Organizing Committee

Past Chairman (2012-2016) – Swiss Delegate since 2002. Over 85 Papers in Journals and International Conferences on Relays, Contact Physics, Reliability and Quality of Electromechanical Switching Devices. Worked for ITT, Alcatel, AXICOM, Tyco Electronics Currently VP Engineering at Littelfuse Inc, Electronic Business Unit. 

Received Multiple Innovation and Best Paper Awards from different organizations (IEEE, NARM, VDE, IEC, SEV etc.). 

30 Years of successful Engineering & Technology leadership roles in Electronic Components Industry serving all Industries (Datacom, Automotive, Instrumentation, Medical, Industrial and Appliance).

He received his Dipl.-Ing. and Dr. -Ing. degrees in Electrical Engineering from the Technische Universitaet Braunschweig, Germany. His experience includes research work on the behaviour of electrical switching arcs.at the Institut fuer Elektrische Energieanlagen of that University.In 1988 he joined Sprecher + Schuh AG, Aarau, Switzerland, responsible for development of contactors. From 1993 until 2019 he was with Rockwell Automation AG, Aarau, Switzerland, responsible for basic research, computer simulation and special projects. He was active in working groups of IEC SC 121B: MT 9 (Circuit Breakers), WG 1 (Insulation Coordination) and PT 60947-9 (Arc Quenching Devices). Awards include the Erle Shobert Prize Paper Award in 2012 and the IEC 1906 Award in 2016.

Dr. Michael Gatzsche works in ABB's High-Voltage Products Technology Center in Zurich, Switzerland as an R&D Engineer for gas-insulted switchgear. His focus areas include the development and qualification of high-power contact technologies and systems. Dr. Gatzsche has authored and co-authored several papers on long-term performance, simulation, and theory of electrical contacts with a focus towards high-power applications. In 2015, he received the IEEE Holm Conference's Young Investigator Award.

Jürgen Steinhäuser, born 1962 in Frankfurt am Main, worked in the development of technical metals and the corrosive effects of harmful gases and aerosols on metals in contact and connection technology at W.C. Heraeus GmbH. 
Since 2005 he has been a member of the management board at ELESTA GmbH, Bad Ragaz, Switzerland, where he is responsible for sales and marketing with a focus on relays with forcibly guided contacts and optical encoders. He is an active member of working groups of ZVEI, DKE and IEC.

Livia Russell has over 10 years’ experience in events management and has worked in the hospitality industry for over 15 years across Europe and Australia. She has studied hotel management in Switzerland and graduated from her Master in Business Administration at the University of Western Australia in 2011. Livia has successfully organised numerous major national and international conferences for up to 1000 delegates. Livia has organised several conferences in the energy sector and has joined Electrosuisse as an Event Manager in early 2018.

Günter Grossmann received his BE degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1981 at the University for Applied Sciences in Winterthur, Switzerland. After the studies he was employed as Materials Engineer in various companies. From 1989 till 1998 he worked in the Reliability Laboratory of ETH Zurich in the fields of reliability of electronic assemblies, especially of soft solder joints and in production processes of electronic equipment. In 1998 G. Grossmann was scientific guest of the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. Since 1999 Günter Grossmann works at the Swiss Federal Institute for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) as scientist as project manager of research projects, in failure analysis on electronic assemblies and components and as co-lecturer at ETH Zürich in “ Physics of Failure and Failure Analysis”

Born 1975 in Frankfurt am Main, since 16 years with PLANSEE in different positions from research to business development. Graduating in Material Science from Technical University Darmstadt he gained fundamental knowledge with Powder Metallurgical Products (W, Mo) for more than 7 years. Since 2009 he is with PLANSEE Powertech AG in Switzerland with a focus on materials for arcing contacts. Currently Head of Research and Development Business Unit Power T/D coordinating customer related innovation and scientific cooperation.

Dr. Dominique Freckmann leads TE Automotive’s Global Technology efforts which includes identifying new trends, anticipating the evolving needs of innovative players in the areas of Autonomous Driving, Connected Car, and E-Mobility, and support early engagements with TE’s highly engineered connector and sensor solutions. Prior to her global assignment, she established and lead TE Automotive’s Silicon Valley Tech Office. Dr. Freckmann started her career by conducting material science research in such areas as lightweighting, printed electronics, aerospace, and RF materials for more than a decade. She obtained a Diploma in chemistry from the University of Cologne, and graduated with a Ph.D. in chemistry from the Technical University of Berlin, Germany, followed by post-doctoral research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, MA. She has authored and contributed to more than a dozen peer-reviewed scientific publications and holds patents related to materials and manufacturing processes for electronics applications.