The latest in the industry: This was The Bright World of Metals 2019!

This was The Bright World of Metals: 72,500 visitors from 118 countries and 2,360 exhibitors visited Düsseldorf in order to discuss metallurgy and casting technology in detail. Numerous contacts were made and contracts were concluded in all twelve exhibition halls. We would like to look back on #GMTN2019 and present the highlights of this trade fair quartet.

For a total of five days, the doors of Messe Düsseldorf were open to enable experts from the industry to exchange ideas. Aside from the normal day-to-day business of the trade fair, which has been active since 1956, trends such as additive manufacturing, Industry 4.0 and energy storage were also analysed in detail.

This year, the metallurgy and foundry fairs attracted visitors from more than 118 countries to Düsseldorf. Approximately 66 per cent of all trade visitors come from abroad. India provided the most international visitors. China, Italy, Turkey, Japan and Russia also rank amongst the countries with the most participants. The Bright World of Metals thus lives up to the reputation of being the leading metal trade fair.

In addition to the four main trade fairs GIFA, METEC, THERMPROCESS and NEWCAST, experts also met for the specialist forum on thermal energy storage this year, which took place within the framework of the trade fair. The merger between the Bright World of Metals and Energy Storage Europe provides important impulses for the industry, which will not be able to avoid renewable energies and their storage in the coming years.

This year, the empty exhibition Hall 6 once again became the setting for various universities: In the competition "Stahl fliegt" (steel flies), the teams tried to keep an object that was made out of metal in the air for as long as possible and to cover a long distance. The winning team from the University of Darmstadt convinced with an innovative concept: Instead of wings, the three students used an oval shape.

This year, the fifth NEWCAST Award went to three companies that were particularly innovative in the foundry world. Impro International Ltd. from Hong Kong won the award for the best substitution of another manufacturing process. They produce a cast stainless steel product that replaces a previously CNC milled part. The casting with the best functional integration went to DGH Sand Casting Corporate GmbH from Friedrichshafen. The company produces electric motor housings with integrated water cooling using the aluminium sand casting process. Blank investment casting received an award for the best lightweight solution: The weight of a wheel carrier was reduced by more than 30 per cent. Software simulations made this large reduction possible.

The visitors of The Bright World of Metals also noticed: Climate protection has long since reached the minds of manufacturing companies. New manufacturing processes and increased environmental awareness have led to a productive exchange of ideas on how to reduce emissions and to manufacture products more efficiently.

The ecoMetals Trails with more than 20 registered exhibitors demonstrated various possibilities to optimise production processes, and thus not only to save money but also to protect the environment. The well-attended tours show the importance that this topic has meanwhile attained in the international metal industry.

The next Bright World of Metals with GIFA, METEC, THERMPROCESS and NEWCAST will take place in June of 2023. You will find the final press release for The Bright World of Metals here.