Formnext, now in its fifth year, continues to grow with the further expansion of the process chain and a number of special topics, thus consolidating its position as the world's leading exhibition for additive manufacturing and modern industrial production.
By the end of September 2019, six weeks before exhibition start, more than 740 exhibitors have already registered their attendance, which represents a rise of 17 percent on the previous year. The gross exhibition floor area of over 50,000 m² is also 35 percent greater than for Formnext 2018 (final status).
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Besides underscoring Formnext's position as the industry's most important international trade fair, these impressive figures also demonstrate that it remains the fastest growing technical exhibition in Europe. "With a wide range of solutions as well as established and completely new special topics, Formnext 2019 once again represents the global benchmark for additive manufacturing and modern industrial production," stated Sascha F. Wenzler, Vice President, Mesago Messe Frankfurt GmbH. Formnext is home to the diverse world of additive manufacturing and AM processes, from software, digitization, pre-processing, additive manufacturing solutions, post-processing, surface finishing through quality assurance and measurement technology.
Formnext 2019 will once again showcase the global elite of additive manufacturing and exhibitors from 34 nations. Included among them will be market leaders such as 3D Systems, Additive Industries, Addup, Arburg, BigRep, Carbon, Desktop Metal, DMG Mori, Envisiontec, EOS, ExOne, Farsoon, Formlabs, GE, HP, Keyence, Markforged, Materialise, Matsuura, Prodways, Renishaw, Ricoh, Siemens, Sisma, SLM Solutions, Stratasys, Trumpf, Voxeljet, XJet and many more companies from around the world. At around 55 percent, the proportion of international exhibitors reflects the global importance of Formnext. The biggest exhibitor nations after Germany are China, USA, France, Italy, the UK, Spain and the Netherlands.
The exhibitors will offer the latest solutions, products, and services, and advise on a diverse range of industrial 3D printing applications in many different sectors and user industries, ranging from mechanical engineering, automotive, aerospace, dental and medical technology to construction, oil and gas, shipbuilding, and jewelry.
AM service providers, such as FIT, alphacam, LSS, KegelmannTechnik, and iMaterialise have a special role to play here since they make additive manufacturing accessible to users without requiring them to invest in in-house production facilities.
There will also be a number of supporting events taking place, giving innovative start-ups the opportunity to present forward-looking ideas. The overall focus is the efficient realization of products and components, from design through to mass production. Visitors to Formnext 2019 can therefore look forward to experiencing the future of industrial production.
285 new exhibitors from 29 nations
The growth of Formnext has been driven by previous exhibitors increasing their booth sizes and a number of new exhibitors who have discovered the platform for themselves. This year, 285 new exhibitors from 29 countries will be presenting their products and services at Formnext for the first time. A significant 65 percent of these companies are from outside of Germany, most notably from China, partner country USA, the UK, Italy, France, Spain, and the Netherlands. Due to the huge growth, Formnext 2019 will take place in Halls 11 and 12 for the first time, the most modern part of the Frankfurt exhibition grounds. The high-quality and elegant architecture of the two halls, combined with the modern and spacious entrance building Portalhaus, provides a very special setting for the event.
Further expansion of the process chain
Formnext has also seen clear growth along the entire process chain. The new exhibitors who will be showcasing their additive manufacturing solutions at Formnext include international groups such as 3M Advanced Materials, Bosch Rexroth, Covestro, Evonik, Mitsubishi, Thyssenkrupp Materials, and Xerox. In addition, many young and innovative companies from around the world will be represented, as well as long-established medium-sized companies. Alongside numerous developments in the industrialization of additive manufacturing, the focus of the sector is returning to plastics. This is due, in part, to new production methods, as well as a significant increase in machine performance and new material developments, such as high-temperature and composite materials, all of which opens up new applications that could potentially allow for the replacement of metal components. There has also been dynamic development in post-processing, which is key to the continued industrial development of additive manufacturing. “Here, many companies from traditional industrial sectors have seized market opportunities and developed very exciting products and technologies,” says Sascha F. Wenzler.
Partner country USA and a wide selection of supporting events
With a wide range of solutions as well as established and completely new special topics, Formnext 2019 once again demonstrates the importance of additive manufacturing for many areas of industry. For the first time, Formnext 2019, in cooperation with PIM International, is presenting aUser Case Area PIM/MIM/CIM as the interface between additive manufacturing and modern mass production. Here, with the aid of more than one hundred components manufactured using metal injection molding (MIM), ceramic injection molding (CIM), and powder injection molding (PIM), visitors will be shown the potential of these technologies for the mass production of high-precision components made from the most varied materials.
The USAwill be represented at Formnext for the first time in 2019, with such leading AM companies as 3D Systems, Carbon, Desktop Metal, ExOne, HP, Markforged and more, as well as a program of supporting events surrounding the US Pavilion and representatives from the AMUG (Additive Manufacturing Users Group), AMT (Association for Manufacturing Technology), ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) and US Commercial Service. A "Special US Day" will take place on Wednesday 20 November 2019 with various events at the pavilion and a closing reception sponsored by the AMUG. The internationally acclaimed Standards Forum, which was launched in 2018, will be continued this year in cooperation with the US Commercial Service.
The BE-AM Symposium, which is being hosted for the first time at the event by the Technical University (TU) Darmstadt, will focus on additive activities in the construction industry and architecture. The symposium will bring together experts from the field, research, and industry to discuss the current state and future potential of additive manufacturing within this sector. Topics under discussion will include digitization, design, the use of different materials like concrete, clay, and steel, as well as compliance with norms and standards, among other things. The symposium will be complemented by a special showcase featuring application examples from the construction industry.
Established events, such as the shared booth, additive4Industry user case area, Start-up Challenge, purmundus challenge ideas competition, and the AM4U platform, which offers a wealth of career opportunities, are also being continued and further expanded. In addition, the high-quality conference programorganized by Formnext’s content partner, TCT, will once again address current trends and developments in additive manufacturing in 2019, while bringing together thought leaders and users of additive manufacturing.
Another new feature of this year's exhibition is Formnext.TV, which will show user films in advance of the event and daily live coverage during it. Once again, sector-specific guided tours will be available over all days of the event for specialist visitors wishing to gain a more in-depth insight into the AM world. And for beginners to industrial 3D printing, the daily Discover3Dprinting seminars will provide practical tips and valuable background information.
