Dr Hilmar Weinmann

Hilmar Weinmann, Ph.D., is Director of Discovery Process Research, Regional Head EMEA in the Discovery, Product Development & Supply organization within the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson.  

He is responsible for the Discovery Process Research (DPR) team that serves as the interface between Medicinal Chemistry and Chemical Process Research & Development. DPR supports Medicinal Chemistry efforts with innovative SAR-enabling chemistry and rapid development of efficient routes towards challenging building blocks and promising drug candidates. 

Hilmar is also Secretary of the Jury for the Janssen Prize for Creativity in Organic Synthesis, since 2021 

Hilmar joined Janssen in October 2019 following more than 24 years in the pharmaceutical industry with Schering AG and Bayer AG (Berlin, Germany). He was appointed Group Leader of the Process Research Department for Schering in 2000, where he was responsible for establishing novel automated process optimization and high-throughput technologies within Chemical Development. In 2003, he became Director of Medicinal Chemistry and led chemistry teams and interdisciplinary Early Research groups in various drug discovery areas, including dermatology/inflammation, women’s healthcare, chromatin modulation, immuno-oncology and antibody-drug conjugates. He delivered several clinical candidates to the pipeline of both Schering and Bayer. In 2016, he became responsible for strategic collaborations with external partners in the fields of new technologies (DNA-encoded libraries, ultralarge cyclopeptide libraries) and new modalities (protein degraders). 

 Hilmar is author of 47 peer reviewed publications and patents and of 5 books. He served as a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of Organic Process Research & Development and as a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of the Association for Laboratory Automation.

Hilmar graduated with a master’s degree in organic chemistry from the University of Tuebingen and received his PhD in organic synthesis at the University of Hanover in Germany under the guidance of Professor Ekkehard Winterfeldt in 1995. He was appointed Honorary Professor at Humboldt-University Berlin in 2013.

Hilmar is based in Beerse, Belgium.