By Paul Winters, Director, Communications, at the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO)
The 15th annual BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology, hosted by the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), will be held 16-19 July 2018 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia. Philadelphia is a hub of innovation and an ideal location for BIO events; the BIO World Congress was last held in Philadelphia in 2014. The tri-state region of Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey ranks as one of the top US markets for biotechnology and is home to a number of startup biotech companies.
The BIO World Congress continues to prove itself as the largest international event for industrial biotechnology. The 2018 conference promises to present new opportunities to make global connections through business partnering, education and networking. In 2017, more than a quarter of the nearly 1,000 attendees were c-level executives, representing 535 companies from around the globe. There were 32 countries represented at the event, with the largest delegations coming from the United States, Canada, the Netherlands, France and Germany.
BIO’s One-on-One Partnering ™ system is a truly unique and exclusive feature of BIO conferences. The online system allows attendees to create a profile and manage meeting requests or search for other companies to invite to partnering discussions. BIO handles the scheduling and logistics for all requested 30-minute partnering meetings during the conference. Companies can continue to use the online system during and after the conference to communicate with potential partners and manage business development activities.
The BIO One-on-One Partnering™ system is available to all BIO World Congress attendees. In 2017, the BIO World Congress hosted 2,130 partnering meetings over the course of three days, achieving a 10% increase from the number of meetings completed in 2016. We expect these numbers to continue to grow in 2018 in Philadelphia.
The BIO World Congress helps attendees keep up-to-date on industry trends and issues through three days of robust education programming across multiple venues, including panel sessions, technical presentations, GreenTech Investor Sessions and posters. Attendees will learn about cutting-edge industry developments in algae production, renewable chemicals, synthetic biology, gene editing, advanced biofuels, food ingredients, flavours and fragrances, and crop technologies. In 2017, the BIO World Congress hosted 277 presenting speakers in 42 panel sessions.
New this year, the BIO World Congress is inviting proposals for company and technical presentations, which are short, detailed presentations by a senior level executive or academic to showcase technology development or partnership opportunities. These company and technical presentations are the perfect way to increase visibility for your work in industrial biotechnology and attract more business partners at the BIO World Congress. Academic and industry researchers will also have an opportunity to present posters detailing their research or discoveries during one of the BIO World Congress receptions.
BIO’s GreenTech Investor Sessions provide high visibility opportunities for executives from emerging industrial biotechnology companies to present in front of venture capital investors, analysts and business strategists. The deadline for submitting proposals for company and technical presentations, GreenTech Investor Sessions, or poster presentations is May 14, 2018.
Companies attending the BIO World Congress will also have the opportunity to showcase their brand in front of new business and industry contacts through networking events, receptions and the exhibition. The BIO World Congress exhibit hall is a central point for business partnering, networking receptions and visibility for conference sponsors.
The 15th annual BIO World Congress coincides with the 25th anniversary of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization. In June 1993, two smaller trade groups – the Industrial Biotechnology Association (IBA) and the Association of Biotechnology Companies (ABC) – merged to form BIO. Over the past quarter-century, BIO’s policy advocacy and business partnering support have helped biotech companies build a diverse and thriving industry. Throughout 2018, BIO will be celebrating the policy and innovation milestones that have helped the United States become the world’s strongest biotech market. The BIO World Congress will showcase the industrial biotech sector’s continued growth and diversification.
Visit the event website for more information on programming, registration and sponsorship opportunities.
