Experts and Partners
Dr. Paul Christensen
- Interview partner in the course “Safety of Li-ion Batteries”
- One of the world’s leading experts on lithium-ion battery safety
- Founding Director of Lithiumionsafety Ltd.
- Senior Advisor to the UK National Fire Chiefs Council
- Serves on a number of UK Government working and governance groups
- Serves on British Standards Institute working groups
- He has been asked to chair the Cargo Incident Notification System and Network Scientific & Academic Expert Committee
His research focuses on thermal runaway and thermal propagation in large lithium battery systems, up to and including full electric vehicles. He also does research on detection and fire suppression systems for use in battery energy storage systems, manufacturing, and warehousing facilities.
Prof. Dr. Odne Burheim
- Interview Partner in the course “BattXcel lite”
- More than 150 peer-reviewed published papers and book chapters around energy storage, with increasing focus on the battery value chain in recent years
- He has supervized over 30 PhDs and PDRFs, and many more master students
- Group leader with 10 faculty members on Sustainable Energy Systems Research, at the Department of Energy and Process Engineering at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology – NTNU/Trondheim
- Author of the book “Engineering Energy Storage” (academic press)
Dr. Michael Hess
- Interview Partner in the courses “Operation of Li-ion Batteries”, “Testing of Li-ion Batteries” and “BattXcel lite”
- CEO of Battronics/Switzerland
- Ph.D. from ETH Zürich/Switzerland (Battery group of ETH)
- Additional 14 years of battery research experience at Bosch and MIT/USA
- 5 years in the industry with R&D consulting for battery companies – focusing on patents, technology developments, and the prices of batteries
Dr.-Ing. André Schlott
- Interview Partner in the course “Operation of Li-ion Batteries”
- Ph.D. from Dresden University of Technology
- Head of the Competence Center Energy and Thermal Management at the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials IFAM in Dresden
- Curator of Research Field “Waste Heat Utilization” of the BMWK Research Network “Energy in Industry and Commerce”
- 20+ years in thermal management, waste heat utilization, heat exchanger, thermal energy storage and energy efficiency
André’s main focus is on waste heat utilization by means of high-performance heat exchangers and thermal energy storages based on phase change materials. These technologies are also usable in the thermal management of electronic components and batteries. André also takes a broader look on system’s level performance. An important research topic is to increase systems performance and an overall saving of energy.
Sverre Eriksen
- Interview Partner in the course “Testing of Li-ion Batteries”
- Senior Principal Approval Engineer at DNV, working on Electrical Systems within the Maritime Sector
- Master of Science in Electric Power Engineering
- Working with electrical installations on ships (especially battery-powered ones) since 2011, including certification of battery systems
- Responsible for developing the DNV class rules for battery-powered ships (pure electric and hybrid)
- Board Member at the Maritime Battery Forum
Sebastian Cerne
- Interview Partner in the course “Testing of Li-ion Batteries”
- CTO of Battery & Automotive Components Testing Centre at TÜV SÜD Thailand
- Master of Engineering in Electrical Energy Systems and Electromobility
- Worked at the battery research institute ZSW in Baden-Württemberg
- 8 years of experience in battery testing for automotive and industrial applications
- Technical Expert for Battery Homologation according to UN Regulation No. 100 and 136
- Global New Energy Vehicle Segment Manager at the Product Service Division in the TÜV SÜD Group
Dr. Florian Ullrich
- Interview Partner in the course “Operation of Li-ion Batteries”
- Head of Business Development at Flexoo GmbH
- Ph.D. in physics/material science
- 10+ years of experience in printed and organic electronics
- A significant contribution to the commercialization of Flexoo’s first own product, the Battery Monitoring Solution “BaMoS”
Dr. Wojciech Mrozik
- Interview Partner in the courses “Testing of Li-ion Batteries” and “BattXcel lite”
- Live Lecture Partner in the course “Safety of Li-ion Batteries”
- Ph.D. from University of Gdansk/Poland
- Currently working in the UK with strong connections into the industry
- Worked extensively on Safety and Recycling within the last 6 years
- Expert on Battery Safety Tests at module/pack level
- Member in a few working groups of the British Standards Institution
- Subject Matter Expert of the Polish Alternative Fuel Association
- Recipient of Faraday Institution Community Award for Public Engagement in 2023
Dr. Thorsten Grün
- Live Lecture Partner and Expert on Maritime Battery Systems
- Studies of Power System Technology at the Clausthal University of Technology/Germany with a focus on photovoltaics and lithium-ion battery systems
- Worked at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), research focus: performance and aging dynamics within hybrid energy storage systems
- Application Engineer at Freudenberg e-Power Systems with a focus on maritime applications
Wolfgang Schmid
- Interview Partner in the course “Testing of Li-ion Batteries”
- Founder and CEO of BRS Messtechnik GmbH/Germany
- Decades of experience in measurement technology
- Worked in management positions in leading measurement tech companies
- Developed some “worldwide first” measurement instruments
Thomas Zangerl
- Interview Partner in the course “BattXcel lite”
- 22 years of experience in alternative drivetrains in combination with battery systems and hybrid solutions (Automotive, Rail, and Naval)
- Owner of Thomas Zangerl Automotive Business Development since 2006
- He has held several leading positions in European companies, for example,
International Business Developer at Leclanché /Switzerland
International Business Developer, Automotive Division at Ziehl Abegg / Germany - International Business Developer & Coordinator for high quality battery system at SHIFT
Dr. Christoph Sprung
- Life Lecture Partner and Case Study Lead in the course “Production of Li-ion Batteries”
- Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from University of Oslo/Norway
- Freelance Lecturer, Coach, and Researcher
- Lecturing in the field of manufacturing technology with focus on battery production at HTW Berlin/Germany
- Consultant in Battery Cell Manufacturing
- Vast experience in miccroelectronics manufacturing as well as project execution
Christopher Iacò
- Interview Partner in the course “Production of Li-ion Batteries”
- Founder and CEO of Bonsai Technology
- More than 7 years of experience in Lithium Battery manufacturing and
equipment development - Worked on more than 20 projects in the Lithium Battery industry worldwide
- Author of the book “Lithium Battery manufacturing: A deep dive how lithium batteries are made”
Cristopher’s main expertise areas include technical feasibility studies in
battery manufacturing green field projects, process and cell design development
for cost reduction for cylindrical, prismatic, and pouch battery cells.
Julian Kalmus
- Interview Partner in the course “Production of Li-ion Batteries”
- Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering at Technical University of Braunschweig
- Years of experience in developing, simulating, and test cooling systems for batteries and EVs
- Technical Sales Engineer Automotive & Battery at Weiss Technik GmbH in Hamburg, responsible for Dry Room Systems
- Working with Dry Room Systems for the past 5 years with most German OEMs
Dr. Piotr Kolodziejek
- Key Expert Innovation Projects for Greenectra
- Judicial Expert and International Patent Infringements Expert
- Ph.D. in Electrical and Control Engineering and M.Sc. in Economy and Management, both from Gdańsk University of Technology
- Over 10 years of experience as an innovation expert, evaluating project applications for several European and national organizations, with evaluated projects resulting in over 1 billion EUR of funding
Dr. Piotr Kołodziejek conducts research and commercializes innovations in high-power EV charging, energy storage, photovoltaics, autonomous power grids, and microgrids. He supports energy storage development in the USA, South Africa, Norway, Sweden, Pakistan, and Mozambique.
Our BattXcel Ambassadors

Prof. Dr. Kouzou Abdallah
BattXcel Ambassador for Africa and the Middle East

Prof. Dr. Navadol Laosiripojana
BattXcel Ambassador for Asia

Dr. Stanton Rak
BattXcel Ambassador for
North America
Academic Partners


