Proceedings of Industrial Technologies conference
The proceedings of the seventh European conference on industrial technologies, held in Toulouse, France, from 27 to 30 October 1997, have recently been published. The conference was organised by the European Commission within the framework of the BRITE/EURAM programme in the field of Industrial and Materials Technologies, and the Standards, Measurements and Testing programme (SMT). A total of 750 industrialists, researchers, engineers and urban planners came together to discuss the future of Europe's industrial research policy, and more than 50 research projects were presented during the conference. The publication contains the texts of the introductory speeches delivered by keynote speakers, including the European Commissioner for research and innovation, Mrs Edith Cresson, on European action in this field, and the French Prime Minister, Mr Lionel Jospin, on innovation and technological development at the service of employment. The proceedings of the round table session which discussed the topic, "What research for industry at the dawn of the 21st century", are provided in the first section of the publication. The texts of the presentations, conclusions and summaries of the debates which were held within the following sessions are also provided: - Towards a better living and working environment; - The factory of the future; - New perspectives in aeronautics and aerospace. Details of the technologies and innovations arising from EU-funded research on materials technologies, exhibited during the event, as well as contact details for each of the project coordinators are included in the publication. The exhibition was organised around the three central themes of the conference, as well as an additional theme on standards and quality control. A keynote address delivered near the end of the conference on the planned "Promoting competitive and sustainable growth" programme and others in the forthcoming Fifth RTD Framework Programme, as well as the closing session on "The challenge facing European industrial research: managing focus and flexibility and meeting economic and social goals" are also documented in the report. A summary of the overall conclusions is also provided.