Deutsch (Germany) 
Polski (PL) In order to promote the use of additive manufacturing in the construction industry as well, Formnext and the Technical University (TU) Darmstadt have agreed on a joint venture. This means that in the next few years the construction industry will become a stronger theme of the leading international trade fair for additive manufacturing and the next generation of industrial production. At the same time, Formnext is getting involved as a sponsor of the Built Environment – Additive Manufacturing Symposium (BE-AM) launched by TU Darmstadt, which brings together key players from the construction industry and architecture on a regular basis and concerns itself extensively with the additive development in this sector.
Additive manufacturing is still a relatively new topic in the construction industry, although even here there are numerous innovative approaches and application concepts. "Through the cooperation with TU Darmstadt we want to make an important contribution, so that even in the construction industry the innovative potential of additive manufacturing can be made more widely usable", says Sascha F. Wenzler, director of the Formnext division at the trade fair organizer Mesago Messe Frankfurt GmbH.
The two professors Oliver Tessmann and Ulrich Knaack from TU Darmstadt have, for some years, already been concerned with the topic of additive manufacturing in this environment and are currently working on numerous projects, some of which are researching into different manufacturing methods and the use of different materials. Three years ago, the two professors launched the BE-AM Symposium which is taking place in Darmstadt on October 12 this year.
"Our aim is to promote additive activities in the construction industry, strengthening their structure and concentration", says Professor Knaack, from the Institute for Structural Mechanics and Design, ISM+D. "We are also pleased that, through the collaboration with Formnext, we will gain even better contact with the other sectors of industry in which additive applications are already widely used. Because, overall, construction will become more efficient thanks to additive manufacturing. Companies that use this technology in construction will be able to benefit in economic terms", according to Knaack.
Professor Oliver Tessmann (Digital Design Unit, DDU) adds: "The construction industry is joining with other application industries in the common search for the added value of 3D-printed applications. We want to print intelligent forms and designs that were not previously possible in this way. In this respect, we can certainly benefit from existing experiences and commonalities."
Already at Formnext 2018 the topic will be addressed in the AM4U area with a presentation to be held at 3:30 pm on November 14. Over the next few years the cooperation between Formnext, as well as BE-AM, and TU Darmstadt will be intensified. This will ensure that Formnext also becomes a key platform for contact and innovation among architects, structural engineers and companies from the construction industry.
