New impulses for laser research: Change in the board of directors of the LZH

LZH Vorstand
The new board of directors of the LZH: Prof. Dr. Uwe Morgner, Dr. Dietmar Kracht, Lena Bennefeld, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Stefan Kaierle and Dr. Volker Schmidt (from left to right) (Photo: LZH)
04 May 2023
Press releases

New additions to the LZH board of directors: Lena Bennefeld succeeds Klaus Ulbrich on the executive board. Professor Dr. Uwe Morgner takes over from Professor Dr.-Ing. Ludger Overmeyer on the executive board.

"Lena Bennefeld is an asset to the LZH management team," says Dr. Meyer-Kobbe, chairman of the LZH supervisory board. "She has not only been instrumental in raising awareness of the institute's diverse research fields, from Additive Manufacturing to quantum technology but has also made key contributions to the institute's digitalization." Lena Bennefeld has been employed at the LZH since 2012 and had headed the institute's communications since 2013. Katharina Hanske, who previously worked among others at the business development agency in the Hanover region and the research environment, will succeed her as head of the communications department.

Lena Bennefeld
Lena Bennefeld will be part of the executive board in the future and will take care of the areas of finance, communication, and transfer (Photo: LZH)

Executive board thanks Klaus Ulbrich for his commitment
The board expressly thanks the retiring commercial director Klaus Ulbrich. "Klaus Ulbrich has accompanied the LZH with dedication for more than 15 years and also maneuvered us through challenging times," said the current LZH board spokesman, Professor Stefan Kaierle. "With his dedication, he has been instrumental in creating the framework conditions for excellent research work at the institute."

As commercial managing director, Klaus Ulbrich cultivated and constantly expanded a distinctive network in politics, business, and associations.

Uwe Morgner
Prof. Dr. Uwe Morgner also joins the board as the new chairman of the scientific directorate of the LZH (Photo: LZH)

Professor Uwe Morgner new on the LZH board of directors
Professor Overmeyer has decided to end his activity on the executive board for personal reasons. He will continue his scientific work in the field of laser technology and remain a member of the scientific directorate. The new chairman of the scientific directorate and thus also a new executive board member will be Professor Uwe Morgner. He is a Professor of experimental physics at the Institute of Quantum Optics at Leibniz University Hannover, where he leads the Ultrafast Laser Laboratory research group, and is also a spokesman for the PhoenixD Cluster of Excellence. "Uwe Morgner has been a member of the scientific directorate of the LZH for many years and therefore knows the institute well - we are very pleased that he will take over Ludger Overmeyer's position," said chairman of the supervisory board Dr. Clemens Meyer-Kobbe.

The executive board of the LZH now consists of the three managing directors Prof. Dr.-Ing. Stefan Kaierle (Engineering), Dr. Dietmar Kracht (Natural Sciences), and Lena Bennefeld (Finance, Communication, and Transfer) as well as the chairmen of the scientific directorate and the industrial advisory board, Prof. Dr. Uwe Morgner and Dr. Volker Schmidt.

Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. (LZH)

As an independent, non-profit research institute, the Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. (LZH) stands for innovative research, development, and consulting. Supported by the Lower Saxony Ministry of Economics, Transport, Construction and Digitalization, the LZH is dedicated to selflessly promoting applied research in the field of photonics and laser technology. Founded in 1986, almost 200 employees are now working at the LZH.

The LZH offers solutions to current and future challenges with its smart photonics. Along the process chain, natural scientists and engineers work interdisciplinary together: from component development for specific laser systems or for quantum technologies to process developments for a wide variety of laser applications, for example for medical and agricultural technology or lightweight construction in the automotive sector. 18 successful spin-offs have emerged from the LZH to date. Thus, the LZH creates a strong transfer between fundamental science, application-oriented research, and industry - and uses light for innovation.