Workshop: Advanced Biomanufacturing to be held in Washington D.C. on July 25-26, 2013

Tufts University, Medford MA

Investigators

Abstract

Program ID 1346406 PI: Kaplan Overview: A Workshop on biomanufacturing will identify the needs and barriers in the field of biomanufacturing, including research, scale up and implementation, further technological innovation and regulatory and cost issues. The Workshop will bring together leaders in the field, including scholars, government officials, industry representatives to discuss and identify critical issues and challenges related to biomanufacturing. To address these goals, the workshop will be run in an interactive and iterative approach where session leaders will be asked to prepare pre-workshop outlines of major topics and then address these to the attendees. The vision for this effort is to see biomanufacturing as an emerging discipline in academic and industrial communities, as well as a technological opportunity to spur research and industry growth. To navigate to this vision, we must assess where the state-of-the-art is currently located for the field, what the paths are to move forward to reach the vision, and to identify the major barriers along this path. These needs will encompass the science and engineering involved, the regulatory and infrastructure needs and the systems infrastructure and integration required. The outcome from the workshop will be a report that provides a detailed road map of where the current state-of-the art is in terms of biomanufacturing, what the major barriers are to move the field ahead, and identifies some of the major targets and opportunities. The potential impact on US infrastructure will be described and a network in the community will be established. Intellectual Merit: The intellectual merit will mainly be in coalescing insight into the field of biomanufacturing in terms of the current scientific state of the art, the technological implications and the future vision for the field. This insight will be a foundation upon which to propel the field ahead in the coming years towards direct impact for the US economy. Broader Impacts: The broader impact of the Workshop will be the identification of critical challenges for the scientific and technological communities for this emerging field, impact on the broader educational activities for interdisciplinary needs for students at all levels, guidance for the NSF in terms of future directions of impact, insight for government officials at all levels of future needs for growth in the US to support jobs, manufacturing and future technological leadership, and broad and new insight into the unique intersections between nature and engineering that remain to be tapped and exploited for a sustainable planet. Publication of outcomes and related materials will inform the general community and related venues.