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Past conferences and events

Read all about our past conferences and events and access resources:

20th June 2023

Location: The Forum, Streatham Campus

 

Conference Sponsors Download: 2023 TS Conference Sponsorship Brochure

The Technical Services Conference 2023 went ahead in June with a resounding success. We welcomed over 125 technicians from Exeter and across the South West in an exciting and engaging day based around the theme of 'Career Sustainability'.

You can see our full digital programme of the day by clicking this link: 2023 Conference Programme, and our Awards Ceremony Booklet here: 2023 Awards Booklet

Photos from the day can be seen below

Meanwhile, planning for 2024's conference is about to begin and will be held on our Penryn Campus in Cornwall next June. If you're interested in taking part, or sponsoring the event please get in touch via our email below.

 

Contact email for enquiries: TS-Conference@exeter.ac.uk

21 June 2022

Location: St Luke's Campus, Exeter

Poster Download: 2022ConferencePoster

Conference Sponsors Download: 2022 Conference Sponsors

The Technical Services Conference 2022 went ahead in June with a resounding success. We welcomed over 100 technicians from Exeter and across the South West in an exciting and engaging day based around the theme of 'Career Development'.

Photos from the day can be seen by clicking here

Contact email for enquiries: TS-Conference@exeter.ac.uk

About

Venue: The Forum, University of Exeter, Stocker Road, Exeter, Devon, EX4 4SZ

Date: 28 June 2018 10:00-16:10

Technical Services at the University of Exeter is comprised of research and teaching technical staff within STEMM-facing and humanities colleges. Whilst all operating in a single service our staff work in a wide range of specialist areas such as; Engineering, Physics, Geology, Mining and Minerals, Renewable Energy, Life and Environmental Science, Sports and Health Science, Digital Humanities, Medical Sciences and Medical Imaging, Drama and Archaeology.

Event hashtag: please use #2018TSC for all your social media updates about the event, and pictures.

Registration

University of Exeter Technical staff will be sent an invitation/link to register for the event. 

Our affiliates and sponsors will be sent a promotional code (via EventBrite email invitation) that will enable them to register for a free event ticket using the "attend event" button within their email.

Delegates from other Universities, HEIs and organisations - We are pleased to announce that there will be a number delegate tickets available for HEIs and our partners external to the University of Exeter.  Delegates from other HEIs and organisations should purchase standard delegate tickets (£100) from our online store. 

The conference will be of interest to all technical staff who work in a wide range of specialist areas such as; Engineering, Physics, Geology, Mining and Minerals, Renewable Energy, Life and Environmental Science, Digital Humanities, Medical Sciences and Medical Imaging.

Professionally registered, and those on the pathway to professional registration, will find the sessions and workshops will significantly contribute towards your Continuous Professional Development (CPD).

Competition

Details of conference competitions will be released on this webpage at a later date - visit this page for further updates.

Feedback

Feedback from past events

“Everything was set up really well. I found every speaker really informative with their presentations”.

“I thought the event was great - and I've heard very positive feedback from other members of staff”.

“Superb event. Well organised, good range of speakers and excellent networking opportunity”.

“Well-organised, interesting and relevant, I felt it provided a great networking opportunity and helped foster the feeling that we belong to one unified team - across several disciplines and colleges - often with transferable technical skills and working now towards common goals and standards”.

Comments from our 2017 conference:

"The networking was fantastic. I really enjoyed meeting technicians from other universities and talking to the suppliers. It was also good to catch up with our technical team".

"The presence of various organisations that help your career develop and work towards professional registration (HEATED, IST, Science Council etc.)".

"I found the Workshops really useful - learning new information on equipment and how to continue my professional development".

"It was an amazing day. There was a real buzz in the air. We networked with technical services colleagues from Exeter, Cardiff, Bristol, Nottingham, Plymouth, Reading and Belfast enabling us to make new connections and share experiences.  The sessions were almost all fully booked and the speakers were really engaging".

"I found it informative and a good opportunity to meet colleagues and find out what's going on at ground level".

"The workshop were really interesting and I feel that the process for Technician to be recognised is on the way. I cannot wait to test the TDM website".

Programme

Please download a copy of the 2018 Technical Services Conference Delegate Brochure
This contains full details of the exhibitors, talks and workshops.

Programme (updated 27 June 2018)

Start End Length Comments Location
07:30     Transport departs Penryn Campus

Pick up: Main Reception, Penryn Campus
Via: Cornwall Services

Drop off: Stocker Road bus stop

09:40     Transport departs St Luke's campus Pick up: Magdalen Road Car Park
Drop off: Geoffrey Pope bus stop
09:45 10:15 30 mins Registration, refreshments, networking and visiting sponsors exhibitions The Forum Street
10:15 10:40 25 mins Welcome Speech and Keynote 1 from Pete Vukusic Seminar Rooms 7/8/9
10:45 11:05 20 mins Presentation 1: Shaping the digital capture of heritage collections, Emma Sherriff
Seminar Rooms 7/8/9
11:10 11:45 35 mins Refreshments and ‘Family Tree’ networking session, visiting sponsors exhibitions The Forum Street and Mezzanine level
11:45 12:05 20 mins

Presentation 2: Fieldwork; Home and Away, Joana Zaragoza-Castells, Owen Greenwood & Alastair Graham

Seminar Rooms 7/8/9
12:10 12:30 20 mins

Presentation 3: Dramatically Technical, Jon Primrose

Seminar rooms 7/8/9
12:30 13:10 40 mins Lunch, networking and visiting sponsors exhibitions The Forum Street
13:10 13:35 25 mins Keynote 2 from Guild President, Shades Chaudhary Seminar rooms 7/8/9
13:40 14:10 30 mins

Workshop sessions:
i. Future Finance (Kitty Mann)
ii. Badgers, Drains and Bins (Karen Gallagher)
iii. Workplace Learning (Matt Gillett)


Exploration Lab 1
Seminar room 1/2/3
Seminar room 7/8/9

14:15 14:45 30 mins

Workshop sessions:
iv. Future Finance (Kitty Mann)
v. Technical Services Quality Assurance Project (Gail Reeves)
vi. Health Surveillance (Toni Searl)


Exploration Lab 1
Seminar room 1/2/3
Seminar room 7/8/9
14:50 15:20 30 mins

Workshop sessions:
vii. Future Finance (Kitty Mann)
viii. Assertiveness (Clive Betts)
ix. ‘Hazcheck’, a new tool for managing safety in workshops and labs (Charles Harrison)


Exploration Lab 1
Seminar room 1/2/3
Seminar room 7/8/9
15:25 15:40 15 mins Refreshments, networking and visiting sponsors exhibitions The Forum Street
15:40 16:10 30 mins Presentation of conference awards and closing remarks Seminar rooms 7/8/9
16:10     Close  
16:25     Transport to St Lukes departs

Pick up: Geoffrey Pope bus stop
Drop off: Magdalen Road Car Park

16:30     Transport to Penryn departs

Pick up: Stocker Road bus stop
Via: Cornwall Services
Drop off: Main Reception, Penryn Campus.

Transport

There will be a coach provided, for University of Exeter staff, to get you to the conference. The coach will leave Penryn campus main reception at 07:30 in order to get all delegates to Streatham campus by 10:00. For the return journey, the coach will leave the Stocker Road bus stop on the Streatham campus at 16:30 and should arrive back in Penryn at 19:00.

Sponsorship

Why sponsor our conference?

  • Access to key users and the technicians buyers network from within the University of Exeter and other HEIs
  • One to one access to your key contacts at the dedicated “meet and eat” networking session
  • Opportunity to showcase your latest products/services
  • Excellent branding and sponsorship opportunities
  • Enjoy more face to face time with key delegates
  • Increase visibility and strengthen your brand image among delegates attending TS conference 2017 

Comments from our 2017TSC sponsors:

"Great directions, well organised, plenty of parking, very well attended. Excellent catering".

"It's a great example of a University working hard to bring together a highly skilled group of technicians, breaking down the disciplinary and geographic barriers that necessarily exist".

Sponsor us

If you would like to sponsor our event please go to our online store webpages.
Book early to avoid disappointment.

For more information, please download the Technical Services Conference Sponsor Brochure 2018

This one day conference, hosted by  Technical Strategy & Operations at the University of Exeter, will take place in the first week of July 2017 at our St Luke's Campus. It will provide technical staff with a valuable and rewarding experience, where speakers, sessions and workshops are tailored specifically for technical staff.

About

Venue: University of Exeter, St Luke's Campus, Heavitree Road, Exeter EX1 2LU (directions)

Date: 6 July 2017 10:00-16:45

Key Sponsor: We are honoured to announce that ZEISS Microscopy are the key sponsor for the University of Exeter Technical Services Conference at our St Luke's campus in Exeter on 6 July 2017.

As a leading manufacturer of microscopes ZEISS offers inspiring solutions and services for your daily routine work in the field of life sciences and materials research.

Exhibition Layout2017TSC Exhibition Plan

Award SponsorsVWREppendorf, Triple Red

Sponsors/exhibitsSartoriusLabster, Thermo Fisher ScientificAstell ScientificSeal AnalyticalAlpha LaboratoriesScientific Laboratory SuppliesBrooks Life Science SystemsIKASarstedt.

Professional Development SponsorsScience CouncilInstitute of Science and TechnologyHEaTED, Gatsby: Technicians Make It HappenInstitute of Animal TechnologyRoyal Society of Biology

University of Exeter exhibitsProcurement and Future FinanceHealth Safety,  OH and Wellbeing.

Technical Services at the University of Exeter is comprised of STEMM-facing research and teaching technical staff. Whilst all operating in a single service our staff work in a wide range of specialist areas such as, Engineering, Physics, Geology, Mining and Minerals, Renewable Energy, Life and Environmental Science, Sports and Health Science, Medical Sciences and Medical Imaging.

Prof. Sir Steve Smith, our Vice Chancellor, has confirmed that he will be our first keynote speaker at the conference. Mike Shore-Nye, our Registrar, will be presenting the awards at the end of the event and will conduct the event closing presentation. This demonstrates top level commitment to technical staff, and sends a really positive message.

The event will utilise North Cloisters lecture theatre along with 4 breakout session/workshop rooms in Baring Court. There will be catering and exhibitor stands at the Cross Keys.

Event hashtag: please use #2017TSC for your social media updates about the event, and pictures.

Registration

University of Exeter Technical staff should have all been sent a personal invitation/link to register for the event.  If you have not received your invitation please email Jonathan Cresswell (j.cresswell@exeter.ac.uk) to request an event invite for the conference.

Our affiliates and sponsors will be sent a promotional code (via email invitation) that will enable them to register for a free event ticket using the "attend event" button within their email.

Delegates from other Universities, HEIs and organisations - Delegates from other HEIs and organisations should purchase standard delegate tickets (£100) from our online store. 

The conference will be of interest to all technical staff who work in a wide range of specialist areas such as, Engineering, Physics, Geology, Mining and Minerals, Renewable Energy, Life and Environmental Science, Medical Sciences and Medical Imaging.

We are pleased to announce that there will be a number delegate tickets available for HEIs and our partners external to the University of Exeter.  

Professionally registered, and those on the pathway to professional registration, will find the sessions and workshops will significantly contribute towards your Continuous Professional Development (CPD).

TSC2017 Pre-Conference Delegates Brochure

Competition

The theme for this year’s Technical Services Poster Competition is ‘Technicians Make it Happen’

Taking inspiration from the Gatsby Charitable Foundation ‘Technicians Make It Happen’ campaign which aims to raise awareness of the role of technicians and technical careers, the TSC2017 award for the “Technicians Make it Happen” poster will recognise the most interesting poster that captures the spirit of the TMiH campaign.

We would like your posters to be an insight as to how your work impacts on the teams or colleges you work in. Your poster can showcase any aspects of what you or your technical team do that keeps the cogs of teaching and research turning. This can be anything from the nuts and bolts daily tasks that so often go unseen but without which things would grind to a halt to more complex research and engineering tasks. We would like activities depicted to be technical team based jobs rather than an overview of an academic field of work or research project, unless of course the project is entirely carried out by technical services staff.

We would also like your posters to include an original motivational quote or statement so get your thinking caps on!

Eligibility

  • There is no requirement that the individual, or team, are from the University of Exeter.
  • This award is open to individuals, and teams, within the University technical community or professional organisation, and who will be in attendance at the TSC2017 event.
  • The individual, or team, must be employed as a technical member of staff within a University or professional organisation.

Poster

  • Posters must be original work, and content should be associated with the work or activities within your technical area. The main body of the poster should be a creative photograph.
  • Posters should include an original inspirational quote aligned to one of our University values.
  • Posters must be in either JPG, or PDF files.
  • Posters must be no larger than A1 size.
  • Posters can be sent to the university print unit quoting TSC2017 along with your name
  • Once printed posters can be collected in person from the print unit and brought to the Technical Services Conference or you can request that posters are sent from the print unit directly to Kirstie Parnell at the address below.
  • Posters will be displayed at the Technical Services Conference on Thursday 6th July where a small team of judges will decide upon the winner during the day based on poster content and design in line with the brief given
  • Please contact Kirstie with any other queries:
    • Kirstie Parnell
      Laboratory Manager, Research and Teaching
      UEMS Building, St Lukes Campus, Magdalen Road, Exeter, Devon, EX1 2LU
      Telephone. 01392 72(2945)
      Email K.Parnell@exeter.ac.uk

Judging Criteria

  • Presentation.
  • Creativity.
  • Impact.
  • Uniqueness.
  • Quote.

Prize
The winning poster creator, as selected by our judging panel, will be presented with £500.00 of Amazon vouchers and a Certificate of Achievement.

Feedback

“Everything was set up really well. I found every speaker really informative with their presentations”.

“I thought the event was great - and I've heard very positive feedback from other members of staff”.

“Superb event. Well organised, good range of speakers and excellent networking opportunity”.

“Well-organised, interesting and relevant, I felt it provided a great networking opportunity and helped foster the feeling that we belong to one unified team - across several disciplines and colleges - often with transferable technical skills and working now towards common goals and standards”.

Programme

The conference workshops for this event will be confirmed nearer to the event, and delegates will be asked to book their place against the workshop of their choice. 

Details of conference competitions will be released on this webpage at a later date - visit this page for further updates.

Workshops

Details of the workshops, times and locations can be found at 2017TSC Workshops.

Start End Minutes Comments Location
07:30     Transport departs Penryn Campus Main Reception, Penryn Campus
10:00 10:30 30 Registration, refreshments, networking and visiting sponsors exhibition Cross Keys
10:30 10:45 15 Welcome and opening remarks North Cloisters 12 (Lecture Theatre)
10:45 11:15 30 Keynote 1 - Prof. Sir Steve Smith (Vice Chancellor) North Cloisters 12 (Lecture Theatre)
11:15 11:45 30 Refreshment break, networking and visiting sponsors exhibition Cross Keys
11:45 12:25 40

Workshops 1-4

 
12:35 13:15 40

Workshops 5-8 ‌

Baring Court breakout rooms
13:15 14:15 60 Lunch, networking and visiting sponsors exhibition Cross Keys
14:15 14:45 30 Keynote 2 - Kelly Vere RSci North Cloisters 12 (Lecture Theatre)
14:55 15:35 40

Workshops 9-12

Baring Court breakout rooms
15:35 16:05 30 Refreshment break, networking and visiting sponsors exhibition Cross Keys
16:05 16:45 40 Announcement and presentation of conference awards, followed by closing remarks North Cloisters 12 (Lecture Theatre)
16:45     Close  
17:00     Transport departs Exeter College Road entrance, St Luke's Campus

Transport

There will be a 53 seater coach provided, for University of Exeter staff, to get you to the conference. The coach will leave Penryn campus main reception at 07:30 in order to get all delegates to St Luke's campus by 10:00. For the return journey, the coach will leave St Luke's campus between 17:00-17:15 and should arrive back in Penryn between 19:30-19:45.

Sponsorship

Why sponsor our conference?

  • Access to key users and the technicians buyers network from within the University of Exeter and other HEIs
  • One to one access to your key contacts at the dedicated “meet and eat” networking session
  • Opportunity to showcase your latest products/services
  • Excellent branding and sponsorship opportunities
  • Enjoy more face to face time with key delegates
  • Increase visibility and strengthen your brand image among delegates attending TS conference 2017 

When: 22nd – 25th September 2016
Where: ExCeL London


For four days this September, New Scientist Live will be like nowhere else on Earth.


The inaugural New Scientist Live event, courtesy of the team behind the world’s most popular science weekly, is a four-day festival of ideas and discovery taking place at ExCeL London.


Rooted in the biggest, best and most provocative science that touches all areas of human life, the show will feature over 200 exhibitors, 120 speakers, 5 theatres and 4 immersive zones covering Brain & Body, Technology, Earth and The Cosmos to showcase how science, technology and engineering drive our economy, shape our culture and improve our lives.


For further information visit https://live.newscientist.com/.


Book your place now and save ££s


As a member of staff at Exeter University you can get an exclusive discounted rate on tickets*
Tickets for Thursday or Friday at the show are just £20 – saving £9 per ticket on the door rate
Tickets for Saturday or Sunday at the show are just £22.50 – saving £6.50 per ticket on the door rate


Children 12 and under go free when accompanied by an adult
*transaction fee applies, must be booked by midnight 21/9/16

In conjunction with the University of Exeter, Bruker Nano-Surfaces would like to invite you to this AFM workshop organised on the 20 th and 21st of July 2016. The goal of this workshop is to present the latest development in AFM modes for the high-resolution mapping of local nano-mechanical, nano-electrical and nano-chemical properties of surfaces.

AFM Event Details

Agenda:

Day 1: Morning for all 52 spaces. Afternoon for 20 delegates from industry and outside of the University; Practical

Day 2: For people from the University, including Penryn. Limit 20 people due to number of AFM units.

Date: 6 July 2016

Venue: Penryn Campus, University of Exeter


The University of Exeter hosted a Technical Services Conference on 6th July 2016 at the Penryn Campus. Sessions and Workshops at the Conference were tailored specifically for Technical Service Staff in STEMM colleges.

This year’s theme was:
Getting to Know Your Service: 1 year on from the transformation.
(How can we collaborate across the service and learn from each other).

‌We are delighted to announce that the winner of the technical service logo competition is Dr Abdelmalek Benattayallah from the Exeter MR Research Centre at St Luke’s campus.
Congratulations from the TS conference committee!

We look forward to meeting Malek when we present his award at the conference.

The TS Conference committee would like to thank all those who took part in the competition and for such a high standard of entries

TS Conference 2016 Photo Reel - Photos from the day

Technical Services Poster Session

We are very excited to announce that the Technical Services conference poster session will have two categories:

  • Category 1: Who are we and what do we do? An opportunity for each unit of activity to tell everyone who is in their team and the great work they do.
  • Category 2: Research or Teaching posters. An opportunity to tell everyone what great research or teaching projects you as individuals have been involved in.

Posters:

 

Programme of Events and Presentations


Below is a provisional program. However if you have any ideas, contacts or comments the Conference Committee would love to hear from you.

We look forward to seeing you at this year’s Technical Services conference in Penryn.

Time

Description

10:00 – 10:30

Registration

10:30 – 10:55

Opening Address; Gail Reeves

 

Technical Tasters

Personal Development 1

Personnel development 2

Career Progression

Health & Safety

11:00 – 11:25

Karen Moore-Exeter Sequencing Service: Minlon Technology

 

Karen Markes-Developing Sustainable behaviours for health & Wellbeing

Kathryn Miller-Doing more with Less

 

Terry Croft/Jon Cresswell – HEFCE Catalyst Project

Technical development & Modernisation-

Mike Wetherell-Chemical Incompatibilities in storage and mixing

 

11:30 – 11:55

 

Robert McIlwraith- The benefits of mentoring

 

Clive Betts – Personal Development Programme

 

Katherine Forsey - HEaTED; Future trends in the technical job market – helping you prepare

 

Rhian Loosmore-Safety Health and Wellbeing Management

 

12:00 – 12.25

Andrew Cowley-Raspberry Pie for data collection

 

Amy Reed - Science Council the benefits of registration and options available

 

Tour of Campus

David Parish-Owen Greenwood-Earn a PhD while working

 

Mike Wetherell-Chemical Spillage responses

 

12:30 – 13:55

Lunch and Poster Session

14:00 – 14:25

Gavyn Rollinson

Geochemical & Mineralogical analysis:  what, how and why?

 

Terry Croft and James Trout –

IST in the Industry, how professional development works in the EA

 

Karen Markes-Developing Sustainable behaviours for health & Wellbeing

 

John Malloch-Introduction to Procurement

 

Mike Wetherell-Chemical Incompatibilities in storage and mixing

 

14:30 – 14:55

David Milner-OmniLog phenotype microarray system

 

Natalie Kennerley-

How to get networked

 

Karen Clowes-Gallagher-Environmental improvement in Technical Services

 

David Miller-How to sell yourself in two minutes

 

 

15:00 – 15:25

Chris Wood-Top Tips Pipette Maintenance

 

Sarah Hodge-Athena SWAN for technical services

 

Alistair Cropp-Imaging and correlating across scales and dimensions: an overview of existing, emerging and evolving technologies

Andrew Johnson-How do I go above and beyond

 

Mike Wetherell-Chemical Spillage responses

 

15:30 – 15:55

Karen Clowes-Gallagher-Environmental improvement in Technical Services

Ray Spicer – Staff Portal

Tour of Campus (Sessions ran at 1500-1525 and 1530-1555)

 

Dr Jacquline Whatmore-Human tissue act

16:00 – 16:25

Networking and Refreshments

The Conference Committee

Chair:

  • Michelle Hares m.c.hares@exeter.ac.uk

Committee:

  • Liz James e.j.james@exeter.ac.uk
  • Yogesh Chaudhari y.k.chaudhari@exeter.ac.uk
  • Sam Mitchell samantha.mitchell@exeter.ac.uk
  • Toby Doyle t.doyle@exeter.ac.uk
  • Owen Greenwood o.greenwood2@exeter.ac.uk
  • Daniela Farina d.farina@exeter.ac.uk
  • Florian Bayer f.bayer@exeter.ac.uk
  • Amy Campbell a.campbell@exeter.ac.uk
  • Corrina Lowry c.lowry@exeter.ac.uk

The University of Exeter will be hosting their first Science Council Regional Registration Event.

Event details

Date16 June 2016

Location: Peter Chalk centre, Streatham Campus, University of Exeter EX4 4QD

The Science Council Regional Registration Event provides a forum for discussion and communication around professional registration benefits and application with educational institutions and local industry. The event promotes professional registration, CPD and the sharing of knowledge amongst scientific and technical staff.

*This is a FREE event but you must complete the registration form to reserve your place*

*Refreshments will be provided*

Common Application process

Applicants can be supported into professional body membership and registration via the Science Council online application system, which guides applicants to the most appropriate professional body and the right level of registration for them.

UBMA 33rd Annual Conference: 6th-8th April 2016 – Hosted by the University of Exeter

We are pleased to announce that Clive Parkinson Director of Health and Safety at the University of Surrey, former Chair of USHA and a significant contributor to the development of the recently launched “Guidance for Leadership and Management of health and safety in Higher Education Institutions” will be presenting at the Exeter conference in 2016.

Date: 13 July 2015

Venue: Streatham Campus, University of Exeter

The University of Exeter hosted their first Technical Services conference on 13 July 2015 on its Streatham Campus.  Sessions and workshops at the conference were tailored specifically for the technical staff in the: College of Engineering, Mathematics and Physical Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Sciences; and the University of Exeter Medical School.

Resources from the event:

Time Programme
  Technical Services Video
10:15-10:45 Sustainability Research and Education a Collaborative Project - Stewart Barr
11:30-12:00 The University of Exeter Technicians' Development Programme - Clive Betts
11:30-12:00 How should Procurement support Technical Services - John Malloch
12:00-12:30 Creating Career Pathways for Technicians - IST - Kevin Oxley
12:00-12:30 Exploring Your Wellbeing - Karen Markes
12:30-13:00 An introduction to HEaTED Training needs - James Nobes
12:30-13:00 TechNet - Natalie Kennerley
14:00-14:30 Implementing Sustainability - Karen Gallagher
14:00-14:30 Lab Safety - What?s changed at Exeter - Mike Wetherell
14:30-15:00 Negotiating and Influencing - Red Door
14:30-15:00 Generating income/Research Facilities
15:30-16:00 The Charter to Professional Success - Natalie Kennerley

The conference focused on: networking; personal and professional development; Safety health and the environment; and leadership and management.

We launched the following at the event:

  • New Technical Specialist Development Framework
  • HEaTED memberships for technicians. 
  • LTHE training for technical staff.

Thank you for attending this year’s conference, challenging yourself, increasing your personal network, and making the most of the sessions and workshops.