PITTSBURGH - Pittcon 2009 reported that 19,018 attendees from 90 countries participated in the annual conference and exposition, which was held in Chicago, IL, from March 8-13. The event was marked by a 6 percent increase in conferees over Pittcon 2008.

 

The exposition included 1,006 exhibiting companies, occupying 2,249 booths, who showcased their latest laboratory instrumentation, equipment and services. Exhibiting companies spanned a broad range of products and technologies, including separation sciences, mass spectrometry, spectroscopy, nanotechnology, laboratory automation and informatics. More than 130 companies exhibited at Pittcon for the first time. The exposition also featured a new area called the Green Corner where 10 companies displayed products and services for green chemistry solutions, resource conservation and laboratory pollution prevention techniques.

 

The technical program included more than 2,200 technical presentations. More than 100 invited speakers addressed topics of global interest, including alternative and sustainable energy, food and drug safety, environmental issues, new materials development, and bioanalytical techniques. George M. Whitesides, the Woodford L. and Ann A. Flowers University Professor at Harvard University Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, delivered the plenary lecture to a near-capacity crowd of 1,000 attendees.

 

More than 1,500 conferees also took advantage of the educational opportunities afforded by the Pittcon Short Course program, which offered 100 courses in 60 topics areas.

 

Networking opportunities were abundant at Pittcon 2009. In addition to the ongoing informal interactions during the conference and exposition week, this year's program included 35 networking sessions on a variety of topics and was attended by 430 participants.