The Industrial Technologies conference was organised for the third time in April 2014. The event took place in Athens during the Greek Presidency of the European Council, and gave an outlook to European and global developments and latest innovations in the fields of nano and biotechnology, advanced materials, and new production technologies. It was a tremendous success with over 1,300 participants from more than 60 countries around the world. Spinverse had an important role as one of the main co-organisers of the event.
In the four plenaries, 17 parallel sessions, and 14 workshops of the conference, over 170 high-level speakers representing business, government and academia discussed various topics in the areas of nanotechnologies, biotechnology, advanced materials and production technologies. Among them were Rudolf Strohmeier, Deputy Director General, D-G Research & Innovation of the European Commission. Rudolf Strohmeier’s topic was “Re-industrialisation and smart growth through research and innovation in Europe”; Esko Aho, former Prime Minister of Finland talked about “Improving Europe’s competitiveness through regional development”; Professor Javier García Martinez of University of Alicante, co-founder of Rive Technology and a birth of concept of smart specialisation – Professor Dominique Foray of EPFL, one of the main contributors to the concept of smart specialization discussed “New technologies impacting everyday life”; and Heinrich Flegel, Chairman Manufuture ETP, Daimler AG chose the topic “Improving Europe’s competitiveness through regional development”. These were but a few examples among many fine speakers.
In parallel to the conference, Spinverse Ltd organised and hosted the IndustryTech 2014 exhibition. More than 80 exhibitors presented their activities to the wide international audience, finding new technology partners and making their achievements known. The exhibition area also featured the Greek Showcase presenting Greek companies and their innovations, as well as the FutureFlash! Showcase, making innovations something to touch and feel.