the success of companies like Altran, General Electric Plastics and SABIC. Daniel has gathered more than 19 years of experience in composites and other high-performance materials and components, mainly in the automotive industry.

Marcel Remp studied electrical engineering in Munich from 1999-03. From 2007-09 he graduated as a master of business administration (MBA) with a focus on marketing management at Reutlingen University. After studying at the University of the Federal Armed Forces in Munich, Marcel served as an officer and company commander in the German Bundeswehr (1995-08). From 2002-07 he worked as a development engineer in body development and exterior development at the BMW Group in Munich. From 2008 he moved to the SGL Group and held various leadership positions in the field of lightweight construction with fibre-reinforced plastics parts. Since 2015 he has been responsible for the automotive and mobility strategy development for Mitsubishi Chemical, coordinating the composite material strategy worldwide.

Luca graduated in Industrial Chemistry at the University of Turin joined the Plastic Materials Engineering team in 2015 with a Master Thesis in Green materials and technologies. Today, inside Stellantis Plastics Materials Engineering in EMEA Region, he manages materials engineering and innovation activities for aesthetic and high-performance plastics with a focus on Bio and Recycled materials. Luca is also managing activities within EU-funded Projects.

Marcel Boucheny is a marketing coordinator and executive assistant to the CEO at Danish-based additive manufacturer Addifab. He has an educational background in international security and American politics. He is passionate about technology and security, and how the two can improve society. He believes that additive manufacturing (AM) has a big influence in this area, and that combining AM with injection moulding truly can create novel products/parts. 

Dr. Christof Kujat studied chemistry at the University of Hannover (Germany) and Stanford University (California, USA). He received his PhD in organic chemistry in March 2007, title: “Studies towards the total synthesis of Ripostatin A & B.” Since June 2007, Christof has worked for BASF in Ludwigshafen, Germany. The first five years of his career at BASF, he worked in the field of nanotechnology, focussing on surface modification and compounding of nanoparticles, later on focussing on printed electronics. Afterwards, he was responsible for global pigment development for industrial and decorative coatings. As of July 2021, Christof began his current position as head of global technical industry management, pigments for plastics within BASF Colors and Effects.

Dr. Bruno Poretta was born and grew up in the Piedmont region, where he graduated from the faculty of chemistry of the University of Torino. Early on in his career, he developed a passion for rubber applications and for the rubber industry in general. More in particular, Bruno focussed his attention on the development of new and innovative rubber compounds, always with a focus on final product characteristics and specifications. Bruno had the opportunity to develop strong experience on various applications and markets, thanks to his experience in multiple companies, including Pirelli Group, Trelleborg Group, and the Oldrati Group, where he currently holds the position of materials senior manager and is in charge of developing both theoretical know-how and application-driven development for Ogreen, the sustainable rubber.

Ashok M. Adur has earned a Ph.D. in Polymer Science & Engineering and trained in Executive Entrepreneurship. He has over 40 years of success in R & D, business development, marketing and general management at chemical, plastics and paper companies. He has published 13 papers in professional journals, presented over 75 papers at professional conferences and filed 75 patent applications resulting in new annual business of over $2.5 billion. He has been honored as a Fellow of the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE). As a consultant at Everest International Consulting (LLC) Dr. Adur has expertise in plastics, polymers, elastomers, composites, packaging, microencapsulation & specialty products. He is considered an expert in polymer compounding and plastics recycling, particularly in compatibilization of multi-component systems and developing strategies for intellectual property issues in polymers and plastics.

After graduating in industrial design at Politecnico of Torino, Alessandro was employed as an interior designer engineer and HMI expert in Fiat Research Center from 2004-11. From 2011-13 he was project manager and performance engineer in FCA for the new Fiat 500X. From 2013-16, he was project manager and performance engineer in Modena for Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio, and in 2016 and 2017 he was global product manager for Alfa Romeo.

Since 2017, Alessandro has been global product manager in Roechling Automotive (fluid solution department) and he follows products related to bio polymer and autonomous driving.

Filipe Pinto Loureiro was born in Paris, France, and has been working in the automotive industry for the last 25 years. First as a motorsport journalist and editor for national and international press and TV outlets, attending events such as the Dakar, World Rally Championship, Formula One, World Touring Car Championship, 24 Hours of Spa, 24 Hours of Le Mans, and 24 Hours of Nürburgring.

For the last eight years, he has been working for mould manufacturers in Portugal, India, and Thailand, having been the founder and director of a joint-venture company in India. As a global sales manager, he has been working in markets such as USA, México, Romania, India, France, Spain, Germany, Norway, and Morocco.

With experience in corporate communication, PR, and marketing, Filipe is the global sales manager for a Portuguese-based tooling company in the moulding cluster in Marinha Grande.

Francesco Gobbo is the technical and sales reference in Italy, Spain, Portugal, and France for MS Ultraschall Technologie with headquarters in Spaichingen. Specifically for the ultrasonic welding, technical development is a fundamental prerogative for every type of solution because every project is unique and tailor-made. Francesco received his master's in electronic engineering/Dipl.-Ing. from the University of Udine and from the ESIEE of Paris – Marne-La-Vallée. His strong passion for joining plastic parts derives from the union of mechanical and electronic skills and from a complete training on plastics, starting from 2008. Polymers make up over 70% of a modern car and in most cases, ultrasounds are used because they represent the fastest, cheapest, and most flexible way to join plastic parts. Before joining MS, Francesco held positions and quality and technical developments within the plastic/electronic industry in companies like Nice, Diehl Group, and Herrmann Ultraschall, gaining a complete vision of industrial processes from the prototyping phase to the SOP. Francesco loves the most complex technical challenges and uses the knowledge and solutions learned every day in an effective and creative way, typical of Italian culture.

Silvia Rosenberger is a technical marketing manager at the surface solutions division of Merck KGaA in Darmstadt, Germany. She holds a degree in chemical engineering and a postgraduate degree in economics from Mainz University of Applied Sciences. She has held various positions in the field of effect and functional pigments in plastics applications. For the past 15 years she has observed the development of lasers and seen them become an indispensable and reliable tool in production. The laser applications and developments of the last years continue to fascinate her.