The International Panel Products Symposium (IPPS) in Wales has been cancelled this year due to ongoing restructuring in Bangor University and adjustments in the BioComposites Centre itself.
Ther long-running biennial IPPS, which is a global event focused on technical and research updates in the wood-based panels industry, had been due to take place in October this year, but will now be postponed until October 2027.
Bangor University has been in the news for implementing cost saving measures after reporting a £13m deficit in a recent financial report. It is cutting 78 jobs in a bid to making savings worth £5.3m.
The BioComposites Centre at Bangor University released a statement saying it had been “tough” to postpone the event this year.
“While we had substantial interest in the event, it became clear that quality of experience might be negatively affected by the ongoing situation,” it said.
However, the decision to reschedule will allow the team to turn its attentions towards delivering a high-quality industry-facing Master Class event in September 2026. The next full International Panel Products Symposium will be in October 2027.
“We have often sought to balance the full conference – every two years – with a smaller and more focused IPPS Master Class event in the intervening year,” said Professor Graham Ormondroyd of the BioComposites Centre.
“We are aware of enormous progress in the panels sector meeting new challenges in recycling and novel feedstock processing systems – so the 2026 Master Class will pick up on this topic.
“We’re planning an exciting event with expert speakers and plenty of hands-on activities to familiarise delegates with materials, equipment and lab techniques that have real industry application. The lab sessions are always great fun, generating lots of questions and knowledge sharing.”
Looking to the future, the BioComposites Centre is keen to establish an IPPS Scientific Committee to share the activity and benefits of providing this unique event which meets the needs of industry and academic researchers.
People interested in joining this scientific committee can contact Dr Morwenna Spear (Conference Organiser) at ipps@bangor.ac.uk with a short biography and expression of interest.
Dr Spear says joining the Scientific Committee gives companies the chance to set the pace – raise topics of interest; ensure talks and materials are meeting the needs of their companies; or pick sessions that showcasing the latest in emerging systems and R&D for the wood-based panels sector.
“By interacting with a panel drawn from industry and academia to maintain the unique blend of networking and technical insights at the conference, you can also be expanding your connections and staying up to date,” added Dr Spear.
