WORTH STEERING BOARD INTERVIEW: WOLFGANG MILDNER

This week we got to know our WORTH Steering Board Member Wolfgang Mildner better through an interview. Wolfgang is the owner and founder of MSWtech Germany which supports companies and other organisations in discovering value in new technologies, in particular printed and flexible electronics.

He is also the managing Director of PolyIC, a leading company for printed textiles. We wanted to find out more about his industry experience and what he can offer WORTH Partnership Project participants:

A lot of your work experiences relate to development and discovering value in new technologies, why is the personally important to you?

I am curious, I dedicated my professional life to find new technologies which bring new value to customers in new and existing applications. Printed flexible Electronics is a perfect example as it enables the bringing together of functionality to areas where there was no electronics before like clothing, textiles. Especially I like to work with the people which work on this technology and link them to the people which can make use of it. So, it’s not only the fascination of technology, but it’s also working with people in the market and in industries, which is important and motivating.

You are the founder of MSWtech, which offers both innovative products and also services including education and project management. Why was it important that you offered both aspects to your customers?

MSWtech was founded after I learned about the big gap between the possibilities of research and development of new technologies and the knowledge in the industry about what is possible and why it is of value. So, education helps to understand the innovation and bridges the gap between theory and practical application. Project management is needed and important because it implements and realizes the values of the innovation.

You are currently a part of several associations that assist the industry including Organic Electronics Association, LOPEC and North Bavarian Business Plan Competition, why is it important that we support the growth of the creative and tech industry?

Innovation today is not a work which can be done in a lab or in a single entity. Collaboration between different competencies and organizations is needed and key to success. Associations help to enable the collaboration as they are the enabler for networking. Technology networks, start-up networks or business networks help to make a faster matchmaking, access to know-how and people to collaborate with.

Through WORTH what do you hope to pass onto participants and do you have any advice to assist in the success of partnership projects?

For me WORTH is not only a project and competition. It’s a great network as it links and combines two very import functions of innovation: the design and technologists. I learned a lot about the value of communicating between very different types of people, this sometimes is not easy, it’s not only different viewpoints and perspectives it could be different languages. But because of this difficulty it could be the start of something absolutely new. I want to participate in this process with my knowledge and network and support by connecting the right people.

Find out more about Wolfgang Mildner through his profile here.