The days are getting longer and hotter the further we move into summer, and the warm weather and bright sunshine are definitely welcomed by most. The past few months have been a state of reflection for the UK; as the country waited to crown its new king, it took some time to look back to the last coronation seventy years ago. The pharma sector, too, has been ruminating on the traditional, and thinking deeply about how innovations in AI, ML and automation will affect the future of pharma production.

But this extra thought does not mean inaction. More and more pharma companies are realising that the future means digital and are ready to make the changes needed, with companies such as Gens & Associates and Beckez.COM (page 26) and Benchling (page 15) eager to discuss how common myths and fears surrounding digital data management and cloud computing page can be dispelled.

Gone are the days of manual labour: automation is similarly on the rise. KORSCH talks to IPT about automated tabletting (page 39) while LabVantage Solutions provides tips on how to integrate automation into companies’ existing practices (page 46).

Innovative methods of measurement are streamlining the drug development process from the very beginning. Bruker Biospin tell us about how nuclear magnetic resonance is improving R&D (page 6) and PPD highlights how flow cytometry is doing the same for cell and gene therapies (page 8).

I hope you enjoy all these interesting articles and more; perfect for reading from your deck chair in the glorious weather.