Mathis Jung can lay claim to being the youngest speaker in the 16-year history of Rapid.Tech + FabCon 3.D in Erfurt. The 15-year-old student at Konrad-Adenauer-Gymnasium Westerburg/Rhineland-Palatinate will be speaking in the Education Forum on June 26, 2019 about how he got into 3D design and 3D printing as a 12-year-old and how he uses the technologies for one of his hobbies. The technology enthusiast is involved in the local youth fire department, among other things. To make it easier for firefighters to recognize people in smoke-filled rooms and to have their hands free to provide assistance, a thermal imaging camera mounted on a helmet is a sensible idea - that's Mathis' idea. To come up with the necessary mount, he relies on obtaining the design data by means of a 3D scan of a helmet and development work using a 3D-printed model.

Mathis Jung found a supporter for his project in Michael Eichmann. The student and the manager from 3D printing technology expert Stratasys met at the "Night of Technology" at the Koblenz Chamber of Crafts and have been in close contact ever since. "Unfortunately, it is still the exception that school students in Germany get involved with 3D printing. However, we need targeted early engagement with these technologies, as they are becoming or have already become a must in many professions. With the Education Forum, which has now been added to the supporting program of Rapid.Tech + FabCon 3.D, we want to raise awareness of the topic and show concrete ways in which it can be integrated into the curriculum," says Stratasys manager Michael Eichmann, who, together with Prof. Dr. Gerd Witt from the University of Duisburg-Essen, also acts as Chairman of the Rapid.Tech + FabCon 3.D Advisory Board.

Industry experts as partners

In addition to Stratasys and MakerBot, MedienLB - Medien für Lehrpläne und Bildungsstandards GmbH Starnberg is a partner of the forum. The company, headed by Dr. Anita Stangl, creates innovative interactive resources such as digital learning tools for school lessons. In the public part of the Education Forum on the afternoon of 26 June 2019, Dr. Stangl and Michael Eichmann will demonstrate how it is now possible to integrate the topics of 3D design and 3D printing into lessons from the curriculum and lay the foundations for in-company training. To this end, several partners from industry and education have created "Digital Genial", a solution comprising hardware and software, educational films and textbooks. Additive manufacturing (AM) teaching is already well established at universities. Prof. Dr. Gerd Witt will report on current requirements, examples and implementation concepts at universities and in industry. Imri Mühlhuber from the State Institute for School Development will talk about how Baden-Württemberg is integrating 3D technologies into digital education infrastructures.

MedienLB is using the morning of June 26 to hold a training event exclusively for the more than 500 media centers in Germany. Teachers can borrow digital media for school lessons free of charge from these centers. The non-public event in Erfurt will focus on two future topics of digital education: digital textbooks and interactive workbooks. "Digital textbooks can be updated and corrected at any time and can be used anywhere and immediately - regardless of the end device," says Dr. Stangl, naming just a few of the advantages of DigiBooks. The digital and interactive workbooks with the H5P software make it possible to create modules for didactic learning tools and integrate them into existing websites.

Training and qualification in 3D printing technologies

With the new Education Forum, Rapid.Tech + FabCon 3.D presents concrete offers and approaches for training and qualification in 3D printing technologies. "We are thus continuing the dialog between business and education that began in 2017 and are helping to integrate the topic of 3D printing into all stages of learning and life, from school to vocational training and studies to further education," says Michael Kynast, Managing Director of Messe Erfurt GmbH, referring to Messe Erfurt's activities in this area.

Alongside the 3D Printing Conference, the 3D Pioneers Challenge and the Start-up Award, the Education Forum is part of the supporting program of Rapid.Tech + FabCon 3.D. In addition to the offerings in the exhibition, the 14 industry- and subject-related forums in the congress program also contribute to the optimal exchange of knowledge and experience. Software & Processes, Plastics and Standardization & Occupational Safety are on the agenda for the first time. In addition, the proven forums on the automotive industry, aviation, medical, dental and orthopaedic technology, contract manufacturing, 3D-printed electronics and functionality, design, metal, tool, mould and fixture construction, law, an event by the Fraunhofer GENERATIV Alliance and the two-day AM Science Forum will once again be part of the program. The latest developments, trends and results on additive technologies and applications from theory and practice will be presented in more than 100 lectures over the three days of the congress.

Ina Reichel is a freelance journalist