Thorsten Eggert: The enzyme optimiser

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Thorsten Eggert, habilitated microbiologist and founder of Evocatal. Quelle: Evocatal

23.11.2012  - 

Thorsten Eggert has two families, the first comprising of his wife and daughter. But, as he openly admits, “they usually take something of a back seat.” From Monday to Friday, the other family – Evocatal – takes precedence. The Essen-born scientist founded his own company in Düsseldorf in 2006. After finding nobody who was willing or able to develop his idea to market, Eggert – who already came from a business-minded family – took matters in his own hands. And thus the scientist became a company director.

Compared to the frequently continent-hopping scientists of our times, Thorsten Eggert has not exactly gone out into the big wide world. Born in 1972 in Essen, he studied biology and completed his doctorate in Bochum, established the ‘Directed Evolution’ working group in Jülich. In the end, he did not have to leave Germany to become a successful scientist. After his post-doctoral fellowship at the Bochum Institute of Microbiology, he pursued a successful academic career in the field of enzyme optimisation. Eggert led his own research group at the Institute of Molecular Enzyme Technology in Düsseldorf, although a sense of dissatisfaction began to creep in after a few years: “I didn’t want to only be doing research; I wanted to hold a finished product in my hands.” A number of collaborations with industrial partners appeared promising, but none ultimately dared to develop the new enzymes to market viability.

More than just research

So, in 2006, it was Eggert who took hold of the reins. “From the first second, there were no doubts that our business idea would work out,” says Eggert. The temporary end of his academic career was marked by his 2007 habilitation at the Heinrich Heine University in Düsseldorf.  He had already founded Evocatal one year earlier, and to this day he serves as managing director. The company is located not far from the Ruhr and Rhine in the Düsseldorf-based Life Science Centre.

Commitment and passion

The managing trio is made up of Managing Director Eggert, second Managing Director Michael Puls and Scientific Director Christian Leggewie, all of whom have known each other for years. “I am forever pleased that I can work with people whose company I enjoy,” says Eggert. Eggert is succinct in his descriptions of the straightforward coexistence enjoyed by the managers on their many business trips: “I’ve shared a few rooms with Mr. Puls and Mr. Leggewie in the past.” But Eggert's wife’s understanding of his passion for his company – and her support – only makes him more proud of his achievements.

There’s successful chemistry taking place at the firm also in other senses. This is exemplified by a recent incident at the company when it became clear that a delivery to a contract manufacturer did not meet the expected quality. In the end, the required specifications were met after quick processing in three shifts. The special characteristic: The delivery was scheduled for the Monday, but had arrived on the preceding Friday. Of course, the team sacrificed the weekend to put things right. In conversation with Eggert, you can tell he is proud of this kind of dedication.

Evocatal initially concentrated exclusively on customised enzymes. In 2010 a second income source was added with the enzyme-based production of fine chemicals. Eggert thus sees his ‘second child’ as a non-classical research firm: “Evocatal is first and foremost a manufacturing company that is able to produce – also in the tonne scale – the required enzymes and fine chemicals.”

Expansion in the works

Evocatal currently employs 23 staff. Today, Eggert is planning “to expand the team and more strongly internationalise sales.” The breakeven is set for 2014. At this time, the company is benefiting from the ‘bioeconomy’ trend, and Evocatal is leading a strategic alliance – ‘Functionalsation of Polymers’ – which is sponsored by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (more.....). Among other things, the work here is on new concrete admixtures. Using enzymes, natural polymers such as lignin and cellulose are enhanced to be able to replace crude-oil-based additives. With respect to the prioritisation of his two families, one suspects that little will change in the coming years. When asked about hobbies, Eggert says almost apologetically: “There’s just no time left for that.” In fact, he’s a keen reader, naming Thomas Mann as a favourite author. There’s also mention of four freshwater aquariums somewhere back home. Reassuringly: “The free time I have, I try to spend with my family.”

Author: Martin Laqua