Overview

The manufacture of fine chemicals and pharmaceuticals traditionally involves multi-step reactions and physical operations such as mixing, heating, cooling, filtering, drying and tabletting. Scale-up is focussed mainly on bringing the product to the mass market; however, topical issues such as effective use of raw materials and energy, reducing the number of process steps, efficient separations, and lowering carbon emissions also need to be considered.

This one-day meeting will explore how future manufacturing plants will need to evolve as we strive towards net-zero carbon processes and respond to the depletion of traditional resources. Topics will include: multi-step synthesis and reactor design, process integration and control, catalysis and selectivity enhancement, the application of big data and machine learning, atom efficiency, sustainability and robotics.

A mix of keynote, oral and poster presentations will showcase the advances being made in Factories for the Future.

Programme

• 10:00–10:55
  Registration, coffee and putting up posters
• 10:55–11:00
  Opening remarks
• 11:00–11:45
  Keynote speaker 1: Prof. Richard Bourne, University of Leeds
  Industry 4.0: Self-optimised development of Pharmaceutical Processes
  
• 11:45–12:30
  Keynote speaker 2: Dr Carl Helmut Coulon, Head of Innovation, INVITE, Leverkusen, Germany
  Beyond classical automation: Modern Robotics in Factories of the Future
  
• 12:30–13:30
  Lunch and posters
• 13:30–14.15
  Keynote speaker 3: Professor Alexei Lapkin, University of Cambridge
  Digitalisation of R&D and Manufacturing in Pharma
  
• 14.15–14:45
  Short talks from early-career researchers (3 x 10 min)
  

  Probabilistic machine learning based soft-sensors for product quality prediction in batch processes
  Max Mowbray, Harry Kay, Sam Kay, Amanda Lane, Cesar Mendoza, Philip Martin and Dongda Zhang

  Concept for a Novel Process for the Glycolysis of Poly(ethylene terephthalate)
  Guido Grause, Joe Sutton, Andrew Dove and Joe Wood

  M²E³D: Multiphase Materials Exploration via Evolutionary Equation Discovery
  Andrei Leonard Nicusan, Mehdi Jangi, Jonathan Seville. Kit Windows-Yul
• 14:45–15:30
  Keynote speaker 4: Dr Elfie Cavalli, Syngenta 
  Biorenewable Feedstocks in Agrochemical Innovation: Opportunities and Challenges
  
  
• 15:30–16:00
  Coffee
• 16:00–16:45
  Keynote speaker 5: Dr Julia Creasey, Croda
  Life Cycle Assessment: a solution to achieving sustainability goals beyond factory gates
  
• 16:45–17:15
  Panel discussion
• 17:15–18:00
  Closing remarks and wine reception

The material presented has not been peer-reviewed. Any opinions are the presenter's own and do not necessarily represent those of IChemE or the Catalysis and Reaction Engineering Special Interest Group. The information is given in good faith but without any liability on the part of IChemE.