With around 200 participants and more than 50 technical presentations, the 29th International Dresden Lightweight Symposium once again highlighted its role as a forum for exchange between science and industry. Representatives from research and business discussed in Dresden how lightweight design can contribute to resource efficiency, circular economy, resilience, and industrial value creation.

Contributions from, among others, Rolls-Royce, Volkswagen, Airbus, and the Meyer Werft shipyard illustrated the wide range of requirements for modern lightweight solutions across the automotive, aerospace, and shipbuilding industries. At the same time, it became clear that many challenges arise across sectors. Topics discussed included circular material systems, resource-efficient manufacturing processes, digitally supported development and production methods, as well as new approaches to functionally integrated multi-material structures. It became evident that sustainable and economically viable solutions can only emerge through close collaboration along the entire value chain.

Against this background, this year’s symposium was held under the guiding theme of the “Technology Hanse”. Inspired by the historical trading networks of the Baltic Sea region and its partner region, the Baltic Sea Region, it describes the development of specialized value creation networks between companies, research institutions, and development partners in Europe. The focus is not on the exchange of products, but on the joint development and production of complex technological solutions.

“The Lightweight Symposium has shown what such forms of collaboration can look like in practice. Through the close integration of materials development, design, manufacturing, digitalisation, and circular economy approaches, solutions are created that individual actors cannot achieve alone. At the same time, it becomes clear that engineering excellence remains the foundation for this type of cooperation,” explained Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Maik Gude, Director of the Institute of Lightweight Engineering and Polymer Technology (ILK) at TU Dresden.