Gerrit Berkhoff

The son of primary school principal Gerrit Berkhoff (1868–1959) and Martha Severs (1872–1949), Berkhoff studied chemistry at Leiden University where he obtained, in 1929, a doctor's degree with his PhD dissertation "Osmose van ternaire vloeistoffen" ("Osmosis of ternary fluids"). As a student, he worked for four years as a laboratory assistant for inorganic chemistry.

In 1929, Berkhoff started his career as a research chemist at DSM (Dutch State Mines). During the 1930s, he supervised the development of fertilizers for the Nitrogen Fixation Plant (Stikstofbindings Bedrijf (SBB)). His publications on the crystallisation of ammonium nitrate date from this period. His visionary and social talents led to a change from incremental research (responding to the competition) to innovative research (taking the initiative). This resulted in 1940 in the foundation of the Central Laboratory (Centraal Laboratorium (CL)), of which he became director.^[1] His journeys to the US immediately after the Second World War, to look at diversification options, enabled DSM to start the production of caprolactam, the raw material needed for the enkalon or nylon 6 textile fibre of the AKU, now part of AkzoNobel. Until his departure in 1961, he was CEO of all DSM's research and development divisions, which under his supervision became highly successful.^[2]