First-Class Educational Programs Enrich Product Show

Once again the ISPE Boston Area Chapter Product Show has broken all previous records. And I’m especially proud to add another superlative to the list of Product Show achievements: first-class educational events. In addition, this year’s Show had more booths, more attendees, and showcased more of what makes the Boston area the pre-eminent location for life sciences innovation and growth worldwide.

The mission of the Chapter’s Educational Program Committee (EPC) is to provide entertaining and informative events that enable pharma and biopharma industry professionals to network, learn about topics important to the industry, educate and communicate standards and best practices to their colleagues.  This year’s Product Show educational presentations were pre-eminent examples of how to succeed at that mission.

Keith Gibbs creatively demonstrated Quality Risk Management while entertaining those who attended his talk “Quality Risk Management: Iron Chef Edition.” Jeff Odum spoke to a capacity crowd on Biotech 101 and captivated his audience with an introduction to the basic principles of biomanufacturing. Last but not least, Brian Hagopian challenged convention in his thought provoking talk, “Take the Guesswork Out of Your Water System.” Each of these presenters, leaders in their field, graciously volunteered their time and effort to develop these programs.

I would be remiss if I ended without mentioning this year’s Plenary Session which opened the Show with an inspiring mix of Chapter milestones and awards, and an address by Keynote Speaker Detlef Rethage, President of Nitto Avecia. Detlef introduced the robust crowd to the topic of oligonucleotides with his presentation “Oligonucleotide Therapeutics: The Promise and Reality from the Manufacturing Partner’s Prospective.” Thanks to him, attendees now understand how “oligios” can be used to regulate disease-causing proteins and provide the promise of better healthcare solutions for patients.

On behalf of the entire Boston Area Chapter, I’d like to thank all of our presenters for their commitment to making this year’s Product Show another resounding – and educational – success.