For sustainable innovations: Dr. Kurt Schmalz receives the Rudolf Diesel Medal

Dr. Kurt Schmalz (center) receives the renowned Rudolf Diesel Medal from the spokesperson of the Board of Trustees, Prof. Dr. Alexander J. Wurzer (left), and the laudator Dr. Christoph Münzer, Managing Director of wvib Schwarzwald. (Image: Andreas Stelzer, Eichmeister Kreativagentur)

Dr. Kurt Schmalz, managing partner of J. Schmalz GmbH, was awarded the renowned Rudolf Diesel Medal on Thursday evening. He convinced the expert jury in the category "Most Sustainable Innovation Achievement". The event took place in the halls of Rudolf Diesel's early supporter, at the MAN Museum in Augsburg, during a gala dinner.

"I am incredibly happy and proud," says Dr. Kurt Schmalz. "This award is a confirmation of our innovative work and an honor for the entire team. Therefore, I want to dedicate this medal to all Schmalz employees worldwide." At Schmalz, efficient and resource-conserving business practices have always been fundamental principles of the company. The global market leader from Glatten develops innovative products that support its customers on the path to climate neutrality.

"The creative restlessness that resides in me and the entire company has been rewarded," says Dr. Kurt Schmalz, for whom sustainability was already an important issue in the 1980s, long before it became a global megatrend. "The Rudolf Diesel Medal is the highest award for innovation. Accordingly, I am very grateful to receive this prize."

The Rudolf Diesel Medal, Europe's oldest innovation award, has been awarded since 1953 in memory of the innovator Rudolf Diesel for successful entrepreneurial innovations. The award recognizes entrepreneurs and companies that have demonstrated both their inventive spirit and their ability to successfully implement ideas entrepreneurially. The German Institute for Invention, Inc. has been the sponsor of the Rudolf Diesel Medal since 1982. The laureates are selected by the Rudolf Diesel Board, which consists of over fifty technology leaders from globally leading, medium-sized technology companies.