Hochschule Karlsruhe Hochschule Karlsruhe - University of Applied Sciences
Hochschule Karlsruhe Hochschule Karlsruhe - University of Applied Sciences

Foundation for refrigeration, air conditioning, and environmental technology

The Valerius Füner Foundation was established in 2001 to support the study specialization "Refrigeration, Air Conditioning, and Environmental Engineering".

The initiator was Prof. Dr.-Ing. Johannes Reichelt, who taught at the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences from 1980 to 2004.

Via the Valerius Füner Foundation, interested donors can support HKA financially or in kind so that the university will continue to be an outstanding, modern, and competitive educational and scientific institution.

Contact

Valerius Füner Foundation
Contact person
Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Matthäus Wollfarth
Phone: +49(0) 721 925-1903
matthaeus.wollfarthspam prevention@h-ka.de

 

Bank details
Sparkasse Karlsruhe
IBAN: DE 06660501010022417828
BLZ: 66050101

 

Valerius Füner

Pioneer in the field of teaching refrigeration technology

From 1934 to 1938, Valerius Füner studied at the Technical University of Karlsruhe (TH Karlsruhe, now KIT) and was an assistant and doctoral student of Prof. Dr.-Ing. Dr. h. c. mult. Rudolf Plank, the founder of the world's first refrigeration engineering institute in 1926 and two times-president of the TH Karlsruhe.

Ten years later, in 1948, Valerius Füner was appointed to the then Staatstechnikum Karlsruhe, today's Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences, and from that time on held the first lectures in refrigeration engineering.

Karlsruhe refrigeration courses establish refrigeration technology

From 1952 until his retirement in 1980, Prof. Valerius Füner held the well-known "Karlsruhe Refrigeration Courses" with great success. These initially had a duration of 12, later 9 weeks and were held once a year. The courses were the only ones to be offered in this field in Germany – and surely far beyond the borders of Germany – until the 1960s.

In 1995, Prof. Valerius Füner passed away at the age of 81. In his honor, the Valerius Füner Prize has been awarded once a year since 1982 to the best graduate in the above-mentioned field of study.

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Füner holding a glass of champagne

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Valerius Füner on his 80th  birthday on May 26, 1994

 

Purpose of the foundation

The purpose of the foundation is to promote the instruction and further education of engineers in the field of refrigeration and air-conditioning technology (including heat pumps) at Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences. We also aim to maintain the study specialization of the same name in the subjects of mechanical engineering as well as mechatronics in the long term.

In recent years, the Valerius Füner Foundation has supported numerous activities to promote teaching and research in the field of refrigeration technology at HKA. This also ensures the next generation for the industry, in which well-trained engineers are in great demand and urgently needed.

Sponsors and supporters

ASERCOM, Berlin
Axima/Cofely Refrigeration, Lindau
Bitzer, Sindelfingen
BKW, Wolfschlugen
GEA Bock, Frickenhausen
CTS, Hechingen
Danfoss, Offenbach
Denso, Eching
Du Pont, Bad Homburg
Fuchs, Mannheim
Gentner-Verlag, Stuttgart
Güntner, Fürstenfeldbruck
Leica Biosystems, Nussloch
Peter Huber, Offenburg
THE SCHAUFLER FOUNDATION
TWK, Karlsruhe
Witt, Aachen
York/Johnson Controls, Mannheim

Bodies of the foundation

The Valerius Füner Foundation has a board of directors, a foundation council, and an advisory board. The members serve on an honorary basis. 

 

Board of directors    
Chair Prof. Dr.-Ing. Matthäus Wollfarth Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences
Vice-Chair Prof. Dr.-Ing. Michael Arnemann Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences
Advisor Dipl.-Ing. Rainer Große-Krach BITZER SE Sindelfingen
Foundation council    
Spokesman Hermann Renz BITZER SE Sindelfingen
Deputy spokesman Joachim Huber PETER HUBER Kältemaschinenbau AG
Member Dipl.-Ing. (FH), MBA Philipp Jehs

CTS Clima Temperatur Systeme GmbH

Member Prof. Dr.-Ing. Franz Quint Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences
Member Prof. Dr.-Ing Johannes Reichelt Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences em.
Advisory Board  
Dipl.-Ing. (FH) Rainer Burger TWK GmbH
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Denecke Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences
Prof. Dr.-Ing., Dr.-Ing. E. h., Dr. h. c. Werner Fischer Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences
Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Michael Kauffeld Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Robin Langebach Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences
Michael Stalter TWK GmbH
Dr. Dipl.-Wirtsch.-Ing. Ulrich Stiebel STIEBEL ELTRON Gruppe
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Matthias Stripf Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences