When the World Batch Forum holds its annual North American Conference, May 16-19 in Chicago, security issues and data exchange standards will top the menu of program sessions. The conference will take place at the Lincolnshire Marriott Resort, just north of Chicago, and is open to WBF members and non-members.
Established in 1994, the WBF is a professional organization of end-users, vendors and consultants dedicated to promoting information exchange on the management, operation and automation of batch process manufacturing. According to WBF president, Harry Gianakis, “When we launched the WBF conference 10 years ago, we called it the ‘Meeting of the Minds.’ That has turned out to be an apt description.”
Highlights of the conference include a special session focused on security and compliance with new U.S. and European Union regulations for food, drug and chemical safety. There will also be presentations on recent work on the integration of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems with manufacturing execution systems (MES), based on the XML schema standards developed by WBF. Half-day tutorials on the ISA 88 standard for batch control and flexible manufacturing, and the ISA 95 standard for ERP to shop-floor integration will be given on the opening day of the conference.
The conference will showcase a Sponsors Exhibition to provide attendees with a chance to view and discuss the latest in batch automation technologies. For more information about the conference and to register online, go to www.wbf.org/conferences.htm.
