GEFERTEC will showcase WAAM applications for large-format metal components at Formnext 2025

GEFERTEC presents new solutions for the 3D printing of metallic components using Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) at Formnext 2025. The company is using the Berlin joint booth to demonstrate how large-scale parts can be built cost-effectively with electric arc energy and wire feedstock. Target industries include energy and rail, aerospace, and toolmaking.

Technically, WAAM combines CNC-guided path planning with an arc process that deposits welding wire layer by layer. Compared with powder-based approaches, there is no powder handling; the wire also enables a closed material balance and simple inventory. The process chain typically includes CAM-assisted toolpath generation, a thermal strategy with interlayer temperature windows, and downstream machining to produce functional surfaces and tolerances. This allows GEFERTEC to address applications where preform weights and machining allowances are critical, such as impellers or structural components with unfavorable buy-to-fly ratios.

At the booth, GEFERTEC presents completed projects: an approximately 700-kg impeller for turbines, an emergency exit frame for aircraft, a tool print for toolmaking, and a yaw-damper bracket for the rail industry. A load collar as part of a high-performance turbine will also be presented at the VDMA booth and serves as a reference for integration into industrial supply chains.

“Demand for large-format additively manufactured metal components is steadily increasing,” says Johannes Zuckschwerdt, Managing Director of GEFERTEC. “At Formnext we will show how WAAM can already be implemented for production.”

GEFERTEC is part of the capital-city joint booth with partners such as TU Berlin, the AMBER network, and Fraunhofer IPK. The presentation covers the value chain from research through software and machines to material suppliers. For users, the focus is clear: WAAM as a near-net-shape preform process with predictable post-processing, suitable for spare parts, functional prototypes, and pilot series when size, material utilization, and lead time are paramount.