Professors Alfred Pühler, University of Bielefeld, and Jens Weitkamp, University of Stuttgart, both Germany, have been awarded Honorary Memberships of the DECHEMA (Gesellschaft für Chemische Technik und Biotechnologie e.V, Society for Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology). The honors were presented by DECHEMA Chairman, Hans Jürgen Wernicke, at the opening ceremony of the 8th European Congress of Chemical Engineering (ECCE-8) in Berlin, Germany, on 25 September 2011.

Alfred Pühler (right) studied physics at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany, and received his doctorate in microbiology and his Habilitation in genetics. In 1979, Pühler was appointed Chair of Genetics at the University of Bielefeld, where he remained until his retirement in 2008. During his time at the University of Bielefeld, Pühler served as Dean of the Faculty of Biology, Vice President for Research and Young Scientists of the University, and was involved in the setup of the CeBiTec, the Center for Biotechnology, where he remains a member of the Executive Board and an active researcher.

Jens Weitkamp (left) studied chemistry at the University of Karlsruhe and the University of Berlin, both Germany. He was a professor at the University of Oldenburg, Germany, from 1986 –1988. In 1988, he became head of the Institute for Technical Chemistry, University of Stuttgart, Germany, where he remained until his retirement in 2008. He holds a range of honorary appointments, including as a member of the boards of DECHEMA and Fonds der Chemischen Industrie, and as a scientific advisor of Max-Planck-Institute for Coal Research, Mülheim, Germany.

_{Image: © DECHEMA e.V.}

• 8th European Congress of Chemical Engineering (ECCE)
• DECHEMA, Frankfurt, Germany
• Handbook of Heterogeneous Catalysis
  G. Ertl, H. Knözinger, F. Schüth, J. Weitkamp (Editors),
  Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, Germany, 2008.
  ISBN: 978-3-527-31241-2
• Biotechnology: Genetic Fundamentals and Genetic Engineering
  A. Pühler, H.-J. Rehm, G. Reed (Editors),
  Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, Germany, 2008.
  Online ISBN: 9783527620838
  DOI: 10.1002/9783527620838