At this year’s rapid.tech 3D in Erfurt, the expert forum “Software, AI & Design” on May 15, 2025, will focus on key topics related to the digitalization of additive manufacturing within industrial process chains. Central to the discussion are strategies for economically integrating additive manufacturing into existing production workflows—particularly through the use of artificial intelligence and seamless digital data flows.
“It remains a challenge to integrate additive manufacturing effectively into the entire production and business process chain. Digitalization—and AI in particular—is proving to be a key lever for making additive processes economically viable and for unlocking new business areas and markets. The forum will present examples of how to identify AI use cases in manufacturing and will also address legal aspects of AI deployment. Another focus will be on implementing digital threads, the ‘red thread’ of data running through the process chain. We’ll demonstrate this with concrete examples. In addition, user solutions will be shown that illustrate how decentralized production can open access to global markets and how multifunctional components can be designed automatically,” explained Martin Gasch, Business Development Manager at Siemens Digital Industries Software and content lead of the forum.
A key topic will also be the implementation of digital threads—a concept describing the seamless data flow from design through manufacturing to application. Dr. Felix Wunner from Deloitte Consulting will outline the structural prerequisites companies need to establish digital coherence.
A practical example comes from pedcad, which produces customized orthopedic insoles directly at the customer site using decentralized 3D printing. CEO Dominik Walter will explain how this model not only saves costs but also facilitates international market access.
The software suite 4D Additive, presented by CT CoreTechnologie, provides an end-to-end solution for additive manufacturing—from CAD import to slicer output. Product manager Rémi Goupil will demonstrate its capabilities using real-world examples.
In the scientific section of the event, Christoph Kiener (Siemens) and Christoph Klahn (KIT) will discuss the use of additive manufacturing in chemical process engineering as part of the 3D-PROCESS project. Their focus is on developing modular reactor concepts based on digital twins.
Complementing the expert forums are interactive formats such as Deep Dives, expert roundtables, and the AM Science Poster Slam. Running in parallel for the first time will be Quantum Photonics, an event exploring potential synergies between additive manufacturing and quantum technologies.
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