Heinz Kmonicek, General Manager of the Austrian Man-Made Fibers Institute and Chairman of the Programme Committee of the Dornbirn Man-Made Fibers Congress, is stepping down from his role at the end of this year.

From 1 January 2015 onwards the management will be in the hands of DI Weninger, already the President of the Institute. In his farewell letter, Kmonicek says that he believes we are now witnessing the fourth industrial revolution – the age of communication and information technology.

“Accordingly, Communicating the Future of Man-made Fibers also means that it is incumbent on us to rely on the young generation to ensure that these technologies become part and parcel of our communication platform and safeguard the evolutionary character of our endeavours,” he commented.

Successful management

“I should now like to add a few personal thoughts,” said Heinz Kmonicek. “I greatly enjoyed the opportunity to devote myself for almost ten years to the successful management of the Congress, to assure it a well-deserved place in international competition and indeed to help make it a brand name in our field.”

“This would, however, not have been possible without the assistance of individual persons and teams deeply committed to our cause who have made an invaluable contribution to the achievement of our common goals.”

“I am grateful for the opportunity to meet experts and decision-makers from industry and science representing different cultures and continents, the exchange of views with whom has not only greatly broadened my horizon but also made the Dornbirn Congress a paradigm in its field.”

Dornbirn Congress

The Dornbirn Man-Made Fibres Congress was for the first time held in 1962 in the premises of the Textile College Dornbirn, with 180 people taking part in 13 lectures.

Under the patronage of CIRFS, the European Man-Made Fibres Association, the congress has grown to an annual event with more than 700 participants from 30 countries.

The Austrian Man-Made Fibers Institute was founded in 1960 by man-made fibre producers and the Austrian textile industry, and now organises the Dornbirn Congress as a platform for the international exchange of know-how in close collaboration with CIRFS.

www.dornbirn-mfc.com