Conference Dives Deep into Medical Packaging

Now entering its third year, thePACKout has made a name for itself as the go-to education and training event for medical packaging executives, engineers, designers, and developers. Attendees can expect a thoughtfully crafted conference program that brings fresh ideas and perspectives to the topics that matter most: sustainability, usability, innovation, and regulatory requirements.

The event convenes at Loews Coronado Bay Resort in California this May 14-16. It boasts a range of sessions for the novice as well as the experienced packaging pundit. You’ll hear the latest updates on wicked stability, artificial intelligence (AI) technology, creative packaging designs, and more.

In addition to attending conference sessions, participants will have ample opportunities to network with peers and peruse exhibitors’ offerings.

Organizers have released the agenda and plan to add final speaker and abstract information in the upcoming weeks:

TUESDAY, MAY 14

Day One Kickoff and Opening Remarks

When: 8:30 - 8:45 a.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom

Opening Keynote: Building Strategic Networks

When: 8:45 - 9:45 a.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speaker: Jodi Glickman, CEO and Founder, Great on the Job

Industry Power Hour

When: 10:15 - 11:15 a.m. Info coming soon!
And 11:20 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Info coming soon!
Where: Commodore Ballroom

Professional Development Workshop: Pitching Yourself for Opportunity

When: 1:30 - 2:30 p.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speaker: Jodi Glickman, CEO and Founder, Great on the Job

Joyce Grace / iStock via Getty Images Plus

Usability Insights with Healthcare Users: How Aseptic Presentation Impacts Healthcare Workers and How to Incorporate Usability Lessons into Your Packaging Designs

When: 3:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speaker: Matthew TerBush, Director of Packaging Innovations, Packaging Compliance Labs

Industry Recognition

When: 4:00 - 4:30 p.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom

WEDNESDAY, MAY 15

Day Two Kickoff

When: 8:30 - 8:40 a.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom

Day Two Keynote: Innovating in a Regulated Environment

When:  8:40 - 9:10 a.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speaker: Kim Chaffin, Ph.D., PE, Vice President Corporate Technologist, Medtronic

MORNING BREAKOUT TRACKS

Usability Track Theme: Attacking Usability with Healthcare Professional Insights

• KiiP: Surprising Discovery! Cross-Disciplinary Engagement is a Challenge in our Professional Lives
When: 9:15 - 9:40 a.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speakers: Min DeGruson, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Program Director, Packaging, University of Wisconsin-Stout, and Melinda Harman, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Bioengineering, Clemson University

• Medical Device Packaging Peel Opening: A Potential New Automatized Test Method Representative of Users’ Practices
When: 9:40 - 10:00 a.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speaker: Christophe Simon, Global Intelligence & Public Affairs – Corporate Director, Sterimed Group

Professional Development Track Theme: Info coming soon

When: 9:15 - 10:00 a.m.
Where: Constellation Ballroom

Materials Track Theme: Engineering Value: Using Materials Science to Drive Critical Healthcare Packaging Design and Testing Decisions

• Exploratory Approach to Characterizing Heat Seal Coatings
When: 10:30 - 11:00 a.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speakers: Jeremy Elwell, MDM & Regulatory Specialist, DuPont Tyvek Healthcare Packaging; Jordan Montgomery, Distinguished Packaging Engineer, Medtronic; and Kevin Zacharias, Technical Director, Oliver Healthcare Packaging

• Analysis of PETG and APET Material for Performance Equivalency in Medical Device Thermoformed Trays
When: 11:00 - 11:30 a.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speaker: Joey Gotchnik, Materials Engineer II, Sustainability Development Center (SDC), Medtronic

• Wicked Stability: Oxidative Induction Time (OIT) Deep Dive
When: 11:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.  
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speakers: Henk Blom, PhD, VP of Research and Technology, Paxxus, and Jordan Montgomery, Distinguished Packaging Engineer, Medtronic

Process Track Theme: Process Optimization via Underlying Principles and Emergent Technologies

• Sealing Success: Navigating Common Challenges in the Tray Sealing Process
When: 10:30 - 10:50 a.m.
Where: Constellation Ballroom
Speaker: Lynne Barton, Vice President of Sealing Technologies and General Manager of CeraTek Sealers, SencorpWhite

• Quantifying Visual Seal Quality to Aid in Optimizing Sealing Processes
When: 10:50 - 11:10 a.m.
Where: Constellation Ballroom
Speaker: Emily Graba, Project Engineer 1, QTS Medical Device Outsourcing

Renata Angerami / iStock via Getty Images Plus

• Harnessing Technology to Error-Proof the Medical Device Kitting Process
When: 11:10 - 11:30 a.m.
Where: Constellation Ballroom
Speaker: Bill Sanders, Vice President of Engineering, Millstone Medical Outsourcing

• Use of AI Technology in Packaging Machine Design and Controls
When: 11:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Where: Constellation Ballroom
Speaker: Dominik Rotter, Senior Director, Business Models & Processes, Multivac

AFTERNOON BREAKOUT TRACKS

Professional Development Track Theme

• Sowing Success: Planting Seeds & Growing Your Career
When: 1:30 - 1:55 p.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speaker: Karen Polkinghorne, President, Network Partners Group

• New Kids on the Block: Navigating the Medical Packaging Industry as an Early Career Professional
When: 1:55 - 2:15 p.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speakers: Greyson Hammer, Packaging Student, University of Wisconsin – Stout, and Chris Kelley, R&D Packaging Engineer, Coloplast Interventional Urology

Sustainability Track Theme: Sustainability Now!

• Think Like an Ecosystem
When: 1:30 - 3:00 p.m.
Where: Constellation Ballroom
Speaker: Lauren LaSpina, Founder, The Packaging Co-op

Design Track Theme: New Perspectives!

• Package Imagineering: Sparking Creative Package Designs Through Disney Thinking
When: 3:30 - 4:00 p.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speaker: James Inabinett, Senior Manager, Packaging & Labeling, Medtronic

• Session info coming soon
When: 4:00 - 4:30 p.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom

• The Other Side of Usability: Understanding Packaging Design Impacts to Process  
When: 4:30 - 5:00 p.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom
Speaker: Josh Bursack, Senior Packaging Engineer, Philips

Sterilization Track Theme: Info coming soon

When: 3:30 - 5:00 p.m.
Where: Constellation Ballroom

THURSDAY, MAY 16

Day Three Workshop: Info coming soon

When: 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Where: Commodore Ballroom