Lutz Aschke earned his doctorate in physics at the Ruhr University in Bochum, acquiring additional qualifications in business administration and labor sciences. Before joining the Mahr Group as managing director, he was managing director of the photonic components division within the Trumpf Group.

Throughout his career Dr Aschke has been actively involved in Photonics21 as a valued member of both the board of stakeholders and the executive board.

In their most recent session, the board of stakeholders also elected two further members to the executive board. Dr Eric Belhaire will serve as the chair of working group 5 – on safety, security, space and defense – and Dr Chris van Hoof as chair of working group 6 – agriculture and food.

Belhaire belongs to the technical directorate of Thales’ optronics business line. Its main specialties are the electro-optical technologies, infrared and visible image sensors. He is currently leading an international transverse group dedicated to the management of those key technologies.

Van Hoof is the general manager of OnePlanet Research Center and is part of its management team. He is responsible for the R&D direction and business strategy of R&D teams across four Imec locations: Wageningen and Eindhoven in The Netherlands, and Leuven and Gent in Belgium.