Virtual Engineering Week, taking place November 30 through December 4, will host fireside chats and keynote presentations featuring engineering and manufacturing experts from several industries, including medtech. Attendees of the all-new digital event will have access to these informative talks as well as to more than 100 sessions on topics ranging from 3D printing and digital solutions for medtech to medical device product development, packaging trends, and sustainability.

“Today’s critical times are requiring manufacturing processes to not only operate smoothly but more quickly than ever before, putting pressure upon these industries to innovate at an unprecedented pace,” said Steve Everly, Virtual Engineering Week Group Event Director. “With the added challenge of not being able to meet in-person, we curated Virtual Engineering Week’s conference to feature ample networking and connection opportunities for attendees to engage with the brightest minds across manufacturing industries today. We’re especially proud of our keynote and fireside chat speaker lineup that will spotlight trends and new possibilities and ultimately inspire much innovation.”

The event is organized by Informa Markets – Engineering, which manages ATX, D&M, MD&M, PACK, PLASTEC, and Quality events and is MD+DI’s parent company. To register to attend Virtual Engineering Week, visit: https://engineering.im.informa.com/2020/

Information on each fireside chat and keynote session is below. The full schedule can be viewed here.

Monday, November 30

Welcome & Fireside Chat with the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) (8 a.m. PST)
Speaker: Tom Costabile, Executive Director/CEO, ASME

Keynote: Making Healthcare Better with Additive Manufacturing (8:15 a.m. PST)
Speaker: Naomi Murray, Ph.D., Director of Advanced Operations for Additive Technology Solutions, Stryker

Presented by American Society of Mechanical Engineers – ASME

Additive manufacturing offers the capability of creating innovative designs, accelerating the development process, and building from medical imaging. Medical applications have been a leading application for more than 30 years, and now diverse applications and a new era of medical manufacturing is emerging. In this keynote presentation, Dr. Naomi Murray will provide some insights into healthcare’s use of 3D printing in all areas and share her experiences with Stryker to leverage additive manufacturing’s design freedom to create shapes that were not possible before.

Tuesday, December 1

Welcome & Fireside Chat with Medical Alley Association (MAA) (8 a.m. PST)
Speaker: Shaye Mandle, President & CEO, Medical Alley Association 

Keynote: Creating a Valuable and Virtual Medtech Experience (8:15 a.m. PST)
Speaker: Mike Thornton, Vice President, Research & Development, Image Stream Medical, wholly owned subsidiary of Olympus

Presented by Medical Alley Association

Healthcare IT solutions are partnering with IoT and the cloud like never before to facilitate a rich, virtual collaborative experience between physicians in a medical treatment location, such as an operating room during a clinical procedure, and vendors or other clinicians outside of the environment. In this keynote presentation, Michael Thornton, VP of R&D, will draw from his experiences at Olympus to provide insights into developing such medtech from the ground up, the engineering involved, and details on the technology development process, including Agile SW development.

Wednesday, December 2

Welcome & Fireside Chat with the Institute of Packaging Professionals (IoPP) (8 a.m. PST)
Speaker: Jane Chase, CPP, Fellow, Executive Director, Institute of Packaging Professionals

Keynote: Leading the Change in Medical Device Packaging (8:15 a.m. PST)
Speaker: Amy Stewart, Product Development Manager, Printpack Medical & IoPP Medical Device Packaging Technical Committee, Board Chairperson

Presented by IoPP Medical Device Packaging Technical Committee (MDPTC)

The CDC estimates that on any given day, one in every 31 hospital patients has at least one healthcare-associated infection. It’s these odds that draw professionals from medical device manufacturers, their packaging supply partners and package designers, and every individual who feels the gravity of packaging integrity for patient safety to lead change.

Thursday, December 3

Welcome & Fireside Chat with the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) (8 a.m. PST)
Speaker: Patrick Farrey, CEO, Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE)

Keynote: Altering Decisions for Plastics Consumption in a Circular Economy (8:15 a.m. PST)
Speaker: Conor Carlin, Vice President, Sustainability, Society of Plastics Engineers

Presented by Society of Plastics Engineers – SPE

Conor Carlin will share current opportunities to inform decisions in lifecycle assessments, designs for the environment, and application of specific regulatory changes.

Friday, December 4

Welcome & Fireside Chat – What's New For You in 2021? An Anaheim Update (8 a.m. PST)
Speaker: Hayley Haggarty, Group Event Director, Anaheim, Informa Markets – Engineering

Keynote: Mayo Clinic 2030: Hospital of the Future (8:15 a.m. PST)
Speaker: Mark Wehde, Chair, Division of Engineering, Mayo Clinic

Prior to 2020, the two main drivers of change in healthcare were costs and improvements in technology leading to better diagnostics and therapeutics. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, changes that were under way to better utilize digital technology have dramatically accelerated. In this keynote, Mark Wehde, the chair of engineering at Mayo Clinic, will discuss how the rapid increases in technology related to connectivity, data analytics, cloud data storage, artificial intelligence, robotics, and sensors are enabling the creation of something new, something that was previously only in the realm of science fiction.