The PATROLS project was in action at the Chemspec Europe, the international exhibition for speciality chemicals, hosted in Cologne on June 20-21. The Nanotechnology Industries Association (NIA) represented the project as the first stakeholder activity of the project, with the intention to engage industry stakeholders and understand their needs and challenges in the safe development of nanomaterials.
NIA spoke to industry participants throughout the 2 days, reaching an initial conclusion that most industry actors, unless highly specialised within nanomaterials production, have limited awareness of the requirements for nanomaterials testing. With many companies moving into nanomaterials production and handling as an evolution of their business, rather than core business mission, they face a significant challenge to integrate additional regulatory requirements into planning and budgets.
Advanced test systems for nanomaterial safety assessment, such as those being developed by PATROLS are most likely to be accessed through specialist service providers, rather than integrated in house, and where there is a clear regulatory requirement or market driver for their use.
Information such as this helps projects such as PATROLS to address not only the scientific strength of advanced materials but also to ensure that they sit within a clear framework for company use, linked to regulatory requirements.