Innovations, highlights, and new products showcased at the lounges in 2019 are more interesting and innovative than ever.

The lounges continue to grow and repeatedly impress with new and innovative areas. Since the shift from Stuttgart to Karlsruhe, the place where it all began, a very positive trend can be observed. The event receives very high acclaim from all sides and can therefore continuously present new highlights.

With an innovative program and many expert contributions, the LOUNGES 2019 present themselves to the audience in Karlsruhe. Over 200 exhibitors give the industry event a very special significance right at the beginning of the year.

Cleanroom and Pharmaceutical Technology in Focus

New topics and areas in the over 12,000m² large hall offer visitors countless opportunities for information and exchange. In addition to the large exhibition where companies showcase their products and services, over 300 lectures, actions, and product shows take place, which visitors can attend free of charge.

Highlights of 2019 include new areas presented on separate spaces and in forums. These are an Innovation Lab, a section on Innovation Cleanroom, the Hygienic Design Forum, GMP Talks with regulatory representatives, the new Pharma Forum, and again the very popular Darkzone.

The REINER! Fraunhofer Cleanliness Technology Award

From CLEAN! to REINER!

The Fraunhofer IPA gives the abstract and diverse landscape of cleanliness a personal and unmistakable face. The result is: the REINER! The cleanliness technology production is considered a key technology that drives important innovations across industries. The manufacturing of microchips, flat screens, implants, pharmaceutical active ingredients, or micro- and nanoproducts would be unthinkable without a clean, pure, or ultra-pure production environment. Outstanding ideas in cleanliness technology enable not only completely new products but also make production processes more economical.

This award is a honorary prize, not associated with monetary rewards. The winners can use it as a reference with potential customers and partners, thus demonstrating their expertise and innovative spirit.

The winners are selected by independent jurors from Fraunhofer, VDI, ESA, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences, and GMP Cleanroom Technology.

The award ceremony and the presentation of the winners will take place during the Lounges 2019.

INNOVATION LAB: Innovative Materials and Surfaces in Process and Room

The sustainable operation of cleanrooms largely depends on the functionality and durability of the materials used and the surfaces produced with them. This applies not only to new constructions but especially to existing structures that are to be reused more frequently in the context of expanding laboratory and production facilities. Already today, innovative concepts and materials are available that significantly improve the technical and economic conditions during construction and operation of cleanrooms but are not yet adequately implemented in practice. The noticeable shift in construction, increasingly driven by megatrends such as climate change, resource scarcity, or digitalization, makes it necessary to establish innovations much faster in construction and cleanroom building. Only then can the opportunities offered by the performance of these materials be recognized and utilized in a timely manner.

The Innovation Lab will address, among other things, the following questions:

- Virtual cleanrooms – how can suitable materials be selected using Building Information Models (BIM)?
- What system requirements must I set for a sustainable surface?
- Innovative materials – how can they be used despite regulations?
- The new construction contract law – what challenges do the actors in the construction value chain face?
- How can the construction, modernization, and repurposing of cleanrooms be technically made sustainable?
- Construction costs vs. life cycle costs – which approach leads to the goal?
- Knowledge management in construction – how can the know-how be secured within the company?

In addition to introductory lectures on individual questions, there will be roundtable discussions with visitors as actors in the construction value chain to identify opportunities and risks associated with the necessary implementation of innovations in the respective environment. This is also a prerequisite for finding solutions that need to be discussed and developed.

365 Days of Expert Information, Exchange, and Lead Generation for Exhibitors Instead of Only 3 Days of Live "Trade Fair"

Just in time for Lounges 2019, starting mid-January 2019, x4com will present its new platform, which all exhibitors and visitors of the Lounges, as well as all interested parties after registration, can use. Exhibitors and visitors of the Lounges are automatically registered and do not need to do anything further. All other persons can easily and free of charge create a personal profile.

The new platform knows no borders; content is presented in German and English and can also be used if one cannot attend the Lounges.

In the future, the website will feature a new NEWS page that will present all company information, company news, product news, job news, product catalogs, expert contributions, advertisements, videos, lectures, actions, shows, industry events, and much more. From the time of launch, there will already be several hundred contributions.

In the logged-in area, there will additionally be news feeds for direct exchange. Networks can be set up or communication with all users can be simply maintained. Currently, over 6,000 users are registered on the platform.