Qioptiq director Litfin awarded the Federal Cross of Merit, First Class · 2011. 10. 18. · Annette Schavan, Federal Minister for Education and Research, at a ceremony in Berlin

LINOS GmbH & Co. KG Petra Aschenbach Marketing Königsallee 23 37081 Göttingen Tel.: +49(0)551-6935-175 E-mail: [email protected] www.linos.com

Qioptiq Holding Deutschland GmbH Marina Schaefer Public Relations Königsallee 23 37081 Göttingen Tel.: +49(0)551 6935-123 E-mail: [email protected] www.qioptiq.com

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PRESSEMITTEILUNG │ PRESS RELEASE

Qioptiq director Litfin awarded the Federal Cross of

Merit, First Class

Göttingen, October 13, 2011 - Professor Gerd Litfin, member of the board

of directors of Qioptiq, has been awarded the Cross of Merit, First Class, of

the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany by Federal President

Christian Wulff. The award marks the outstanding achievements of the

founder and former board chairman of the LINOS Group on behalf of Germany

as a center for science and business. In addition, the honor expresses

recognition and respect for his exemplary voluntary work in the social sphere

and his extraordinary contribution to developing the next generation of

scientists. The medal was presented on October 12, 2011 by Professor

Annette Schavan, Federal Minister for Education and Research, at a ceremony

in Berlin.

"Voluntary work specifically at the interface between science and business is

important and it is an essential requirement of both entrepreneurs and

scientists. I have always enjoyed my political consulting in particular and I

am delighted that this work is being honored today“, said Litfin.

In 2004 Litfin had already been awarded the Cross of Merit with Ribbon by

the Federal President for his entrepreneurial work and for establishing the

Faculty of Natural Sciences and Technology at the University of Applied

Sciences and Arts in Göttingen and supporting it over many years.

LINOS: an important part of Qioptiq today

Litfin was chairman of the board of the LINOS Group until the end of 2006,

the foundation stone for which he laid with a management buy-out in 1996.

By taking over the companies Steeg & Reuter, Franke-Optik, Gsänger

Optoelektronik and Rodenstock Präzisionsoptik, he built LINOS into one of the



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leading global photonics businesses. In 2006, LINOS was taken over by the

Qioptiq Group; Litfin moved to the board of directors and has been

supporting the business and technological development of the company ever

since with his wealth of experience and his scientific expertise. David Marks,

Qioptiq CEO, praised his achievements: "In setting up LINOS, Professor Litfin

laid the foundation for an important part of Qioptiq today. We are still

benefitting from his profound knowledge and we would like to thank him for

his tireless commitment to the further development of our company."

A special commitment to science and technology

As a professor at the Leibniz University of Hanover, Litfin has made a crucial

contribution to the development of optical technologies and he is regarded as

one of the opinion leaders in the photonics industry in Germany. Litfin was

co-founder of the initiative "Deutsche Agenda Optische Technologien für das

21. Jahrhundert" (“Germany’s Agenda in Optical Technologies for the 21st

Century”), which set itself the goal of improving the innovative strength and

competitiveness of companies in the field of optical technologies. He was

also involved in the Photonics 21 platform under the Seventh Research

Framework Program of the European Union. The Hanover Laser Center, of

which Litfin is one of the founding members, grew out of the Leibniz

University of Hanover. In Göttingen he played a significant part in the

founding of the current Faculty of Natural Sciences and Technology at the

University for Applied Sciences and Arts. Under his guidance, courses in

Industrial Engineering, Precision Mechanical Engineering and Optical

Engineering/Photonics were set up and have been providing Qioptiq and the

other technology companies based in Lower Saxony with their next

generation of highly-qualified staff ever since. In addition, Litfin has worked

in an honorary capacity on numerous scientific bodies, such as the Max

Planck Society, the German Research Foundation and the German Physics

Association.



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We will be pleased to provide the photo on request.

About Qioptiq Qioptiq designs and manufactures photonic products and solutions that serve a wide range of markets and applications in the areas of medical and life sciences, industrial manufacturing, defense and aerospace, and research and development. The company is known for its high-quality standard components, products and instruments, its custom modules and assemblies, its leading-edge innovation, its precision manufacturing and its responsive global resourcing. Through a series of acquisitions, Qioptiq has an impressive history and pedigree, and benefits from having integrated the knowledge and experience of Avimo, Gsänger, LINOS, Optem, Pilkington, Point Source, Rodenstock, Spindler & Hoyer and others. Qioptiq has a worldwide presence with locations throughout Europe, Asia and the USA, employs over 2,100 people, and generated revenues of approximately US$380 million in 2010. For more information, visit www.qioptiq.com

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Qioptiq director Litfin awarded the Federal Cross of Merit, First Class · 2011. 10. 18. · Annette Schavan, Federal Minister for Education and Research, at a ceremony in Berlin