IN(3D)USTRY 2017 Top Speakers on AM Solutions Draw Large Audiences at Industry Week
Organizing a show in the midst of political turmoil is challenging, doing it through one of the biggest political events to shake Southern Europe in recent years – the potential secession of the Catalunya region from Spain – could seem impossible and yet IN(3D)USTRY 2017 was highly successful with a good turnout in terms of attendance, showing how passionate people can be about the additive manufacturing industry and its potential benefits to the world.
Organized by Fira de Barcelona, one of the largest trade show organizations in the world, IN(3D)USTRY is different from most 3D printing shows in that it very much focuses on highly qualified speakers describing their real experiences with implementing AM in some of the most advanced industrial segments. In spite of its highly qualified audience, IN(3D)USTRY is becoming a reference to learn the latest evolutions in AM within the aerospace, automotive, health and consumer products industries.
The show revolves around panels of speakers for each specific industry vertical, with a number of exhibitors on the show floor and the large booth set up by HP, whose 3D printing division is based right here in Barcelona. For the second year, 3D Printing Business Media is actively collaborating with the show’s organizers, providing content, interviews with all participants and coverage. For us, it is a great opportunity to learn first-hand by talking with protagonists from huge adopting companies like Airbus, FCA or Renault, and help raise awareness on the real applications of AM.
The first day focused on Aerospace and Automotive, with the second day revolving around Healthcare (medical and dental), architecture, construction and consumer products. The show floor is enriched by exhibits from the exclusive Reshape Wearable Design Competition and the day closed with the award ceremony for the competition organized by Aldo Sollazzo‘s Noumena Studio. Other unique local companies such as Acciona, which used Enrico Dini’s D-Shape technology to 3D print the very first pedestrian bridge in the world and Areti Markopolou’s on-site robotics construction innovation at IaaC ensured that the conference pushed the limits of innovation in the construction sector as well.
The organizers also paid a lot of attention to the media, with every major specialized 3D priting media outlet represented, including 3Dprint.com’s Sarah Goerke, Disruptive’s Rachel Park, All3DP’s Bulent Yusuf, Giorgio Magistrelli (who also actively participated in the show’s organization) and even Sergey from Russia leading 3D printing news website 3D Today.
This second edition of IN(3D)USTRY took place as part of the Barcelona Industry Week series of synergic events which included largers shows on industrial polymer manufacturing, chemical production and IoT applications. In spite of o the going political turmoil, which led to a general strike on opening day, all shows ran smoothly and attendance was high. While the other shows were much larger in terms of floor space, and IoT covered hot topics such as AI and Blockchain, none could compete in terms of enthusiasm, creativity, innovation and interest with 3D printing. In the future IN3DUSTRY might become the driver behind these and many other industrial trade shows.
