Interest has begun to build ahead of this year’s Swug conference, taking place at Millennium Hotel Rotorua on August 19-20.
Organisers says the Print with Passion-themed conference will feature a range of informative sessions; a plant tour; and will provide an opportunity to network with suppliers and other delegates.
Keynote speaker Sir Ray Avery, an award-winning pharmaceutical scientist and founding member of the Auckland University School of Medical Science’s Department of Clinical Pharmacology, has numerous stories to tell from his time as technical director of Douglas Pharmaceuticals and as technical advisor to the Fred Hollows Foundation.
Keynote: Sir Ray Avery
Dan Blackbourn, chairman of Swug New Zealand, says, “Having spent his childhood in English orphanages and foster homes, Sir Ray developed an interest in science at the age of 14 while living rough on the streets of London and seeking warmth and inspiration in public libraries. His subsequent ground breaking work in the Developing World has brought him respect and recognition internationally.
“As technical advisor to the Fred Hollows Foundation he designed and commissioned two state-of-the-art intraocular lens laboratories (IOLs) in Nepal and Eritrea. Today, these laboratories supply 16 per cent of the world’s market for IOLs and thanks to the innovative lens manufacturing technology invented, the global cost of these lenses has decreased to the point modern cataract surgery is available to the poorest of the poor.
“Striving to tackle the big health issues endemic throughout the Developing World, Sir Ray remains at the forefront of various other inspirational initiatives.”
The 15th annual conference will also feature a tour of Norske Skog’s plant in Kawerau. Blackbourn says, “Formerly known as the Tasman Pulp and Paper Company, the Kawerau mill was the brainchild of Sir James Fletcher. After significant planting schemes in the 1920s and 1930s, a large forestry resource was available to be capitalised upon, and the Fletcher Group duly started constructing the Tasman Pulp and Paper Co in 1952.
“Kawerau itself built up around the development of the mill, with the town attracting people from all over New Zealand and the world to work on the construction and to be employed at the site once it officially opened in 1955. The mill originally employed several thousand people and produced a range of products including kraft pulp and newsprint, eventually expanding operations with growing demand for products over the years.
“Tasman Pulp and Paper has undergone significant change over the years, developing from the previously joint kraft pulp and paper company, into the current Norske Skog operation. It is now a newsprint-only site, after the kraft pulp operations were sold to Carter Holt Harvey in 2001.”
Swug has secured a good accommodation rate with the Millennium Hotel Rotorua, a Qualmark 4 Star Plus-rated hotel located on the edge of the Rotorua CBD. Delegates can make bookings can be made via the Swug web site, click here
Registrations to the conference close on June 30. Blackbourn adds, “Anyone wishing further information, please visit www.swug.co.nz or call me on 021 770 804.”
What: Swug conference
When: August 19-20
Where: Millenium Hotel, Rotorua
Contact: Dan Blackbourn 021 770 804
