In late 2016, the main BECHEM factory hosted the first “Treffpunkt Automotive Ruhr”, a series of conferences organized by Wirtschaftsförderung metropoleruhr GmbH, Essen. The events are intended as a networking platform enabling  automotive suppliers in the Ruhr area (North Rhine-Westphalia) to develop joint endeavors and exchange competences.

In addition to a tour of the laboratory and technical center at the Hagen facility, numerous lectures were held. Prof. Dirk Biermann, Technical University of Dortmund, talked about new developments in effective treatment processes in the automotive industry; Dr. Heinz Dwuletzki, Head of F+E at BECHEM, discussed product innovations in the field of lubricants. The series of events continued as early as January, 2017. A conference on the topic of autonomous driving organized on the premises of Logiball in Herne, the specialist for navigation and map solutions in the B2B sector, inspired us to write our article “Level 5”.