As of January 1, 2013, Professor Rainer Diercks has assumed the presidency of the DECHEMA e.V., Society for Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology. He succeeded Hans Jürgen Wernicke, who had held the office since 2010 and will remain on the Board of DECHEMA e.V.
Also taking up positions on the Board were:
- Dr. Thomas Haeberle, Member of the Executive Board of Evonik Industries AG, Essen, Germany
- Professor Dr.-Ing. Wolfgang Peukert, Chair of Institute of Particle Technology, University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany
- Dr. Jürgen Stebani, CEO of Polymaterials AG, Kaufbeuren, Germany
- Dr. Dirk Van Meirvenne, Managing Director of Bayer Technology Services GmbH, Leverkusen, Germany
Rainer Diercks is President of the Petrochemicals Division of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany, and has been a DECHEMA e.V. Board member since 2006.
Diercks received his doctorate in chemistry from the University of Hamburg, Germany. He joined BASF SE in 1986 as Laboratory Head in the Ammonia Lab. He has held several positions there since, including as head of technologies development and plant manager in the Industrial Chemicals Division and assistant to a board member. In 1994, he was appointed Director of Economic Efficiency Evaluation, and then in 1996 Vice President of the Strategic Planning Department. From 2001–2003 he was President of the Inorganics Division. He was President, Competence Center Chemicals Research & Engineering from 2004–2009, when he took up his current role as President of the Petrochemicals Division.
- DECHEMA e.V., Frankfurt, Germany
Also of interest:
- Outlook for Chemical Industry,
Prof. Dr. R. Diercks, member of the Board DECHEMA e.V., gives a positive outlook for the chemical industry at the ACHEMA
