Over 80% of all pharmaceutical products are in the solid dosage form. Particulate processes therefore abound in the pharmaceutical industry. These include crystallization; drying, granulation, and coating; tablet compaction; fine powder transport, mixing, and blending. These and other particulate processes are used for the large-scale manufacture of tablets and capsules as well as dry powder inhalants for public consumption. As such, efficient handling and processing of particulates is critical to meeting the stringent guidelines set by the FDA and profitable manufacture of pharmaceutical products. Failed batches can mean the loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue needed to payback the tremendous up-front investment that is inherent in drug development. A recent US-FDA report on the pharmaceutical industry estimated that worldwide cost savings from manufacturing improvements could be as high as US$ 90 billion per year.

The particulate-based manufacturing processes need to be better understood so that they can be properly designed and controlled. The last decade has seen a shift from empirical formulation efforts to an engineering approach based on a better understanding of particulate behaviours in various processes, facilitated by technological advances in computer modelling, manufacture and measurement techniques.

This conference, by bringing together researchers from industry and academia, will be showcasing and demonstrating how the latest R&D in particulate processing can be applied to pharmaceutical industrial design and optimisation as well as how they can cater to emerging regulatory needs. A combination of oral presentations, poster sessions, and workshops will demonstrate the existing expertise and establish future research needs. This will be a perfect opportunity for participants to learn more about the latest trends in particulate process in pharmaceutical unit operations as well as a chance to interact and share their experience with others. Research collaborations will be forged to meet these needs.

The PPPI-III conference will continue the tradition of previous conferences with the well balanced focuses on both fundamental research and industrial application of particulate processing. It will also expand into emerging techniques and applications. The following lists key themes for this conference:

• Theme 1 - Particle Synthesis, Crystallisation, Coating and Drying
• Theme 2 - Particle Packing, Granulation and Compaction
• Theme 3 - Powder Flow and Dispersion, Mixing/Blending and Handling
• Theme 4 - Emerging Research Techniques and Applications

The conference should be attended by engineers and scientists from the pharmaceutical and bulk solids handling consulting industries and researchers from academia. Papers presented at the conference will be refereed and, if accepted, published in a special issue of Powder Technology (paper submission and reviewing may be done immediately after the conference, not necessarily before the conference).

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Organizing Committee
Chair
Prof. Aibing Yu, University of New South Wales, Australia

Co-Chairs
Prof. Hak-Kim Chan, University of Sydney, Australia
Prof. Jim Litster, Purdue University, USA

Committee Members
Prof. Rose Amal, University of New South Wales, Australia
Prof. Xiaodong Chen, Monash University, Australia
Prof. Geoffrey Evans, Newcastle University, Australia
Prof. Clive Davis, Massey University, New Zealand
Dr. Karen Hapgood, Monash University, Australia
Prof. Kunio Shinohara, University of New South Wales, Australia
Prof. Peter Stewart, Monash University, Australia
Dr. Runyu Yang, University of New South Wales, Australia
Prof. Huijun Zhao, Griffith University, Australia

International Advisory Committee
Chair
Prof. Jonathan Seville, Warwick University, UK

Co-Chairs
Prof. Todd Pugsley, University of Saskatchewan, Canada
Prof. Jenifer Curtis, University of Florida, USA

Committee Members
Prof. Mamid Arastoopour, Illinois Institute of Technology, USA
Prof. Prabir Basu, Purdue University, USA
Prof. Paolo Columbo, Parma University, Italy
Prof. Alain de Ryck, École des Mines d'Albi-Carmaux, France
Prof. Warren Finlay, University of Alberta, Canada
Prof. Pierre Guigon, Université de Technologie de Compiègne, France
Prof. Paul Heng, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Prof. Hidehiro Kamiya, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Japan
Dr. Mansoor Khan, FDA, USA
Prof Chong Kook Kim, Korean Academy of Science and Technology, South Korea
Prof. Lee Kirsch, University of Iowa, USA
Prof. Hans Leuenberger, Ifiip GmbH, Switzerland
Prof. Jinghai Li, Chinese Academy of Science, China
Prof. Gaoqing (Max) Lu, University of Queensland, Australia
Prof. Fernando Muzzio, Rutgers University, USA
Prof. Tetsuya Ozeki, Nagoya City University, Japan
Prof. Judy Raper, University of Wollongong, Australia
Prof. Rex Reklaitis, Purdue University, USA
Prof. Satoru Watano, Osaka Prefecture University, Japan
Prof. Richard Williams, University of Leeds, UK
Dr. Chuan-yu (Charley) Wu, University of Birmingham, UK
Prof. Chuanbin Wu, Sun Yet Sen University, China
Prof. Peter York, University of Bradford, UK
Dr. Jimmy Yun, Nanomaterials Technology, Singapore
Prof. Zhibing Zhang, University of Birmingham, UK
Prof. Jesse Zhu, University of Western Ontario, Canada

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