AI adoption, sustainability, cybersecurity, talent shortages, unreliable supply changes and the demand for faster product innovation are common challenges that businesses face. And yet, research and development teams keep searching for answers within their own company walls, struggling to keep up with the accelerating pace of technology. But the reality is, the solutions to these challenges already exist in completely different sectors. Join Verhaert’s Innovation Day 2026 on November 24 at its innovation center in Kruibeke and turn these complex challenges into your next big breakthrough!
Breaking industry boundaries through Open Innovation 4.0
Today’s technical hurdles are simply too complex for any team to solve in isolation. When you are racing against fast-moving tech and tight compliance deadlines, staying inside your industry bubble holds you back. The smartest way forward is adopting how another market solved the exact product innovation roadblock you face today.
This year’s theme, ‘open innovation 4.0’ explores how taking field-tested technologies from adjacent markets accelerates development cycles and cuts engineering risk. By taking technologies proven in one domain and adapting them to another, such as applying space-grade systems to life sciences or leveraging dual-use tech in defense, companies can skip redundant development cycles, work through regulatory hurdles more effectively, and maximize the return on their R&D investments.
4 thematic tracks, with 12 in-depth talks
During Verhaert’s Innovation Day, you’ll discover how to fast-track innovation in the FMCG, industry, life sciences, and space & defense markets. In 4 thematic tracks, experts will cover exclusive insights and firsthand experiences on integrating cutting-edge technologies into real-life applications, creating frameworks that support sustainable growth, and building systems that are ready for future disruptions.
Participants will have the opportunity to tailor their experience by selecting 2 of 4 dedicated tracks featuring expert keynotes, real-world case studies, and live demonstrations:
- TRACK 1 – FMCG & Consumer: Technology, innovation, and the changing consumer
Meeting consumer expectations around sustainability and experience requires more than new packaging or formats. In this track, you’ll look at how technology can work in practice through innovation acceleration and risk management. Discover how innovation pilots, advanced sensing, data and IoT-enabled insights help companies translate emerging technologies into lasting consumer value. - TRACK 2 – Industry: Smart industry driving change beyond traditional R&D
Industrial companies are under pressure to produce more efficiently while also reducing their environmental footprint. The challenge? Doing both in complex and regulated environments shaped by legacy systems. In this track, you’ll explore how servitization, autonomous mobility, and advanced metrology can help drive meaningful change beyond standard R&D boundaries. - TRACK 3 – Life Sciences: Advancing personalized care through cross-domain innovation
The future of personalized healthcare promises precision, prevention, and most of all, predictability. But before that turns into reality, companies still have to overcome regulatory, cost, and data challenges. Learn how cross-domain innovation, ranging from expert systems to tech transferred from space programs, is advancing patient care. - TRACK 4 – Space & Defense: Redefining capability through dual-use tech
Expanding on your space and defense capabilities requires more than building new technologies. In this talk, you’ll dive into dual-use innovation and how you can utilize existing technologies into deployable assets. Learn about innovation accelerators, cross-domain technology transfers, and the use of swarming approaches in the field.
Ready to unlock cross-sector breakthroughs in FMCG, industry, life sciences, and space & defense? Join us at Verhaert’s Innovation Day 2026 on November 24th! Secure your spot today via innovationday.verhaert.com and see the full agenda.