Hochschule Fresenius (HSF) looks back on more than 170 years of scientific tradition in the field of education. In 1848, Carl R. Fresenius founded the “Fresenius Chemical Laboratory”, which was dedicated to both laboratory practice and education. The admission as a state-approved university of applied sciences, privately owned, followed in 1971. HSF offers bachelor and master programs (full time and part time), vocational trainings and advanced trainings. Institute for Analytical Research (IFAR) is a service-providing research institution of the faculty of chemistry and biology which offers problem- and practice-oriented research and analytics. IFAR was founded in 2004 with the intention to link research and practice in chemistry and biology. IFAR conducts research and method development in the areas of trace analysis and structure elucidation and transformation studies. It also improves and redevelops analytical methods for sensitive detection in various matrices. The main focus is organic trace analysis in water. In this area, the working group headed by Prof Dr Knepper has been working successfully for more than 25 years in national and international research projects as well as in service analytics.