AkzoNobel has added two technical project leaders for personal care to its Surface Chemistry EMEIA group. Magdalena A. Biernat, PhD, and Rik Houben will be based in Sempach Station, Switzerand, and will report to Hartmut Schiemann, PhD, technical service manager of EMEIA.
Magdalena Anna Biernat, PhD, brings a strong background in biotechnology to her new position. Her responsibilities include leading projects focused mainly on cleansing and conditioning as well as serving as a Personal Care Technical Services team contact for EMEIA Marketing and Sales to AkzoNobel customers in Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa. In addition, she will partner with AkzoNobel’s global Research, Development and Innovation (RD&I) groups and with the technical services team, and lead technical projects, global or local in scope. Biernat earned a bachelor of science degree in biotechnology, specializing in the study of health care and of animal production, at Warsaw Agricultural University in Poland, and was awarded a fellowship to pursue a master of science degree, specializing in medical biotechnology, at Wageningen University in Wageningen, the Netherlands. She went on to earn a doctorate at Wageningen University based on research she conducted to achieve a better understanding of the functional and evolutional aspects of baculoviral and marsupial class II CPD photolyases. Dr. Biernat performed this research in collaboration with the Department of Genetics, Section Chronobiology and Health, at the Erasmus Medical Centre in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. In addition, she has co-authored and published related technical articles in leading biology research journals.
Rik Houben brings several years of international experience as a formulation chemist and product developer to his new position. As part of the Personal Care Technical Services team EMEIA, his responsibilities include developing new products and formulations, providing technical support, and leading projects to deliver results for EMEIA customers.