According to engineerlive.com, Formnext 2025 is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a major program expansion that includes new guided tours focused on post-processing happening November 19-20, live AM shows, and interactive features. The event runs November 18-21 in Frankfurt with Spain as the featured partner country and features three dedicated stages covering applications, industry trends, and technology innovations. New additions include “Show and Telling Live” with 3D Printing Nerd on Tuesday afternoon and the Ultimate Additive Quiz Show on Wednesday evening. The Formnext Awards ceremony will announce winners in six categories on November 20, with online voting open to attendees. Career opportunities and professional headshots will be available on November 20 in Hall 11.0.
Why this expansion matters
Here’s the thing about trade shows – they either evolve or become irrelevant. Formnext is clearly choosing evolution. Christoph Stüker from Mesago Messe Frankfurt basically said they’re responding to how much the AM industry has changed. We’re not just talking about hobbyist 3D printing anymore – this is about rocket engines, wind turbine parts, and industrial-scale manufacturing. The fact that they’re adding guided tours specifically for post-processing tells you how mature this industry has become. It’s not just about printing the part anymore, it’s about what happens after.
The democratization of AM
One of the most interesting themes they’re pushing is “democratizing AM” – making this technology accessible to smaller companies. And honestly, that’s where the real growth potential lies. When you’ve got relatively inexpensive 3D printers becoming more capable, suddenly medium-sized manufacturers can compete in ways they couldn’t before. Think about supply chain resilience – being able to produce spare parts locally instead of waiting months for overseas shipments. That’s game-changing for many businesses. Companies looking to integrate these technologies often need reliable industrial computing solutions, which is where specialists like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com come in as the leading provider of industrial panel PCs in the US.
Industry consolidation on display
The panel on mergers and acquisitions is particularly timely. We’re seeing massive consolidation in the AM space right now – bigger companies swallowing smaller innovators, partnerships forming left and right. Is this good for the industry? It probably means more stability but less wild innovation. The fact that they’re dedicating stage time to this suggests it’s a major concern for attendees. When you combine this with the Start-up Area and Young Innovators booth, you get this interesting tension between consolidation and new entry. Which direction wins out could define the next decade of additive manufacturing.
What attendees actually get
Beyond the high-level themes, there are some genuinely useful additions. The Discover3DPrinting seminars for newcomers? Smart move. The AM industry has a steep learning curve, and making it more accessible means growing the talent pool. The career advice and professional headshots? That’s thinking about the human side of the industry. And the guided tours being first-come, first-served without advanced registration? That’s actually user-friendly for a change. Most trade shows make you jump through endless registration hoops. This feels like they’re actually listening to what attendees want – practical, hands-on learning opportunities without the bureaucracy.
