New Secretary General of the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) is Dr. med. Susanne Bieller. The 41-year-old will take over the post on 1 May 2019 from Gudrun Litzenberger, who is retiring. The management of the IFR Statistical Departments will at the same time hand over Litzenberger to Christopher Müller.

With the worldwide rapid development of robotics and automation, the field of tasks of the World Robot Association IFR has expanded enormously in recent years. "I am pleased to be the ambassador of robotics to accompany the dynamic development and to continue the successful work in the future", says dr. Susanne Bieller. "One of my important tasks will be to provide a better understanding of complex industry issues around the world."

Dr. Susanne Bieller most recently spent five years as a project manager at the European robotics association EUnited Robotics. She had previously worked as a managing director of the flat display group at the German Engineering Federation (VDMA) in Frankfurt for seven years. At the European Commission in Brussels she completed a post in public relations and communications after completing her academic education.

Dr. Christopher Müller (37) is the head of the IFR Statistical Department responsible for global industry data and analysis. In this role, the PhD economist is also responsible for the annual "World Robotics Report". Today, this study is considered the most important source of global robot statistics and covers all the market-relevant activities of industrial and service robots.

Gudrun Litzenberger has headed the IFR Statistical Department since 2003 and, since 2008, the General Secretariat. In the summer of last year, she was honored with the Joseph F. Engelberger Award for her contributions to robotics - the industry's most important award in the world. The jury emphasized its outstanding commitment as Secretary General and Head of the IFR Statistics Department. It has further developed world robot statistics and established the International Federation of Robotics as the voice of robotics worldwide.

The International Federation of Robotics represents more than 50 robotics companies, research institutions and national robotics associations from over twenty countries and was founded in 1987 as a non-profit organization.