RapidTech 3D gains professional reinforcement from the industry. AM experts from Schaeffler, Trumpf, BMW, and the VDMA, Germany’s mechanical engineering industry association, bring their expertise to the advisory board. Starting in 2024, the Additive Manufacturing Working Group within the VDMA will serve as the conceptual sponsor of the event, which is set to celebrate its 20th anniversary at Messe Erfurt from 14 – 16 May next year.

The overarching goal of the partnership with the VDMA Working Group is to further advance the industrialisation of additive manufacturing (AM). This is clear from the Rapid.Tech 3D specialist conference programme, which has been expanded to include the new “AM4industryˮ session. Organized by the VDMA’s AM Working Group, this session is scheduled for day one of the conference (14 May 24) and will focus on user-oriented lectures on industrial 3D printing along the entire additive process chain.

“We are delighted that this partnership will provide us with even more expertise and support in curating the content of the conference programme. As industrial additive manufacturing continues to advance, its fields of application are expanding. The AM Working Group within the VDMA is an important partner and source of inspiration in setting the right topics for our agenda. We would like to thank the new advisory board members for their commitment to this cooperation. All of our members share a common goal: to further raise the profile of RapidTech 3D as a platform for knowledge transfer and user benefits,” says Michael Kynast, CEO of Messe Erfurt.

The new additions to the advisory board are Carsten Merklein, vice president advanced technologies at Schaeffler Technologies, Dr Tobias Brune, head of additive manufacturing at Trumpf; Alexander Jakschik, member of the management board at ULT; and Dr Markus Heering, managing director of the Additive Manufacturing Association and Working Group within the VDMA.

Also joining the advisory board is Maximilian Binder, project manager additive manufacturing at BMW. He succeeds Dr Dominik Rietzel who has taken on a new position in the BMW Group, having been a member of the advisory board since 2019.

The new additions join existing advisory board members Prof Christiane Beyer, Otto von Guericke University; Frank Cremer, 3D Systems; Stephan Eelmann, Boeing; Michael Eichmann, Stratasys, Carl Fruth, FIT Additive Manufacturing, Christoph Hauck, toolcraft, Daniel Hund, Rösler Oberflächentechnik, Dr Simon Jahn, IFW Jena, Peter Jain, pro-beam, Dr Eric Klemp, Eisenhuth, Ulli Klenk, Siemens Energy, Wolfgang Mildner, MSWtech, Dr Bernhard Müller, Fraunhofer Society; Martin Neff, Arburg, Prof Stefan Roth, Schmalkalden University of Applied Sciences, Prof Christian Seidel, Munich University of Applied Sciences / Fraunhofer IGCV, and Dr Özlem Weiss, Expertants. Michael Eichmann and Christian Seidel jointly chair the advisory board.

The call for papers for scientific lectures has been launched and exhibitor registrations are now open for RapidTech 3D’s anniversary event in 2024. Papers for the Science Forum can be submitted until 31 December 2023 at rapidtech-3d.com/specialist-congress/forum-am-science.