Day 1
Wed Sep 9
08:00 – 08:50
50 min
REGISTRATION & WELCOME COFFEE
Wed Sep 9
08:50 – 09:00
10 min
OPENING REMARKS FROM MERLIEN INSTITUTE & CHAIR
Wed Sep 9
09:00 – 09:15
15 min
WELCOME REMARKS by Amy Schumacher, CEO, The Heritage Group
CEO
The Heritage Group
Speaker
Wed Sep 9
09:15 – 09:45
Opening Keynote
30 min
REDEFINING GROWTH: FROM VOLUME EXPANSION TO VALUE CREATION
- Competing without strong demand tailwinds
- Shifting from commodity exposure to higher-value segments
- Corporate venturing, licensing and partnership models
- Measuring R&D impact as a true competitive lever
Wed Sep 9
09:45 – 10:15
Presentation
30 min
AI-ENABLED CHEMISTRY AS A SERVICE
- How AI is helping move the industry beyond commoditized products toward tailored, high-value customer solutions
- Connecting technical, operational, and market data to create faster insight loops that improve formulation decisions and commercialization speed
- Demonstrating how AI can enhance customer responsiveness, shorten innovation cycles, and drive better performance across industrial applications
- Sharing a CEO perspective on how digital capability, data infrastructure, and applied chemistry together can transform competitive positioning in legacy markets
CEO
Hexion
Speaker
Wed Sep 9
10:15 – 10:45
Presentation
30 min
TECHNOLOGY, TALENT, AND TRUST: MAKING AI WORK FOR SCIENCE IN THE REAL WORLD
- The importance of building trust in AI informed by domain expertise
- What science-smart AI looks like when it works
- Demonstration of domain-tuned agentic AI (CAS Newton) on real chemistry problems
- How to enhance AI adoption iteratively within your R&D workforce
Director of Data Analytics, CAS
American Chemical Society
Speaker
Wed Sep 9
10:45 – 11:15
Networking
30 min
NETWORKING BREAK
Wed Sep 9
11:15 – 11:45
Presentation
30 min
CONNECTING INNOVATION IN A DIVIDED WORLD: BUILDING THE DIGITAL BACKBONE FOR GLOBAL CHEMICAL R&D
- Moving beyond isolated tools to an integrated digital and physical R&D backbone structure - including (lab automation, ELN, pilot, IP, Documentation)
- Empowering cross-disciplinary scientific collaboration while navigating geopolitical, regulatory, and supply chain challenges constraints
- Enhancing data quality and connectivity to accelerate scale-up and decision-making processes
- Strengthening organizational resilience and long-term competitiveness in an increasingly fragmented global landscape and promoting collaboration
CTO
Momentive
Speaker
Wed Sep 9
11:45 – 12:15
Presentation
30 min
SESSION RESERVED FOR DASSAULT
Wed Sep 9
12:15 – 12:45
Panel discussion
30 min
NAVIGATING LEGACY INFRASTRUCTURE TRANSITIONS IN THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY
- Balancing safety with innovation: leveraging existing technologies and introducing new ones, while ensuring process safety and regulatory compliance
- Justifying upfront costs against long-term gains: balancing high capital investment opportunities with potential future efficiency, resilience, and ROI
- Maintaining operations while accelerating change: enhancing current infrastructure without disrupting continuous production capabilities
- Bridging workforce gaps: retaining legacy expertise while building digital and automation capabilities, and engaging, connecting, and informing teams in the spirit of transparency and empowerment
CTO
Momentive
Panelist
CTO
Hexion
Panelist
Vice President of R&D, Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure
Dow
Panelist
Wed Sep 9
12:45 – 13:45
Networking
60 min
NETWORKING LUNCH
Wed Sep 9
13:45 – 14:15
Presentation
30 min
GEN AI FOR R&D: GO WITH THE (WORK)FLOW
- Integrating generative AI into existing R&D workflows to accelerate qualitative insight generation and strategic decision-making
- Mapping researcher pain points and align AI tools to high-impact use cases that enhance innovation productivity
- Driving adoption through real-world examples, user feedback loops, and leadership-backed incentives
- Enabling AI fluency within teams to unlock continuous improvement and spark AI-first redesign of R&D processes
Corporate Scientist and Chief Science Advocate
3M
Speaker
Wed Sep 9
14:15 – 14:35
Presentation
20 min
SESSION RESERVED FOR UNCOUNTABLE
Wed Sep 9
14:35 – 15:05
Presentation
30 min
CLOSING THE LOOP: TURNING AI INTO MEASURABLE PLANT PERFORMANCE
- Embedding AI into plant operations to reduce variability, improve yields, and drive margin expansion across existing assets
- Deploying AI copilots and closed-loop control systems to enhance operator decision-making, execution consistency, and plant reliability
- Delivering improvements in energy efficiency, emissions, and asset utilization without major capital investment
- Scaling from pilot use cases to enterprise-wide adoption across sites, ensuring consistent performance and measurable business impact
General Manager Global Refining and Chemicals
Honeywell
Speaker
Wed Sep 9
15:05 – 15:35
Networking
30 min
NETWORKING BREAK
Wed Sep 9
15:35 – 15:55
Presentation
20 min
SESSION RESERVED FOR GET FOCUS
Wed Sep 9
15:55 – 16:25
Presentation
30 min
ACCELERATING PROCESS TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT TO RE-SHORE AND SCALE SPECIALTY CHEMICAL MANUFACTURING
- Forging strategic alliances that expand technical capability, share risk, and compress commercialization timelines
- Deploying modular, flexible unit operations to accelerate pilot-to-demonstration-to-market scale-up
- Implementing data-driven, accelerated development methodologies to reduce cycle time and de-risk specialty chemical applications
- Capturing high-value re-shoring opportunities through scalable, capital-efficient process platforms
CTO
AVN Corporation
Speaker
Wed Sep 9
16:25 – 16:55
Presentation
30 min
WHERE TO PLACE THE NEXT R&D DOLLAR: PORTFOLIO CHOICES IN AN UNCERTAIN CHEMICAL MARKET
- Shifting R&D investment toward specialty, high-value, and application-driven chemistries
- Deciding when to pause, pivot, or kill projects during economic uncertainty
- Using data and market signals to guide innovation capital allocation
- Managing executive expectations around R&D ROI and time horizons
VP of Innovation
Huntsman
Speaker
Wed Sep 9
16:55 – 17:00
5 min
CLOSING REMARKS FROM CHAIR + TRANSITION
Wed Sep 9
17:00 – 17:30
Roundtable
30 min
Topic 1 : DEFINING INNOVATION, TRACKING VALUE: METRICS THAT DRIVE RESULTS
In this interactive session, delegates will choose a roundtable to join. The roundtable will begin with a short and informal introduction by the roundtable host, followed by a facilitated discussion between all participants at the table. This is an opportunity to delve deeper into your chosen topic, and meet, network with, and exchange ideas with likeminded participants.
Group VP Global Technology
Eastman Chemical Company
Speaker
Wed Sep 9
17:00 – 17:30
Roundtable
30 min
Topic 2 : FLEXIBLE CAPACITY AS AN INNOVATION ACCELERATOR
In this interactive session, delegates will choose a roundtable to join. The roundtable will begin with a short and informal introduction by the roundtable host, followed by a facilitated discussion between all participants at the table. This is an opportunity to delve deeper into your chosen topic, and meet, network with, and exchange ideas with likeminded participants.
Wed Sep 9
17:00 – 17:30
Roundtable
30 min
Topic 3 : HOW IS THE PROCESS OF INNOVATION KEEPING UP WITH AI & HOW DO WE BRIDGE THE GAPS?
In this interactive session, delegates will choose a roundtable to join. The roundtable will begin with a short and informal introduction by the roundtable host, followed by a facilitated discussion between all participants at the table. This is an opportunity to delve deeper into your chosen topic, and meet, network with, and exchange ideas with likeminded participants.
Wed Sep 9
17:00 – 17:30
Roundtable
30 min
Topic 4 : FRONTIER & ADJACENT INNOVATION: TRANSLATING ECOSYSTEM SIGNALS INTO MATERIAL BREAKTHROUGHS
In this interactive session, delegates will choose a roundtable to join. The roundtable will begin with a short and informal introduction by the roundtable host, followed by a facilitated discussion between all participants at the table. This is an opportunity to delve deeper into your chosen topic, and meet, network with, and exchange ideas with likeminded participants.
Senior Manager Corporate Venturing and Innovation
Sumitomo Chemical America
Speaker
Wed Sep 9
17:30 – 18:30
Networking
60 min
NETWORKING DRINKS
Day 2
Thu Sep 10
08:30 – 09:00
Networking
30 min
NETWORKING BREAKFAST hosted by The Heritage Group – Monument Chemical
Thu Sep 10
09:00 – 10:00
Networking
60 min
(ROUND ROBIN) SPEED-NETWORKING
Get one-on-one time with the conference delegates and speakers. Our facilitated networking breakfast will help you to connect and get conversations started. Followed up by our open networking session to continue your most interesting discussions.
Thu Sep 10
10:00 – 10:30
Networking
30 min
OPEN NETWORKING
Thu Sep 10
10:30 – 10:45
15 min
OPENING REMARKS FROM MERLIEN INSTITUTE & CHAIR
President-Elect
American Chemical Society
Speaker
Thu Sep 10
10:45 – 11:15
Presentation
30 min
MAKING SUSTAINABILITY INVESTABLE: HOW INNOVATION DELIVERS MEASURABLE IMPACT
- Turning sustainability into measurable outcomes, from cost reduction to new product margins
- Defining innovation and tracking the right metrics to link R&D to business value
- Deploying innovation as a tool to decouple growth from emissions without sacrificing performance
- Scaling sustainable solutions across sites and business units for repeatable impact
Group VP Global Technology
Eastman Chemical Company
Speaker
Thu Sep 10
11:15 – 11:45
Presentation
30 min
RESILIENT INNOVATION AT SCALE – CONNECTING GLOBAL EXPERTISE WITH REGIONAL CUSTOMER IMPACT
- Turning regulatory pressure and sustainability demands into drivers of resilient, market-relevant innovation.
- Combining global R&D capabilities with deep regional customer proximity to accelerate adoption in volatile markets.
- Breaking silos through cross-regional teams, data-driven decisions, and sprint-based development.
- Leveraging strategic partnerships across the value chain because innovation is a team sport.
VP Product Development & Innovation
UPM Adhesive Materials
Speaker
Thu Sep 10
11:45 – 12:05
Presentation
20 min
SESSION RESERVED FOR ALBERT INVENT
CEO
Albert Invent
Speaker
Thu Sep 10
12:05 – 12:35
Presentation
30 min
SUSTAINABILITY AT A CROSSROADS: FROM ESG NARRATIVE TO ECONOMIC DISCIPLINE
- Is the “green wave” recalibrating?
- Decarbonisation and margin pressure
- When customers won’t pay a premium
- Making sustainability investable and defensible
VP Commercial Sustainability, Sustainable & Natural Products
Univar
Speaker
Thu Sep 10
12:35 – 13:35
Networking
60 min
NETWORKING LUNCH
Thu Sep 10
13:35 – 14:05
Panel discussion
30 min
DESIGNING FOR DISRUPTION: HOW R&D IS RE-ENGINEERING PROCESSES FOR FEEDSTOCK FLEXIBILITY AND SUPPLY-CHAIN RESILIENCE
- Re-designing chemistries and processes to accommodate multiple regional feedstocks without sacrificing product performance or quality
- Building feedstock-agnostic process platforms amid geopolitical and logistics volatility
- Co-owning scale-up decisions across R&D, manufacturing and supply chain-teams
- Sharing measurable outcomes of a regionalized supply environment
President & CEO
SOCMA
Moderator
Global VP Performance Chemicals
Wanhua Chemical Group
Panelist
VP Commercial Sustainability, Sustainable & Natural Products
Univar
Panelist
Thu Sep 10
14:05 – 14:25
Presentation
20 min
SESSION RESERVED FOR ELSEVIER
Thu Sep 10
14:25 – 14:55
Presentation
30 min
DEVELOPING A DECARBONIZATION ROADMAP FOR HARD-TO-ABATE MATERIALS
- Managing customers’ simultaneous demands for sustainability improvement and cost control
- Addressing the technical challenge of hard to abate materials
- Showcasing the importance of cross-industry alignment and cooperation on Product Carbon Footprint methodology, and tools to report it efficiently
- Developing a realistic roadmap that balances customer demands for both decarbonization and sustainable content in products, over the short- and long-term
Global Senior Technology Director, Reinforcement Materials
Cabot
Speaker
Thu Sep 10
14:55 – 15:25
Networking
30 min
NETWORKING BREAK
Thu Sep 10
15:25 – 15:55
Presentation
30 min
FROM OFFSETS TO INSETS: USING CAPITAL MARKETS TO DRIVE REAL-WORLD DECARBONIZATION
- The Founder’s Lens — Why Market-Based Decarbonization Works: why capital markets — not mandates — are the most scalable, durable driver of industrial decarbonization
- Case Study Deep Dive — Ascend & Heidelberg Materials: two hard-to-abate sectors, two models: offsets enabling a $50M N₂O abatement investment, and parallel development of offset and green cement inset markets driven by corporate demand
- The Offset-to-Inset Evolution — A Capital Markets Framework: using carbon credits to bridge near-term gaps while transitioning to supply-chain decarbonization — maintaining competitiveness without waiting for ideal conditions
President & CEO
ClimeCo
Speaker
Thu Sep 10
15:55 – 16:25
Presentation
30 min
DRIVING ENTERPRISE INNOVATION FROM THE FRONTLINE TO COMMERCIALIZATION: THE HERITAGE GROUP´S CSF INCUBATION JOURNEY
- Showcasing the CSF origin story and its evolution within the organization
- Fostering a culture and environment that enables frontline-driven innovation
- Designing and implementing an internal (and alternative) enterprise incubation process
- Identifying and applying the key drivers that accelerate successful commercialization
Ventures Director
HG Ventures
Speaker
Thu Sep 10
16:25 – 16:55
Closing Keynote
30 min
CREATING MARKETS THAT DON´T YET EXIST
- Vision-driven innovation beyond core markets
- Moving into adjacent spaces with confidence
- Building organisational courage for breakthrough bets
- Inspiring innovation culture at scale
Vice President of R&D, Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure
Dow
Speaker
Thu Sep 10
16:55 – 17:00
5 min
CONFERENCE CLOSING REMARKS FROM CHAIR
President-Elect
American Chemical Society
Speaker
Dinner registration
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