After last year’s enforced switch to a purely online offering as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Formnext 2021 will return as an in-person event, continuing the successful trend of previous years. The leading international exhibition for additive manufacturing and modern industrial production, which this year takes place from 16 -19 November 2021 in Frankfurt am Main, will feature more than 600 exhibitors (55% from abroad) in three halls (11.0, 12.0 and 12.1), as well as an extensive and diverse program of supporting events.
The importance of Formnext for the industry is reflected in the exceptionally high number of innovations and world premieres announced by exhibitors in the run-up to the event. These range from an array of new technologies and systems designed to make 3D printing even faster, more efficient and more economical through to countless innovations across the process chain, from materials to post-processing.
“The amazing response we have seen from exhibitors and the AM industry as a whole, including those based outside of Germany, underscores the importance of Formnext as the leading international event in this sector and the strong appetite for coming together and interacting in person once again,” asserts Sascha F. Wenzler, Formnext Vice President at organizer Mesago Messe Frankfurt GmbH. “It also demonstrates that this vibrant, in-person exhibition is crucial to a highly innovative industry like ours as a platform for showcasing innovations and discussing them with international industry professionals. It is the perfect springboard for getting future-oriented, sustainable technological developments off the ground.”
Formnext 2021, which this year is being held as a “2G” event (admittance for people who have been vaccinated or recovered from COVID only), will once again showcase the global elite of additive manufacturing and exhibitors from 35 nations. Included among them will be market leaders such as 3D Systems, Additive Industries, Addup, Arburg, BigRep, Covestro, Cubicure, Desktop Metal, DMG Mori, Dyemansion, EOS, Evonik, ExOne, Farsoon, Formlabs, Fraunhofer Gesellschaft, GE Additive, HP, Incus, Keyence, Markforged, Materialise, Nexa3D, Renishaw, Ricoh, Siemens, Sigma Labs, Stratasys, Trumpf, Voxeljet, XJet, and many more. Many of the exhibitors will also be innovative start-ups from all over the world, as well as companies from the entire process chain – from material manufacturers to companies from measuring technology, machining and surface finishing, including such renowned companies as BASF 3D Printing Solutions, Covestro, Hexagon, Höganäs, or Sandvik. Also presenting their expertise at Formnext will be an increasing number of larger corporate groups and additive manufacturing users, such as Rosswag and the SMS Group, whose in-depth experience has been acquired over many years.
Partner country Italy and a wide selection of supporting events
Formnext 2021 will additionally be offering an exceptional program of supporting events. For the first time, Formnext will have a European partner country, Italy. Italian exhibitors, such as Lincotek, Mimete, Prima Industrie, Roboze, Sisma, WASP, and others, will be demonstrating Italy’s position as an important innovator for the entire industry.
Led by scientists from Technical University (TU) Darmstadt, the special BE-AM | Built Environment Additive Manufacturing showcase encompasses a whole range of sectors from architecture and civil engineering through to manufacturing automation.
In a special area of Hall 12.0, the VDMA’s Additive Manufacturing Association will be presenting examples of successful applications and developments in industrial 3D printing: tools, machine components, prototypes, and much more besides.
For the seventh time, the international Formnext Start-up Challenge has recognized up-and-coming enterprises from the world of additive manufacturing for their innovative business ideas and technical developments. In 2021, the winning innovations range from nano and glass 3D printing through to new medical solutions for spine patients, and will be presented at Formnext by the international winners. At the Pitchnext event at the Start-up Area on 16 November 2021, 16 start-ups will demonstrate why they make a good investment. The award ceremony for the Start-up Challenge winners will also take place at this event.
This year’s Purmundus Challenge at Formnext will shine a spotlight on innovative end-to-end solutions from 12 countries on 5 continents under the motto Innovation in Progress. The finalists will showcase innovative forward-looking concepts from the fields of medicine, biotechnology, 4D printing, VR, robotics, renewable energies, mechanical and plant engineering, e-mobility and drive technology.
The two-hour Discover3Dprinting seminars, which are free of charge, are aimed at newcomers to additive manufacturing in SMEs. These will take place every morning from 9:30 a.m. (CET) to 11:30 a.m. (CET) and clearly demonstrate the potential offered by additive manufacturing and how it can be put to profitable use in enterprise-own production facilities.
The four-day TCT Conference @ Formnext will discuss current and future applications and technologies of additive manufacturing with high-profile presentations from Boeing, Deutsche Bahn, and GE Healthcare, for example.
The focus of the ASTM Standards Forum will be “Industrialization of AM through standards and standardization – how can AM reach the next level?”. The workshop will be held on Monday, 15 November 2021 and is jointly organized by ASTM International, US Commercial Service and ISO.
For those unable to attend Formnext 2021 in person, Formnext Digital Days on 30 November and 1 December 2021 provides a comprehensive online offering.
www.formnext.com
