'Analytical chemistry must better meet the needs of the business community'

Various new techniques in analytical chemistry are emerging, but it is not always easy to ensure that university education is well aligned with the needs of the business community. UvA professor prof. dr. Peter Schoenmakers tells about his vision during LabAnalyse 2019, on Thursday, November 7 in Congrescentrum 1931 in Den Bosch.

By: Dimitri Reijerman

Techniques such as mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography have become the norm, while two-dimensional gas and liquid chromatography are also on the rise. Universities such as the UvA do a lot of research with these research methods, but according to Schoenmakers, the attitude in the business world to embrace these techniques is sometimes still too hesitant.

Schoenmakers: “There is resistance to change in analytical chemistry, but the demands are changing. We at the university want to help science move forward. So we do research on things that no one else has done yet. That is also because we have to publish. If you look at a company, then the lab research has to be robust, reliable. And they want to see results immediately. Companies have to find a balance between the quality of the measurements and the reliability of the measurements.”

Despite the fact that UvA students gain a lot of experience with new techniques in analytical chemistry during their studies, the professor states that companies should mainly invest in people: “They do have money for new equipment in the business world, certainly at large companies, and more than at a university. But the people who have to implement research are incredibly expensive. The students often work at companies that work with the latest equipment, because well-trained manpower is scarce. Moreover, it is nice for the companies that sell new equipment if someone can work with it full-time.”

Coast

One of the ways to reduce the gap between theory and practice is the COmprehensive Analytical Science and Technology (COAST) programme. In this programme, the business community works closely with universities and colleges. Mimi den Uijl, who will give the lecture with Schoenmakers and who is working on her PhD, says: “I did an internship at Shell for COAST and saw the industry up close. Now she also works with Unilever and water purification companies and even with the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, where paintings are analysed, including works by Van Gogh. These are really fun projects.”

Schoenmakers continues: “In a program like COAST, students can experience much earlier how analytical knowledge and science relate to the business world. But the business world can also benefit from COAST.” Den Uijl: “We see that many students who participate in the COAST program first do a PhD before they find a job in a company. Thanks to COAST, students get many opportunities, such as attending conferences and collaborating with companies.”

According to Schoenmakers, COAST is a solid and useful program to improve the connection with companies. But more is needed, he says: “We do complex research at the university. We try to train students as well as possible for practice. Conversely, there is a demand for the business community: indicate what exactly you want. I am in charge of the COAST programs for bachelor's and master's students. These were largely set up in response to signals from the business community. So they have a lot of influence on that. We are always open to suggestions.”

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