Information from the Purest: Cleanroom at TechnoPharm 2013

- Over 300 exhibitors with high-tech solutions for pharma, food, and cosmetics expected
- For the second time: Cleanroom Village and CleanRoomCongress
- Other topics: Packaging and Hygienic Design

Pure matters at the Nuremberg Exhibition Center: TechnoPharm® again in 2013 emphasizes the topic of "Cleanroom". Specifically, two program features address this theme: the Cleanroom Village in Hall 9 and the CleanRoomCongress, organized by the Working Group for Pharmaceutical Process Engineering (APV) and Concept Heidelberg. From April 23 to 25, 2013, the high-tech trade fair offers industry professionals from the pharma, food, and cosmetics sectors excellent opportunities to learn about the latest process technologies. Additional synergies are provided by the concurrently held POWTECH 2013 for professionals seeking current trends in mixing, sieving, dosing, and granulating powders and bulk materials. Also taking place simultaneously at the exhibition center: the International Congress for Particle Technology PARTEC.

From grams to micrograms: The number of "High Potent" active ingredients — those administered in small doses — is steadily increasing in the pharmaceutical industry. More complex molecular structures, higher molecular weights, and poorer solubility of active ingredients continually pose new challenges in development, production, and employee safety. At the same time, rising costs and increasing regulatory requirements demand optimally controlled, flexible process workflows to maintain quality. "In our Quality Assurance specialist group, we observe with growing concern the increasing number of warning letters and the resulting production shutdowns. The main cause is largely the excessive cost pressure on the pharma industry combined with often exaggerated regulatory demands," says Prof. Dr. Heribert Häusler, board member of the Working Group for Pharmaceutical Process Engineering (APV).

Also noticeable: smaller batch sizes are increasingly needed, for example, to meet the trend toward personalized medicine. This places higher demands on changeover times and line clearance in pharmaceutical production.
In 2013, pharmaceutical manufacturers and their suppliers will again find answers to current production requirements at TechnoPharm. In 2011, 301 exhibitors showcased the latest technologies and services for life science processes. "While elsewhere, discussions focus on new active ingredients, shortened throughput times, or combating counterfeit medicines, engineers and pharmacists at TechnoPharm receive high-tech solutions and concrete answers for their daily GMP challenges," says Claus Rättich, member of the management of NürnbergMesse, highlighting the benefits of the trade fair.

At TechnoPharm, manufacturers and suppliers of
- equipment and apparatus for the production of solid, semi-solid, and liquid forms
- sterilization and biotechnology systems
- peripheral devices for sterile process technology
- active and auxiliary ingredients
- measurement, control, and automation technology
- packaging, filling technology, and packaging materials
- cleaning and hygiene products, and
- occupational safety
will find an excellent opportunity to establish numerous new business contacts over three intensive exhibition days. Here, they meet industry professionals from pharma, food, and cosmetics. Valuable synergies arise from the parallel event POWTECH, the international trade fair for mechanical process engineering and analytics. In total, 462 exhibitors presented products and services for the pharmaceutical industry at the 2011 trade fair duo. An updated list of exhibitors is available at: www.technopharm.de and www.powtech.de

An additional source of information is the International Congress for Particle Technology PARTEC, which brings leading particle specialists from around the world together at the same time at the Nuremberg Exhibition Center to discuss current trends.
More info about PARTEC at: www.partec.info

Purity as a Dogma

Cleanrooms enclose production areas and laboratories, ensuring near-sterile air to maintain consistently optimal conditions. The GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) requirements of the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) and the EU have evolved significantly in recent years. How these guidelines can be practically implemented and integrated into systems will be explained to cleanroom and sterilization technology specialists at the Cleanroom Village and the CleanRoomCongress during TechnoPharm 2013.

Cleanroom Village

The Cleanroom Village, a highly specialized special exhibition, will showcase the entire spectrum of cleanroom technology. The newly designed and elaborate pavilion will include about 20 exhibitors offering solutions for planning, outfitting, and constructing cleanrooms, which are now indispensable in pharmaceutical, cosmetic, diet, or health food production. The heart of the village will be a marketplace with technical presentations, catering, and the daily Village Hour for networking and professional exchange around the theme of cleanrooms. In total, 114 exhibitors showcased products and solutions related to cleanrooms at TechnoPharm and POWTECH in 2011.

CleanRoomCongress

Case studies are the focus of the CleanRoomCongress on April 24–25, 2013, organized by the Working Group for Pharmaceutical Process Engineering and Concept Heidelberg. Experts from industry and authorities will present on topics such as regulatory compliance, construction and renovation of cleanroom areas, monitoring, and innovations in cleanroom technology. Through case examples, it will be demonstrated how cleanrooms can be designed, operated, qualified, and monitored efficiently. Operators, planners, and providers of cleanroom systems will gain valuable insights into cleanroom best practices from market leaders in the pharma industry such as Merck, CSL Behring, Novartis, and Boehringer Ingelheim over two days.

No Fake Packaging

Before a medication is administered, it waits in vials, ampoules, or syringes. Special attention is paid to this primary packaging because active ingredients are sensitive and expensive to produce. Innovative packaging solutions are also needed to implement new legal requirements for serialization and tamper-evidence. In 2011, a total of 73 exhibitors at TechnoPharm and POWTECH presented packaging solutions that ensure purity, traceability, counterfeit protection, and authenticity. A special exhibition on sustainable packaging is planned for 2013 as well.

Pure Matters

In the production of food, beverages, pharmaceuticals, or cosmetics, it is essential that the used valves can be cleaned quickly, easily, and thoroughly. A supporting program, presented by Hüthig Verlag together with hygienic design expert Dr. Jürgen Hofmann from the European Hygienic Engineering & Design Group (EHEDG), will demonstrate how "easy-to-clean" solutions contribute not only to hygiene but also to efficiency and resource conservation at TechnoPharm 2013. Planned are technical presentations, panel discussions, and "easy-to-clean" solutions to experience firsthand.