Erfurt, April 2015: For the keynote session at this year’s Rapid.Tech (10 – 11 June), Messe Erfurt has secured a top-class speaker from the aerospace industry in the form of Peter Sander, Head of Emerging Technologies & Concepts at Airbus Hamburg.

Rapid.Tech 2015
10-11 June, 2015
Messe Erfurt, GmbH
Germany

Airbus has been driving additive manufacturing forwards in the aerospace industry for many years now. As far back as 2010, Peter Sander – Head of Emerging Technologies & Concepts, Airbus Operations Hamburg GmbH – established, among other things, the Airbus Innovation Cell with a focus on additive layer manufacturing (ALM). Over the past few years, a wide variety of aircraft components in over 80 projects have been tested and reworked for manufacture in additive manufacturing processes.

The aircraft manufacturer aims to have the first 3D-printed titanium components – first and foremost a cabin bracket – certified by 2016 and plans to launch these in service for the first time with the A350. Certifications for aluminium components are to follow by 2017. As of 2018, Airbus aims to have a monthly series production of around 30 tonnes of additively manufactured metal components. This results not only in widely varying requirements for manufacturers of ALM equipment and aviation industry suppliers.
Component design and construction as well as manufacturing processes including assembly will also be revised.

In his keynote speech “On the Way to Additive Manufacturing: Chances and Challenges for Future Industrial Production”, Peter Sander will provide an overview of the key influencing factors in these developments and presents some of the company’s global activities in the field of ALM. In addition, Sander will shed light on various details in the materials and processes that make innovations possible. The ALM aeronautics expert will also discuss the opportunities open to a large corporation such as Airbus when it comes to making the most of innovative technologies under strict certification and safety requirements. His speech will also cover how to persuade management and design departments of the benefits of this new industrial value creation chain. Rounding off Sander’s lecture is a look at over 80 projects in various stages of completion and the resulting industrial requirements for the future.

The other four “Vision 3D”Keynote Sessions at Rapid.Tech 2015 in Erfurt will feature a number of top speakers discussing the hot topics in the sector. Microsoft manager Adrian Lannin (USA) will discuss the effects of extensive support for 3D printing in Windows for additive manufacturing in existing and emerging market segments. Mario Fleurinck, entrepreneur and founder of InnoCrowd (Belgium), will reveal how digital manufacturing can pave the way for innovation-driven and sustainable business models, illustrating this with a product life cycle analysis. Frank Cooper (Birmingham City University School of Jewellery, GB) will focus on the direct metal laser melting (DMLM) of precious metals. US designer Francis Bitonti will describe the radical change triggered by the “displacing”technology of 3D printing in the fashion and lifestyle industry. As with all Rapid.Tech lectures, simultaneous interpretation (German<>English) will be offered during the keynote presentations.

Visitors are guaranteed a concise overview with the Keynote Pass “Vision 3D”, which the trade fair management is offering for the first time in 2015. It grants pass holders entry to the five keynote presentations and the specialist trade fair on 10 June 2015. The pass and all other trade fair and conference tickets are available online now: www.rapidtech.de/startseite/tagungen/preise-tagung.html.

Erfurt’s Rapid.Tech figures amongst the world’s most respected events in the field of additive manufacturing. Some 160 exhibitors and 4,000 trade visitors from 20 countries are expected. For the third time FabCon 3.D, Germany’s 3D printing fair for semi-professional users and prosumers, will be held in parallel with the event.