Trendsetting FSK Specialist Conference in Upper Austria

The annual FSK General Assembly came together on Monday, 6th November. Following the assembly, the FSK invited members to a traditional get-together – this year at the Alte Schmiede in Obernberg with local specialties – providing an ideal platform for exchanging ideas with colleagues.

Tuesday morning, the participants met in the high-tech ambience of the Fill Future Dome, an impressive state-of-the-art communication and event centre. After the official welcoming address and opening by the FSK Chairman of the Board Albrecht Manderscheid, wide-ranging specialist lectures generated a high level of attention from the conference participants. In terms of content, the FSK Specialist Conference on Polyurethane focused on processors in the PUR industry. Global players and experts such as Liebherr-Hausgeräte Lienz GmbH, Doka GmbH, PARAT GmbH, Fill GmbH, Dow Deutschland GmbH, Fischer Sports GmbH, Polytec Car Styling Hörsching GmbH, Benteler SGL Technology GmbH and Getzner Werkstoffe GmbH presented highly interesting lectures from various industries e.g. the building industry, the automotive industry, railways, the wood industry and also from the composite and consumer sectors.

Dealing with diisocyanates under the REACH regulation, was the topic for the panel discussion with top-class experts focusing on the restriction process that has great relevance for the entire European polyurethane industry. An open and lively discussion with conference participants followed.

A further highlight in the afternoon was the ceremony for the Innovation Award, with which the FSK has been honouring polyurethane and foamed plastics divisions since 1998. Five innovative products, processes and technologies were honoured in the award categories technology, design and construction.

Following the award presentation, numerous conference guests took part in an impressive factory tour through the workshops of Fill GmbH. The first day of the conference ended in the restaurant Loryhof in Wippenham with culinary delights from the Innviertel and the musical accompaniment of Fill’s own band "Woodworm".

The second day of the event began with highly informative and interesting technical presentations in the morning, followed by participants taking advantage of the opportunity to visit the Fischer Sports GmbH factory. The world market leader in ski production and alpine equipment can look back on a 90-year history of success and has been using polyurethane in ski production since the 1970’s.

"We are very happy about the highly satisfied feedback from the participants at the successful 18th Specialist Conference of our association", says Klaus Junginger, Managing Director of the FSK. "The aim of this core FSK event was to draw attention to processing companies in the PUR industry, to discover new trends, to explore them in greater depth and thus highlight the range of applications for polyurethane. This event demonstrated that our industry, with its innovative and complex solutions, not only acts as a global player and defends its position, but also is also always capable of opening innovation windows and leading the world. With this type of events, the FSK offers the ideal platform to actively develop its sustainable network and inspire those interested in the diverse applications of polyurethane as a material."

Further information is available at:
www.fsk-vsv.de or +49 (0) 711 993 7510