Call for proposals of research projects requires more and more an integrated, interdisciplinary and integrated method of approach for any given problem. Third-party funded projects are almost exclusively acquired by joint chairs or joint university research groups. For this reason, our chair becomes involved together with other chairs from the faculty in central research areas such as resource engineering and tailored materials.

The University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE) has created the research program urban systems and the Centre for Water and Environmental Research (ZWU) in particular to challenge “water” as a central research topic. The ZWU gives the UDE the opportunity to propose an interdisciplinary research facility which stands out beyond national business competition and is perfectly connected to the program of the Chair of  Mechanical Process Engineering with focus on Water Technology. Moreover, numerous engineering and natural science programs at the UDE allow interdisciplinary research and teaching as well as intensive transfer of knowledge and technology in the task field of water science.

Connected to the professorship of the Chair of Mechanical Process Engineering / Water Technolgy is a position in the board of the IWW Water Centre. The IWW is a centre for consulting, research and advanced training in all water-related questions such as resource management, water catchment, distribution network, analytics, hygiene, economy, and management. The institute is integrated into a worldwide network consisting of scientific institutions, industrial R&D facilities, technical companies, standard institutions, organizations and public authorities. It makes the IWW a privileged platform for the acquisition of research projects, the transfer of research results into practice and the cooperation with industry and public authorities.

Furthermore, Prof. Panglisch is managing director of the DGMT German Society for Membrane Technology e.V.. The DGMT was founded in 2000 as an independent professional association of membrane and module manufacturing companies, companies in plant engineering, consulting experts, operators, research institutions and interested experts from various fields of work. The aim of DGMT is to promote the use and dissemination of membrane technology in Germany and to establish a network between companies, associations, research institutions, authorities, political bodies and individuals. It also provides a forum for discussions on the transfer of technologies and know-how on questions concerning membrane technology.

This cooperation enables a practical orientation of university research. Furthermore, outstanding possibilities emerge to shape and innovate the chair’s networks, interfaces and cooperation with other institutes or institutions in the national or international research landscape as well as water industry.