- Market leaders of the BIOTECH industry turn out in force
- High-level EU Parliament presence
- Focus on research and development
- Collaboration with the scientific congress "European BioPerspectives"
"Turning ideas into value": with this slogan the European flagship trade fair BIOTECHNICA will be welcoming visitors to Hannover from 7 to 9 October 2008. "The tagline for the show sums up a whole series of changes designed to make BIOTECHNICA even more attractive and useful", says Stephan Kühne, who sits on the Board of Management at Deutsche Messe AG. BIOTECHNICA will be formally opened on 6 October 2008 by EU Commissioner Günter Verheugen.
The EU Commission will have a larger presence at BIOTECHNICA this year. In addition to a planned EU joint display representing the two Directorate-Generals of Industry Commissioner Günter Verheugen and Research Commissioner Janez Potocnik, the three-day event "EU Biotech Days" will host a series of symposia and workshops featuring high-ranking representatives of the European Parliament, EU research committees and the EU Commission, who will be reporting on current developments in biotechnology and gene technology, biopharmacy, environmental science and the energy sector.
Four central elements - exhibition, conferences, partnering event and BIOTECHNICA Award - form a unique platform for strategic alliances, new business deals and knowledge transfer. In addition to its extensive coverage of upstream suppliers, service providers and major players in the pharmaceutical, medical, chemical and environmental sectors, this year's show will also focus more attention on research and product development.
Leading companies such as Boehringer Ingelheim, Eppendorf, Greiner Bio-One, Mettler-Toledo, Olympus, Sarstedt, Sartorius, Sigma-Aldrich and Systec have already signed up for the show. First-time exhibitors this year include Whatman International Ltd. from the United Kingdom, Hamamatsu Photonics and Getinge AB from Sweden. Also taking part in October is the Fraunhofer Society for the Advancement of Applied Research, which will have a large stand at the show. Many bio-regions in Germany and elsewhere will also be mounting displays.
A further innovation this year is the subdivision of the conference program into three sections: BioScience/European BioPerspectives, BioBusiness and BioPolitics. "This gives the conference program a clear structure and extends its coverage to include many new themes", says Kühne.
Through the collaboration with DECHEMA (Society for Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology), which is teaming up with 17 professional associations to stage the important biotech congress EUROPEAN BIOPERSPECTIVES in parallel with BIOTECHNICA, visitors can look forward to a high-powered program of bioscience lectures delivered by top-notch speakers.
BioBusiness is the platform for new business deals and strategic alliances. Online networking tools for establishing initial contacts in the run-up to the show, plus a sophisticated partner-search service at BIOTECHNICA itself, create ample opportunities for face-to-face meetings between exhibitors, visitors and conference-goers.
Another plus is the special program of guided tours for decision-makers from international biotech, pharmaceutical and chemical companies, who will be taken round to visit selected stands at the show.
The new section BioPolitics provides a dedicated meeting place for senior European politicians and industrialists and representatives of business promotion agencies and trade associations. High on the agenda will be such controversial European issues as the length of the license period for plants in Europe, drug licensing in the EU, European strategies for stem cell and gene technology research, and food labelling.
More than 400 speakers from all over the world will be reporting on current trends, the latest research findings and successful commercial applications. They include Ruedi Aebersold, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich (Switzerland); Robert DiCosimo, DuPont Co., Wilmington (USA);
Michael Flickinger, North Carolina State University, Raleigh (USA); Rudolf Jaenisch, Whitehead Institute/Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT, Cambridge (USA); Stephen Mayfield, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla (USA); and Romas Kazlauskas, University of Minnesota, St. Paul (USA). "With its extensive lecture program BIOTECHNICA will once again fulfil its function as a knowledge hub for the whole of the biotechnology industry and a powerful driver of growth", declares Kühne.
Demand for experienced technical staff in the biotech industry can only increase in the future - which is why the subject of recruitment looms large at this year's show. jobvector - the leading careers portal for natural scientists in the German-speaking world - is significantly expanding its presence at BIOTECHNICA. "Because BIOTECHNICA is the leading European trade fair of its kind, it has a key role to play here in helping companies find the qualified staff they need", notes Kühne.
At the opening ceremony for the show, Deutsche Messe will present the 6th EUROPEAN BIOTECHNICA AWARD to the most innovative companies working in the field of biotechnology and the life sciences. Now worth a total of 100,000 euros, the Award ensures that "pioneering new products get the attention they deserve. Which in turn serves to raise the profile of the whole industry", as Kühne points out.
