In order to promote young scientists in the field of the development and application of timber screws, KIT Timber Structures and Building Construction and the association of tool manufacturers for timber screws are awarding a prize for an outstanding master's thesis for the first time. The Professor-Blaß-University-Prize honours the achievements of Hans Joachim Blaß, Professor of timber structures at KIT from 1995 to 2021, who has significantly influenced the development of timber screws and their applications. Outstanding master's theses are honoured with prize money of €1,000. The award winners will also receive an invitation to the "Karlsruher Tage", an important meeting of the German timber structures industry that takes place every two years. The award winners can present their work there in a short lecture.

Requirements and prerequisites:

The university prizes are awarded for master's theses completed at KIT between 2024 and 2026, i.e. the date of the successfully completed master's thesis is between 1 July 2024 and 30 June 2026. The prerequisite for consideration is a reference to mechanical connections in timber structures, preferably to timber screws or dowel-type fasteners. Possible areas of investigation include, among others

• Mechanisms of action of connections
• Fundamentals of dimensioning and evaluation
• Behaviour under different load situations
• Durability of connections

Further information: Announcement of the Professor-Blaß-University-Prize 2026 for student work (PDF in German)

Award winners in recent years

The Association of Friends of the Research Centre for Steel, Timber and Masonry promotes science and research at the Research Centre for Steel, Timber and Masonry of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in accordance with its statutory purpose. To honour excellent scientific achievements, prizes are awarded once a year for the best Master's theses. A prize of € 1,000 is awarded for a thesis in the field of timber structures and € 1,000 for steel structures.

The following criteria must be met:

• The thesis was completed at the Research Centre for Steel, Timber and Masonry
• The thesis was awarded a grade of 1.0 ("very good")
• The student must be enrolled in either the "Civil Engineering" or the "Engineering Structures" degree programme at KIT.

Further information: https://www.freunde-der-va.de/foerderpreis.html

Award winners in recent years