The European Southern Observatory (ESO) is creating the world’s largest telescope. It has selected TNO to provide a key enabling technology that will allow the telescope to produce better views of the universe than have ever been possible. In the project, TNO will collaborate with Demcon Focal as a major sub-contractor. With the help of TNO’s laser guide star launch telescope technology, the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) will provide insight into some of the greatest astronomical questions of our time, from the birth of stars to the search for signs of life on exoplanets in other star systems.

Demcon is the winner of the German-Dutch Prize for Economy 2020. Last spring, we developed a new ventilation system for corona patients within a month. With this cross-border collaboration, we won this award against 28 other candidates. The prize was awarded by the German-Dutch Chamber of Commerce (DNHK) on November 4 during the digital general meeting of members.

The dream of safe, radiation-free measuring has come closer for sectors such as the dredging industry, tunnel construction, mining and metal recycling, due to an investment by Demcon. In these sectors, radioactive radiation traditionally provides the basis for densimeters used to measure slurries. A slurry is an abrasive material, such as sand, pebbles, gravel or ore, to which water has been added for transport. Alia Instruments has developed an alternative; a non-nuclear densimeter that is more reliable and safer for people and the environment. Demcon, a technology development and production company, recently acquired a share in this company. This helps Alia Instruments in further developing the radiation-free sensor towards production, and marketing it on the international market. “We are part of the transition from nuclear to non-nuclear.”

Rapid freezing of preparations for better microscopy Technology developer and producer Demcon contributes towards a new technology that can accelerate research into major diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, tuberculosis and Aids. This concerns a new appliance, the VitroJet, for freezing preparations with better quality and a higher yield. Demcon provides for the engineering and production of the VitroJet and invests in CryoSol-World, the spin-off of the University of Maastricht which will launch the VitroJet in the market next year. “We want our contribution to support the scientists who have to develop new treatments for these diseases in the coming years.”