On Saturday, September 12, LANXESS AG, one of the world's leading suppliers of high-performance rubber, celebrated the invention of synthetic rubber by chemist Fritz Hofmann exactly 100 years ago by staging a scientific colloquium with high-ranking speakers in Cologne. Over 400 guests from 18 nations attended the event, which was held in the Gürzenich Banqueting Hall, to learn more about the latest innovations, the future possibilities and the market potential of this versatile material.

“The future of synthetic rubber has only just begun”

“Synthetic rubber more than deserves this attention and this forum”, said Axel C. Heitmann, Chairman of the Board of Management of LANXESS AG, in his welcoming speech. No-one could have predicted, he continued, that the product would still be so successful 100 years later. “We are building on the versatility and outstanding chemical properties of this material because we know that the future of synthetic rubber has only just begun.” This synthetic material, Heitmann said, had opened the door to numerous innovations in previous decades – in automotive engineering, energy generation, medicine, sports, and even the aerospace industry. “You may not see it, but it is there more often than you think!” There is no doubt, he added, that synthetic rubber is the most important product for LANXESS today.

During the day-long colloquium, 14 high-profile speakers from the worlds of business, politics, and science discussed how the successes of the past can be transferred to the future, what importance rubber has today as a precursor to other industrial applications and what development and production potential can be harnessed in the future.