A farewell with surprises

Since September 2009, Gian-Luca Bona has helped to shape and experience Empa's fortunes as the institute's CEO. A long and intensive period, of which he has fond memories not only of the top scientific achievements of Empa researchers: He also, and especially, enjoyed the transfer of the knowledge generated at the institute to both industry and society, says Bona - be it through the founding of start-ups, through demonstrators such as the well-known experimental building NEST, or the young Swiss m4m Center in Bettlach, which helps to transfer 3D printing technologies to Swiss medtech companies.

This direct line to the real world, which is part of Empa's DNA, was something Bona had already brought with him when he joined the institute – as a long-time researcher and manager at IBM (see info box). And he believes that a close partnership with industry is also crucial for Empa's future, if it is to keep its great promise: The Place where Innovation Starts – a motto he once coined himself.

Looking back on his "long journey since September 2009," the outgoing CEO expressed his gratitude at the last farewell party in the Empa Academy in Dübendorf for the numerous successes that scientists and engineers at Empa have made possible – and, despite current imponderables, looks to the future with great confidence: "Empa should and will continue to be a beacon in Switzerland."

With this in mind, Gian-Luca Bona himself would also like to continue promoting Switzerland's proverbial inventive spirit, which benefits all its inhabitants. For example, by contributing his experience to the Innovation Park in Zurich and the Innovation Park OST in St. Gallen – right next to the Empa site there. At the same time, of course, he will also make time for things that have been neglected in recent years: tours on his bike or in mountain boots in the Swiss Alps.

Prof. Dr. Gian-Luca Bona (*1957) studied physics at the ETH Zurich, graduating "with distinction" in 1983. He received his PhD in 1987 on the topic of "Surface magnetism with pulsed laser-induced photoemission". He then began a career at IBM, which took him from the research lab in Rüschlikon to San José and finally to Tucson, Arizona, where he was responsible for a worldwide team developing magnetic tape storage products. In September 2009, he joined Empa. Bona has served as professor of photonics at ETH Zurich and EPFL and was a member of the ETH Board, as well as an individual member of the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences (SATW). He is involved in innovation promotion organizations such as Technopark Zurich and Switzerland Innovation and serves on the boards of tech companies.