Mayor Markus Zwick visits the Technikum of the Prüf- und Forschungsinstitut Pirmasens e.V.

The visit of the Lord Mayor of Pirmasens was an important occasion for the Prüf- und Forschungsinstitut Pirmasens e.V. (PFI) to draw attention to current projects and the combined expertise of the PFI in the field of biotechnology.
Together with the head of the institute, Dr. Kerstin Schulte, department head Dr. Stefan Dröge guided the mayor through the various stations of the Technikum. Dr. Dröge presented the innovative research focuses of the Technikum, which concentrate on the material and energetic use of biomass for the production of bio-based products. Mr. Zwick was particularly impressed by PFI's ability to produce bio-based plastic (PLA) from waste products such as dough left over from frozen pizzas or even old bread rolls.
The PFI's Technikum conducts practical research into the use of biomass and develops processes for the production of biogas, biobased chemicals and biopolymers. Special test and pilot plants are used to research digestion and pre-treatment methods that make residual biomass such as lignocellulose usable for biogas production. There is also a focus on the fermentative production of bioplastics such as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA).
As intensive research and development work in the field of biomass utilization lays the foundations for the efficient and economical use of resources, PFI is always pleased to see decision-makers such as Lord Mayor Zwick taking an interest in these innovative developments.