Biotechnica 2008: more to offer than ever before at Biotechnica

Biotechnica 2008: "Turning ideas into value": with this slogan the European flagship trade fair Biotechnica will be welcoming visitors to Hannover from 7 to 9 October 2008. "The tagline for the show sums up a whole series of changes designed to make BIOTECHNICA even more attractive and useful", says Stephan Kühne, who sits on the Board of Management at Deutsche Messe AG. BIOTECHNICA will be formally opened on 6 October 2008 by EU Commissioner Günter Verheugen.

The EU Commission will have a larger presence at Biotechnica  this year. In addition to a planned EU joint display representing the two Directorate-Generals of Industry Commissioner Günter Verheugen and Research Commissioner Janez Potocnik, the three-day event "EU Biotech Days" will host a series of symposia and workshops featuring high-ranking representatives of the European Parliament, EU research committees and the EU Commission, who will be reporting on current developments in biotechnology and gene technology, biopharmacy, environmental science and the energy sector.
Four central elements - exhibition, conferences, partnering event and Biotechnica Award - form a unique platform for strategic alliances, new business deals and knowledge transfer. In addition to its extensive coverage of upstream suppliers, service providers and major players in the pharmaceutical, medical, chemical and environmental sectors, this year's show will also focus more attention on research and product development. Leading companies such as Boehringer Ingelheim, Eppendorf, Greiner Bio-One, Mettler-Toledo, Olympus, Sarstedt, Sartorius, Sigma-Aldrich and Systec have already signed up for the show. First-time exhibitors this year include Whatman International Ltd. from the United Kingdom, Hamamatsu Photonics and Getinge AB from Sweden. Also taking part in October is the Fraunhofer Society for the Advancement of Applied Research, which will have a large stand at the show. Many bio-regions in Germany and elsewhere will also be mounting displays