Two theses in the field of lightweight construction were honoured at the graduation ceremony of the Faculty of Engineering
Every year, the best Bachelor's and Master's theses in selected subject areas at the Faculty of Engineering are honoured during the graduation ceremony. On 16 July 2022, two theses from the Lightweight Construction teaching and research area received the Karl Kolle Prize. Two students, Anton Thomé (Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering) and Willi Zschiebsch (Master of Mechanical Engineering), who were supervised by Prof Robert Böhm (Chair of Lightweight Construction with Composite Materials), received the KARL KOLLE Prize.
Anton Thomé was honoured for his outstanding bachelor thesis on "Determination and validation of process variables in electrical resistance welding of fibre-reinforced high-performance thermoplastics and their influence on joint quality". Electrical resistance welding is a key technology for increasing the application potential of fibre-reinforced thermoplastic components in aviation. If this technology were ready for series production, it would allow the use of carbon fibre-based welding conductors for the flat joining of lightweight components, which would offer numerous economic and technological advantages. Anton Thomé has therefore trialled and systematically developed this joining technology. He wrote his bachelor's thesis at the Centre for Lightweight Production Technology (ZLP) of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Augsburg under the co-supervision of M. Eng. Manuel Endraß.
Willi Zschiebsch received the Karl Kolle Prize for the best Master's thesis. In his thesis on "Design and implementation of a methodology for the realisation and optimisation of automated development processes in fibre composite lightweight construction" , Zschiebsch posed the question of how experts from different specialist areas can work together effectively on the development of a lightweight construction product. Complex analyses of the potential for automation were carried out for selected work processes in the development of high-performance components, such as design, layout and optimisation. In his work, Willi Zschiebsch has also shown how the development process as a whole can be accelerated and the quality of the component improved at the same time. Using a self-developed software tool, he was able to significantly reduce the high costs and development times that occur in practice due to sometimes contradictory optimisation goals. The Master's thesis was written in collaboration with TU Dresden, where it was co-supervised by Dr Angelos Filippatos.
We congratulate our award winners and wish them all the best for future projects!
KARL KOLLE FOUNDATION
The founder Karl Kolle saw it as his life's work to become involved in the social and community environment. The declared aim of the foundation is therefore very much the "education and upbringing" of young people, both at home and abroad.
The foundation was established in 1998 by Dortmund entrepreneur Karl Kolle. The foundation's assets are based on the company KODA Stanz- und Biegetechnik GmbH - a supplier to the automotive industry.
In addition to education, the most important areas of support include "science and research". In this combination, the foundation awards scholarships for particularly outstanding students and prizes for excellent scientific work.
Since 2006, the Karl Kolle Foundation has supported HTWK Leipzig students on study visits abroad and honours students for outstanding technical and scientific theses.
The Executive Board and the Board of Trustees of the KARL KOLLE Foundation jointly decide on the awarding of grants. The Board of Trustees comprises representatives from science, business and social fields of activity.
