News Archive

On 27-28 November 2025, the 11th Conference of Applied Hygiene, Microbiology and Virology (CAHMV) took place. The conference, organised by DR. BRILL INSTITUTES, once again impressed participants on site at the maritime AMERON Hamburg Hotel Speicherstadt and online on their screens with a wide range of specialist presentations and other highlights.

Workshop premiere with extraordinary insights: For the first time since 2019, CAHMV kicked off with a practice-oriented workshop on the topic of “Efficacy testing of antimicrobial products.” Exclusive video insights into our test laboratories in Hamburg and Bremen, as well as the explanations by Dr. Andreas Kampe and Dr. Dajana Paulmann, ensured a lively and informative start.

High-caliber keynotes: Professor Dr. Martin Exner explained the crucial importance of water quality for infection prevention and control in healthcare. Professor Dr. Andreas Voss spoke about current developments influencing infection prevention: from AI to environmental protection. On the second day of the conference, Dr. Florian H. H. Brill gave a comprehensive overview of the status and future development of efficacy testing of antimicrobial products.

Diverse specialist sessions and active exchange: Sessions led by Professor Eike Steinmann and Professor Jörg Steinmann offered further exciting insights into topics such as (re-)emerging viruses, AI-supported sequencing, and genome profiling. The session led by Dr. Gunnar Kleist focused on regulatory developments, while the presentations in the session led by Professor Dirk Bockmühl addressed topics related to household hygiene.

The panel discussion identified the following three areas for improvement for the REFIT of the BPR: 1.) We must emphasize much more strongly than before the indispensable importance of the application of biocidal products, e.g., for infection prevention, food, medical device, and drug production, as well as the sustainable use of materials. 2.) We need a risk-benefit assessment for the evaluation of biocidal products, not just a risk assessment as has been the case to date. 3.) We need an innovation booster for sustainable active substances and biocidal products. To achieve this, the process must become faster and more agile.

The active participation of the attendees and the excellent networking in the breaks and during the pre-Christmas evening program rounded off the conference perfectly. We would like to thank all speakers and participants for their commitment, which once again made this event an outstanding success. CAHMV 2025 reaffirms its position as a high-caliber platform for professional exchange in the field of applied hygiene, microbiology, and virology. We look forward to the next CAHMV conference!

The "Maritime Technologies 2025" status conference includes selected contributions on successful projects from the Maritime Research Program of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (Bundesministeriums für Wirtschaft und Energie, BMWE) and is organized by Projektträger Jülich on behalf of the BMWE. Dr. Brill + Partner Institute for Antifouling and Biocorrosion, Norderney, will be represented on site by Bernd Daehne and Soyla Kraus. Take advantage of this opportunity to meet our colleagues from Norderney in Berlin. The conference will be held in German on 10 + 11 December 2025, at the Mercure Hotel MOA Berlin, exclusively in person. Participation is free of charge. The conference program and the link for registration can be found HERE.

Hydrotox Labor für Ökotoxikologie und Gewässerschutz GmbH (Laboratory for Ecotoxicology and Water Protection) can now be reached at the following new telephone number: +49 761 216393-0. Please update your records accordingly. The extension numbers remain valid. Our Hydrotox colleagues in Freiburg look forward to your call. All contact details for the DR. BRILL INSTITUTES group can be found here: Contact

A poster co-authored by Dr. Florian H. H. Brill was presented at the ACIPC Conference in Australia. Title: “In Vivo Assessment of ABHR Dose Size on Antimicrobial Efficacy – 1.5mL is Optimal.” The abstract and additional authors can be found at the following link: HERE

From 21st to 22nd October 2025, the CRO days (Contract research organisation days) took place for the second time in Helsinki, with Andrea Brunswik-Titze from Hydrotox GmbH attending. The meeting was organised by the ECHA (European Chemical Agency) and was addressed to CROs from the OECD region in order to promote exchange between regulatory authorities and testing laboratories. A total of 27 CROs from the EU, Ukraine, the UK, Switzerland, the USA, India and Japan attended the meeting to discuss regulatory requirements as well as the technical challenges involved in conducting ecotoxicological studies and biodegradability studies for REACH purposes. The topics focused on substances that are difficult to test in aquatic toxicity tests, simulation studies on degradation and bioaccumulation, and the importance of test material characterization and analytical challenges. The exchange was considered very valuable by both ECHA and the CROs, and further meetings of this kind are to follow in the future.

Further information on the event including the meeting summary can be found HERE.

Am 09.12.2025 findet die dritte Auflage des Online-Update Hygiene und Infektionsprävention im Jahr 2025 statt - mit dem Thema Diagnostik. Im Rahmen des Innovationsnetzwerks HIHeal (Hygiene, Infection & Health) next level wird diese gemeinsam von Life Science Nord, dem Arbeitsbereich Krankenhaushygiene des Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf und DR. BRILL INSTITUTES durchgeführt Folgende drei Vorträge sind geplant:

• Diagnostikentwicklung unter der IVDR aus Sicht eines Herstellers
  Dr. Stephan Ölschläger / Head of Marketing, altona Diagnostics GmbH
• Innovationen in der Infektionsdiagnostik und die Bedeutung des Diagnostic Stewardships
  PD Dr. med. Tobias Kramer / Ärztliche Leitung Hygiene, LADR GmbH MVZ Dr. Kramer & Kollegen
• KI in der Labordiagnostik: Chancen, Herausforderungen und Ausblick
  Timo Schütze / Abteilungsleiter Produktmanagement, Euroimmun AG

Das Online-Update findet in Zoom statt. Wir laden Sie herzlich zu dieser Veranstaltung ein und freuen uns über Ihre Teilnahme und den Austausch mit Ihnen und unseren Fachleuten. Alle weiteren Informationen und das Formular für Ihre Anmeldung finden Sie HIER.

UPDATE: Registration for CAHMV 2025 in Hamburg is still open until the end of this week. Start your last-minute registration now! We look forward to welcoming you as a participant on November 27 + 28, 2025. Registration for our CAHMV online livestream will remain open after this date.

Take the chance to participate in our 11th Conference of Applied Hygiene, Microbiology and Virology 2025, which will be a very special CAHMV! As already announced, for the first time since 2019, the CAHMV 2025 begins with a workshop. This workshop entitled "Efficacy testing of antimicrobial products" will include video insights from our testing labs - an absolute premiere! This workshop and its video insight will deal with the following tests - don't miss it, and register now!

• Chemical-thermal textile disinfection: EN 16616:2022
• Hygienic handrub: EN 1500 vs. ASTM E2755
• Surface disinfection with mechanical action: EN 16615
• Instrument disinfection: EN 14561, EN 14562, EN 14563
• Surface disinfection without mechanical action: EN 13697
• Quantitative suspension tests
• Incubation and colony counting

Some of the further program highlights of this year's CAHMV are:

Keynote speakers of the CAHMV 2025 are Professor Dr. Martin Exner with a lecture on the impact of water quality on infection prevention and control in health care systems, and Professor Dr. Andreas Voss with his lecture on current developments with influence on infection prevention from AI to Environmental Protection. Dr. Florian H. H. Brill starts the second conference day with his legendary presentation on the latest developments in the efficacy evaluation of antimicrobial products.

Professor Dr. Eike Steinmann and Professor Dr. Jörg Steinmann are chairs of the extensive Session "Hot topics Infection Prevention & Control" with a large number of also exciting presentations. Regarding BPR, you can look forward to a session entitled "Current Regulatory Developments BPR" and to a lively panel discussion "Assessment for antimicrobial products - Are we valuing the importance of biocidal products sufficiently with the current BPR?". The program will be completed by Dr. Dirk Bockmühl's sessions on "Hygiene in Households".

Several colleagues from our Institutes will also be present and are already looking forward to meeting you in person during one of the breakes. Therefore, on 27 + 28 November 2025, we welcome you again at the AMERON Hamburg Hotel Speicherstadt, as well as for a nice pre-Christmas evening program and dinner. Online participation is also possible (not for the BPR session on Friday!). The form for your registration and the content-rich full lecture program is available on our website www.cahmv.com.

We are pleased to announce that Elena Perabo (Study Director Ecotoxicology, Hydrotox) will be a speaker at this year's Biocides Europe.
The renowned conference will take place on December 1–2, 2025, in Vienna, Austria, bringing together leading experts from industry, science, and regulatory authorities to discuss the latest developments in biocide regulation and research.

Elena Perabo will give her presentation entitled “Efficacy evaluation of algicides” on December 2 at 16:05 as part of the session “Important efficacy updates.”

Further information on registration and the conference program can be found HERE.

Do you use biocidal products containing ethanol (CAS No. 64-17-5)? If so, please pay close attention!

Biocidal products containing ethanol as an active substance currently benefit from national transitional measures that simplify the marketing process. In Germany, for example, such products can currently be marketed without authorisation. However, this situation could soon change. The competent Greek authority has been evaluating ethanol for product types PT1, PT2 and PT4 for over 15 years. As a 'backlog dossier', it still falls under the transitional provisions of the old Biocidal Products Directive (BPD, Directive 98/8/EC).

In October 2024, the BPC Human Health Working Group concluded that ethanol potentially exhibits carcinogenic and reprotoxic properties. This means that the active substance meets the ‘exclusion criteria’ of the Biocidal Products Regulation (BPR, Regulation (EU) No 528/2012) and is considered a candidate for substitution in accordance with Article 10(1). A public consultation was then launched.

Public consultation and decision-making

From 25 February to 28 April 2025, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) conducted a public consultation to gather information on possible alternatives to ethanol and any potential exemptions. In response to this call, the Agency received 365 submissions from industry, associations, and institutions.

The BPC's opinion is expected at the end of November 2025. The decision on approval of ethanol by the Standing Committee on Biocidal Products, consisting of representatives from the Member States, is expected in spring 2026 at the earliest.

What are your next steps?

If the EU Commission approves ethanol for the relevant product types, a two-year transition period will begin. This means that, from today's perspective, manufacturers must submit their product dossiers to the ECHA by 2027/28 at the latest if they want to continue selling their products.

If you manufacture or sell ethanol-containing products and are unsure about the steps you need to take, Dr. Brill Regulatory Services can support you.

We can help you to understand the regulatory requirements, evaluate options for action, and design the entire authorisation process for your affected products strategically and efficiently.

We are planning to establish a consortium to coordinate the approval of ethanol-based disinfectants for use in the European healthcare sector.

If you are interested, please feel free to contact us.

Please click here to contact us directly.

We are now presenting our Clinical Study Services in form of a video clip! In just a few minutes, you will get a comprehensive overview of our range of services in this area. We also offer exclusive insights “behind the scenes” from our institute. Furthermore, in the clip you will meet Saskia Borregaard and Ralf Freese, as well as Dr. Florian H. H. Brill, of course, the most important protagonists for our Clinical Study Services. Take a look for yourself and please feel free to contact us if you are interested in our Clinical Study Services or if you have any questions. Link: Clinical Study Services

Until 23 October 2025 you still have the possibility to register for our 11th Conference of Applied Hygiene, Microbiology and Virology 2025, which will be a very special CAHMV! As already announced, for the first time since 2019, the CAHMV 2025 begins with a workshop. This workshop entitled "Efficacy testing of antimicrobial products" will include video insights from our testing labs - an absolute premiere! This workshop and its video insight will deal with the following tests - don't miss it, and register now!

• Chemical-thermal textile disinfection: EN 16616:2022
• Hygienic handrub: EN 1500 vs. ASTM E2755
• Surface disinfection with mechanical action: EN 16615
• Instrument disinfection: EN 14561, EN 14562, EN 14563
• Surface disinfection without mechanical action: EN 13697
• Quantitative suspension tests
• Incubation and colony counting

Some of the further program highlights of this year's CAHMV are:

Keynote speakers of the CAHMV 2025 are Professor Dr. Martin Exner with a lecture on the impact of water quality on infection prevention and control in health care systems, and Professor Dr. Andreas Voss with his lecture on current developments with influence on infection prevention from AI to Environmental Protection. Dr. Florian H. H. Brill starts the second conference day with his legendary presentation on the latest developments in the efficacy evaluation of antimicrobial products.

Professor Dr. Eike Steinmann and Professor Dr. Jörg Steinmann are chairs of the extensive Session "Hot topics Infection Prevention & Control" with a large number of also exciting presentations. Regarding BPR, you can look forward to a session entitled "Current Regulatory Developments BPR" and to a lively panel discussion "Assessment for antimicrobial products - Are we valuing the importance of biocidal products sufficiently with the current BPR?". The program will be completed by Dr. Dirk Bockmühl's sessions on "Hygiene in Households".

Take the chance to participate in this year's edition of our CAHMV with us: Several colleagues from our Institutes will also be present and are already looking forward to meeting you in person during one of the breakes. Therefore, on 27 + 28 November 2025, we welcome you again at the AMERON Hamburg Hotel Speicherstadt, as well as for a nice pre-Christmas evening program and dinner. Online participation is also possible (not for the BPR session on Friday!). The form for your registration and the content-rich full lecture program is available on our website www.cahmv.com.

Dr. Brill + Prof. Bockmühl GmbH Institute for Applied Hygiene will be represented at the SEPAWA Congress, which will take place in Berlin from October 15-17, 2025. The congress is the most important meeting place for the detergent, cosmetics, and perfumery industry in Europe and thus offers the perfect setting for a professional exchange on our range of services in this area. Dr. Britta Brands, Director of Laboratory - Applied Hygiene, and Prof. Dr. Dirk Bockmühl (Co-Founder) will both be there. If you would like to meet us in person in Berlin, please feel free to arrange an appointment in advance – simply send us an email (link: HERE) or give us a call. Our colleagues will contribute a presentation and a poster to the scientific program of the congress:

LECTURE:
"Hygiene Efficacy of Short Cycles in Domestic Dishwashers"

• Scientific Conference (SEPAWA) | Home Care, Industrial & Institutional Cleaning, Detergents
• Professor Dirk Bockmühl (Rhine-Waal-University of Applied Sciences)
• 16.10.2025, 10:45 - 11:15, Room 1
• lecture language: English
• Details: here

POSTER (No. 76):
"A new Approach to Test the Cleaning Performance of Probiotic Cleaners"

• European Detergents Conference | Fundamental Research
• Dr. Britta Brands (Dr. Brill + Prof. Bockmühl GmbH Institute for Applied Hygiene)
• Foyer 2nd Floor
• poster language: English
• Details: here

Link: SEPAWA CONGRESS 2025