Spider Silk from the Lab: Material of the Future

Utilizing the fantastic properties of spider silk for practical applications – that is the claim of AMSilk GmbH. In addition to various possible applications, issues of sustainability are also on the agenda, including renewable resources, biodegradability, recyclability, and the reduction of the CO2 footprint. Founded as a start-up in 2008, the company is on the right track and has become very successful, as Marketing and Communications Manager Isabel Rosenberger explains: 'Our protein is very good in terms of its structure and length. This is also because since its founding, there has been a focus on hiring capable employees. They continuously develop the design of this protein further and adapt it to a variety of possible applications.' Another reason for success, Isabel Rosenberger sees in the successful selection of strategic partners: 'With the Danish company 21st.BIO as one of our partners, we have chosen a provider that has a lot of experience in fermenting this protein. This involves scaling up the protein in sufficient quantity for industrial applications. Therefore, focusing on achieving an industrially relevant size is certainly one of the strengths of AMSilk.'

Spin-off of TU Munich

AMSilk was founded in 2008 as a spin-off of the Technical University of Munich. "The co-founder and research driver at the time was Prof. Dr. Thomas Scheibel," explains the marketing and communications manager. "He was involved in artificially producing spider silk. Spider silk is extremely flexible and robust and therefore offers great potential for creating materials for the future. At that time, Prof. Scheibel developed a biotechnological process to produce spider filaments in the laboratory. He inserted the spider silk-producing genome of the animal into microorganisms that multiply and thus proliferate the biomaterial." The pure silk protein obtained from the microorganisms is then pulverized or, depending on the application, dissolved.

Wet-spinning process

"The second major achievement of AMSilk was the introduction of the wet-spinning process," explains Isabel Rosenberger. "In this process, the protein powder is dissolved in water and transformed into a continuous filament. This has reached a preliminary stage for applications in the textile industry." The silk powder contributes to improving the performance of conventional household detergents and dishwashing detergents, while simultaneously reducing the proportion of chemicals. Apart from its flexibility and strength, the silk powder is convincing due to other properties. It is antibacterial and naturally degradable. This results in application possibilities for the cosmetics industry as well as for medical technology. In order to sensibly concentrate efforts, AMSilk focuses on two areas of use after various market studies: textile applications and FMCG, i.e., Fast Moving Consumer Goods, particularly laundry powder and dishwashing detergent. By using silk protein, certain chemicals can be replaced.

Prominent Investors

"We have several high-ranking investors who were involved with AMSilk very early on," describes Isabel Rosenberg the ownership structure. "Initially, these were MIG Capital and Athos (AT Newtec). Later, strategic investors such as Danish NOVO Holdings and the American trading company Cargill were added. We are still financed by external capital, but we are now on the brink of commercialization." AMSilk, currently with 75 employees, is led by CEO Ulrich Scherbel and CFO Ralph Fraundorfer. "We don't even need to do much customer acquisition," says Isabel Rosenberg. "Many customers approach us, and we do everything we can to meet the demand as quickly as possible by ramping up our production capacities with experienced industrial partners." Thus, AMSilk has already delivered initial successful projects with sustainable materials for automotive interiors and is working with renowned automobile manufacturers on further material developments. Fundamentally, AMSilk sees itself as a global supplier. The catchment area naturally also arises from the different sales markets. For instance, in luxury textiles, it involves major fashion houses in France and Italy.
 

Industrial Manufacturing

"At AMSilk, we have people who want to change the world with biomaterial," outlines Isabel Rosenberger. "These are employees who are here because they believe in it. We have a good mix of novices and experienced workers." The coming years at AMSilk will be marked by the production of industrially relevant quantities. "We want to be one of the leading manufacturers of silk protein-based biomaterials," says Isabel Rosenberger. "We aim to offer our customers real added value."