MST Conference and Health Business Connect: international experts of miniaturized and individualized medicine met in Dortmund

On July 5 and 6, 2017 the city of Dortmund in Germany turned into a hub for miniaturized and individualized medicine. The combined events MST Conference and Health Business Connect gave international experts a unique opportunity to share information about technical developments and trends in medicine and healthcare and to trigger new business.
 
Almost 100 experts of innovative micro- and nanotechnologies, digitalization, trends and forecasts, certification and medical product legislation from Germany and neighboring countries came together on these two days. The IVAM Microtechnology Network, the City of Dortmund Economic Development Agency, and the French cluster Pôle des Microtechniques had joined forces to organize the events.
 
The established MST Conference took place for the 14^th time on July 5, though for the first time addressing an international audience with an English language session. The conference presents innovations in microsystems technology (MST) and has been organized once a year since 2004 by the City of Dortmund Economic Development Agency and the IVAM Microtechnology Network. This year, research results, applications and treatment trends in the field of individualized healthcare solutions were presented and discussed.
 
The combination of miniaturization and digitalization allows the acquisition and evaluation of diagnostic data in real-time and at the point of care. New devices offer the same precision as laboratory measurements, but faster results, and they can also be used by non-professionals. The conference participants introduced and discussed a wide range of technologies that enable a faster and more precise diagnosis and treatment, but also opportunities and risks that result from the ability of patients to diagnose and treat themselves.
 
After a day dominated by presentations, bilateral exchange was the focus of the event "Health Business Connect – Micro & Nano MEETS Medical Innovation" held on July 6 at Dortmund’s Technology Park. In more than fifty B2B meetings representatives from twenty companies from Germany, France, Switzerland and the United Kingdom developed joint projects and business ideas. The business meetings were prepared by IVAM and the French partner Pôle des Microtechniques located in Besançon in France.
 
The B2B meetings of Health Business Connect were framed by impulse lectures, company pitches and a guided tour at the Fraunhofer Institute for Software and Systems Engineering ISST. Among other things, the participants visited the Industrial Data Space (IDS) Lab of Fraunhofer ISST where they were given exciting insights into the possibilities of augmented reality, with the aid of which vital parameters of animals in a herd can be made visible.
 
The participants of both events welcomed the combination of conference and B2B meetings with plenty of information and opportunity to exchange ideas. Consequently, IVAM and the partners involved declared their wish to continue to organize events in a similar format and environment in the years to come.