Biography

Hans Kolitzus started his career with synthetic sport surfaces in 1966 when the first synthetic athletic tracks and the first artificial turf surfaces were installed. His activities were part of the preparation of the Olympic Games in Munich (Germany) in 1972. The development of test devices and the preparation of the DIN standards (DIN 18035-3, DIN 18035-5, DIN 18035-6, DIN 18035-7) were done at the University of Stuttgart (Germany, 1966 – 1979).

Hans Kolitzus was the technical director of USSL and managed all its US activities (site inspections, ASTM committees, failure analysis). Lab testing was more or less performed at IST in Switzerland (ist-kolitzus.com).

Education

Study of Civil/Structural Engineering

University of Stuttgart, Germany

1966 graduated as Dipl.lng. (German MSC degree)

Professional Career

1966 - 1979 Scientific Engineer

Research and Testing Institute for Building Materials (F)MPA

of the University of Stuttgart, Germany (Otto-Graf-lnstitut)

(Forschungs- und Material-Pruefungsanstalt für das Bauwesen)

1979 - 2017 CEO of IST Consulting GmbH in Eschenz, Switzerland

Testing of all kinds of Sports Surfaces (with ISO 17025 Accreditation since 2005)

• Artificial Turf for Soccer, Hockey and American Football
• Synthetic Surfaces for Light Athletics and Outdoor Team Sports
• Sports Hall Surfaces : wooden and synthetic designs
• Children's Playground Surfaces

1979 - 2010 Court-appointed and Pre-selected Expert Whitness on Sports Surfaces in Germany 

(oeffentlich bestellter und vereidigter Sachverstaendiger)

Since 1989 President of USSL Inc., a sport surface testing laboratory

in Lexington SC 29072 (former locations: Richmond VA, Hopewell VA, + Fort Walton Beach, FL 32547)

Since 2018 Independent Position as Expert Witness regarding sports surfaces

especially technological compatibility/performance of materials

Achievements

Personal Credit for the development of test devices such as:

• Artificial Athlete: DIN 18032-2/18035-6/18035-7 + EN 14808 + EN 14809 + ASTM + FIFA
• Spikes Test Machine: DIN 18035-6
• Ball Rebound Test : DIN 18032-2 + EN .... + FIFA
• Angled Ball Rebound Test: FIFA
• Rotational Sliding Tester: DIN 18032-2/18035-6 + EN 14903
• Rolling Load Test: DIN 18032-2 + EN .... + ASTM

Concept and Preparation of the following documents:

• DIN 18032-2 - DIN 18035-5 + DIN 18035-6

For further information on Hans Kolitzus' activities please click here.