Modernizing Pharma Manufacturing: Highlights from PDA Week

A Report by Mike Dingle, TSI Senior Product Specialist, Controlled Environments

Conference Overview

PDA Week in Denver, Colorado, during the week of March 23, 2026, brought together pharmaceutical industry professionals from around the globe. The record high temperatures outside were enjoyable, but the real excitement was inside where a clear shift toward modernizing pharmaceutical manufacturing was on full display.

Conference sessions focused on many innovative technologies, including several sessions on artificial intelligence (AI) alone, that are reshaping the industry.

BioTrak BFPC — Real-Time Monitoring and Integration

Another technology that found its way into many sessions was biofluorescent particle counters (BFPC). Cytiva highlighted how the BioTrak™ BFPC is the ideal monitoring solution for their gloveless isolators. Novo Nordisk shared that using BioTrak BFPC for monitoring air quality in Grade A areas is an integral part of their implementation of a standardized manufacturing network. The BioTrak BFPC came up in support of filling radiopharmaceuticals, where getting results from traditional microbiological monitoring takes too long to be helpful when the product can have a half-life as short as 11 hours. BFPC even entered into one of the AI discussions due to the fact that AI needs real-time data to drive actions if it is to be used to preliminate contamination events.

Reconnecting — M3 Collaboration Group

The Modern Microbial Methods (M3) Collaboration works to collaboratively to develop best practices as companies embrace alternative microbiological methods. Some members, including TSI’s Mike Dingle, took advantage of the opportunity to meet in person. The group also had a poster presentation on creating a User Requirement Specification for a BFPC surface tester. 

Key Takeaway — Commitment to Innovation

The pharmaceutical industry has often been criticized about the relatively slow adoption of new technologies compared to other industries. However, this year’s PDA Week gave the impression that is changing and the modernization of pharmaceutical manufacturing is accelerating.

Learn More About the BioTrak™ Real-Time Viable Particle Counter