Andrea Frenzel’s Post

Last week, I traveled to our SCHOTT Lighting & Imaging site in Southbridge, MA. It was a pleasure to use the opportunity to join Bill James, our Head of R&D and New Ventures for North America, and Rina DiSavino-Della Vecchia from communications, at our Spring US Town Hall Meeting of 2024. I liked the engaged discussion with our dedicated US colleagues about our growth strategy and the path ahead in innovative business fields such as manufacturing solar cell cover glasses for space PV, laser glass for fusion energy, or fiber-based optics for minimally-invasive surgery in the medical technology field. One of the highlights was touring our impressive SCHOTT Lighting & Imaging facility producing light and image guides as well as LED solutions for more than 35 years. Thanks to Doug Reed, our Head of Operations, and Majd Sbat, Project Engineer, for the tangible examples of your continued efforts in innovation and operational excellence to improve our offer to the customer!

Is there such a thing as an unlimited, sustainable source of energy? Our #glasslovers are paving the way for laser #fusion, an emerging technology that aims to recreate the power of the sun. Recently, our experts were invited to attend the first meeting for Project #PriFUSIO, an initiative from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, Germany (BMBF), to advance fusion technology. In the past, SCHOTT has also contributed to milestone projects about sustainable energy. As the only supplier of large-format laser glass in the western hemisphere, we provided the US National Ignition Facility (NIF) with #laserglass and #specialtyglass components, enabling the experiment to gain net energy for the first time! Now, this month, we are honored to receive over 1.3 million euros from the BMBF for Project PriFUSIO to realize one of the world’s first fusion power plants. Policymakers around the world also announced plans to accelerate the development of this technology that could one day help fight #climatechange. I believe in the power of research and innovation. And I am excited to see what lies ahead for these technologies that can help us create a sustainable future. #sustainable #energy

I recently had the pleasure of attending a roundtable session with the Honorable Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, during his visit with Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin. We had a productive discussion about our investments in #Malaysia with the Prime Minister and his Ministers for Trade and Industry, Dato' Seri Tengku Zafrul Aziz and Foreign Affairs, Dato' Seri Utama Haji Mohamad bin Hasan, the Malaysia Investment Development Authority, and our Head of Augmented Reality, Ruediger Sprengard, PhD. SCHOTT is planning a new production site in Kulim, Kedah, located just east of Penang, which will play a crucial role in manufacturing optical components. Last month, we announced our investment plans to expand our manufacturing footprint in the country to serve the growing global demand for consumer electronics, medical and industrial applications, and the emerging market of Augmented Reality. We’re looking forward to further growth and collaboration in the region. #AR #Investment #AugmentedReality

This month I visited our #glasslovers in the US – one of our regional focus markets at SCHOTT. We’ve been present in the States for over 60 years now, and today, it’s home to seven sites and one of our R&D Centers. During my trip, I had the pleasure of connecting with colleagues working at multiple locations, touring various plants, and visiting some of our production lines. Out of the Duryea, PA facility, our Advance Optics business unit primarily processes optical glasses and filters for a multitude of industries such as Lithography, Med-Tech, and Aerospace. Duryea is also the site where laser glass was developed, a material that plays a crucial role in world-renowned projects such as the CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research and the National Ignition Facility (NIF) in California, which is pioneering significant advances in fusion ignition technology. Our Lighting and Imaging business in Southbridge, MA, specializes on components drawing on advanced fiber optics and LED technology for Defense, Medical, and Industrial applications. These are just some of the many sectors we’re supporting with our expertise and innovation around the globe. As a leading materials manufacturer, our passionate workforce is constantly pushing the boundaries of what is possible. Thanks again to all the US colleagues for hosting me and great insights!

Pioneering. Responsibly. Together. These two awards are true examples for the SCHOTT spirit I encounter every day. Congratulations to everybody involved on the journey towards this great regonition! A reason to be very proud.

Yesterday the SCHOTT Pharma IPO took place at the Deutsche Börse. This is an extraordinary moment for SCHOTT and SCHOTT Pharma! Witnessing the team spirit on the trading floor was truely incredible. What an exciting first six months it has been for me at SCHOTT! Congratulations to all the dedicated colleagues who were part of the journey towards this very special day! I am looking forward to see us fueling growth across our whole company with this important step successfully accomplished.

I am happy to share the news that SCHOTT has been honored with the prestigious Research & Development 100 Award: Our groundbreaking innovative TO PLUS® transistor outline headers won the IT/Electrical category!   This advanced header packaging solution enables super-fast data transmission: Hermetically sealed with glass-to-metal sealing technology, 50G TO PLUS® headers deliver an unmatched transmission speed of 50 gigabytes per second, twice as much data over a single fiber optic than previous technology. Congratulations to all the #glasslovers who worked on this product, which continues to improve data communication and the semiconductor industry. 

My new journey has officially started at @SCHOTT. I am pleased to be part of the #glasslovers team - thank you all for the very warm welcome! Within our team of board members, I will look after the business units Advanced Optics, Electronic Packaging, and Lighting & Imaging as well as Technical Services, Operational Technology and Excellence and EHS.   With my background in chemistry, I am truely excited to explore all the possible applications through one unique, versatile material – specialty #glass. I look forward to build on the broad and diverse experience within the team @SCHOTT in pursuing our growth opportunities and innovations with customers and partners worldwide.   #pioneering #responsibly #together  

I am excited to join the family of #glasslovers as of April 1st next year - bringing with me my dedication to shape a positive future with the teams and customers around me.  Thanks a lot for the congrats and warm welcomes I have received from former and future colleagues and partners on this transition! I have been rewarded with a full range of experience and good memories over the last 25 years. My appreciation and thanks go out to the great teams at #BASF I had the honor to work with.  I am very much looking forward to joining the team at #SCHOTT - being full of curiosity about our technologies and opportunities to drive innovation and sustainability. See and meet you soon in the world of #glass!