The Path to Patient Safety. Addressing Industry Concerns and Solutions for Primary Packaging Component Selection.

- Common concerns in the pharmaceutical industry surrounding parenteral packaging
- A quality-by-design approach to manufacturing components to mitigate industry concerns that relate to particulates and silicone contamination
- Analytical tools utilized to ensure packaging integrity and product quality
- Advancements in products and processes to achieve best-in-class specifications, with a focus on 'zero-defects'

- Understand the risks that face the pharmaceutical industry today from a drug packaging perspective, and discuss strategies to mitigate these risks
- Introduce a QbD approach to product manufacturing and product design for pharmaceutical components with a focus on particulate reduction
- Review solutions for manufacturing high-quality packaging components to meet the needs of biologics and sensitive molecules

- Formulation scientists and packaging engineers
- Device development engineers and managers
- Technical functions surrounding drug delivery systems
- Extractable and leachable experts
- Quality/regulatory personnel in parenteral drug delivery
- Procurement professionals

Technical Key Account Manager
Datwyler

Rahul Thakar is a technical key account manager with Datwyler and has more than 10 years of product development experience in pharmaceutical and chemical sciences. In his current role, Rahul consults with pharmaceutical and medical device companies on parenteral packaging solutions to develop safe and efficacious drug-delivery systems. He holds global responsibility for several key clients, where he is responsible for technical projects from the ideation to the commercialization stage. Within Datwyler, he is also leading strategic collaborations with external partners for product portfolio expansion and product innovation.

Rahul was awarded his doctorate degree in material science and analytical chemistry from Indiana University, Bloomington where his graduate research was focused on design and microfabrication of bioanalytical devices for electroanalytical measurements.

Technical Key Account Manager
Datwyler

Elke Geuzens received her doctorate degree in chemistry from Hasselt University in Belgium. After receiving her degree, she acquired several years of experience working in the chemical industry. Elke joined Datwyler in 2010 as a Product Support Manager, and has continued to hold technical roles at Datwyler, gaining more than 10 years of experience as a representative to customers of Datwyler’s container closure solutions.

Currently, Elke is in the role of Technical Key Account Manager where she acts as a main point of contact for technical inquiries, project management, and customer support. In her role as Technical Key Account Manager, Elke works directly with pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device companies, focusing on providing technical expertise on parenteral packaging for injectable drug products.

Global Process Engineering Manager
Datwyler

After working for Philips Lighting and Terumo Europe for many years, Gert Gregoire joined Datwyler Pharma Packaging in 2007. He was involved with the introduction of the FirstLine concept in Belgium and as production manager for FirstLine, he led the first new plant using Datwyler’s highest global manufacturing standard.

In 2014, Gert became head of operations support and was responsible for process engineering and validation, toolshop and pilot plant within the Belgium facility. Currently, he is global process engineering manager reporting to the vice-president technical services within Datwyler Pharma Packaging.

Gert graduated as an electromechanical engineer at Group T (Engineering campus of Leuven University, Belgium) and holds also a Master’s degree in management from Hasselt University.