Manufacturing industry goes nano
Organised by the 'European industrial breakthrough leading towards an integrated competitive sustainable industry' (NMP-MANUFUTURE) project, the industrial technologies conference was held in Brussels in September 2010 and covered the full scope of the new production technologies of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7). The conference, falling under the patronage of the Belgian EU Presidency, involved two days of plenary presentations by high-level speakers from both the industry and research communities, interspersed with a series of parallel sessions discussing relevant social, economic and environmental perspectives. A third day provided matchmaking opportunities for participants to meet potential research and business partners throughout the Member States and Associated Countries. Conference topics focused on numerous important issues such as nanotechnology, emission-free energy, new approaches in medicine and technology conversion. Participants discussed new concepts that could potentially change global markets, such as personalised medicine, ubiquitous machines and innovative technologies in compressed air. The project team put special effort into fostering interaction between small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The gathering offered a good opportunity for the different players and actors to discuss possibilities for future partnerships in research and development (R&D) or the market. Presentations, abstracts and photos are available on the project website http://www.industrial-technologies2010.eu/(opens in new window).