Fedra Pavlou

The triennial Frankfurt (Germany) meeting was very well attended, in spite of the global economic downturn and swine flu epidemic. Although this appeared to affect the number of attendees from the US and Japan, it seems the shortfall in numbers was more than made up for by the rise in Chinese, Korean and Indian visitors, thus confirming the high level of global investment that is being made in these markets. I have to say, although exhausting, the meeting was a real eye-opener for me — in a good way! Being my first event since joining the Pharmaceutical Technology Europe (PTE) team, not only was I surprised by the sheer scale of the event, I was also taken aback by the real sense of optimism that emanated from each of the exhibitors that I spoke with. Whilst many industries are cutting back on their investment in new product innovation, pharmaceutical technology manufacturers continue to invest heavily in R&D, which will place them in a strong position once the economic storm has been weathered.

Amongst the companies exhibiting at the event, whether they were involved in packaging or aseptic solutions, whether their field of expertise was labelling or process analytics, there was a definite trend towards disposable solutions, efficiency and cost effectiveness. These were the event's buzzwords and the areas in which the majority of companies are investing most time and money. Aside from the interesting innovations that are being made to improve speed, quality and cost effectiveness, some industry representatives that I spoke with had some exciting ideas regarding packaging and aseptic solutions; specifically, biodegradable materials and more environmentally friendly sterilization techniques. We will be taking a closer look at some of these solutions in issues later in the year so watch this space!

I look forward to seeing you there.

Very best wishes,
Fedra Pavlou
Editor-in-Chief