Plastics technology 2025 VDWF practical forum: Injection moulding in Europe – today and tomorrow

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VDWF - Verband Deutscher Werkzeug- und Formenbauer e.V.

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Fresh perspectives and forward thinking: At the fifth VDWF Practical Forum on Plastics Technology, experts came together online to explore the future of injection moulding — from sustainable solutions and digitalisation to the power of collaboration and automation.

On 18 March 2025, the Association of German Tool and Mould Makers (VDWF) hosted its fifth “Practical Forum on Plastics Technology”. The online event brought together around 80 participants, who attended seven specialist presentations on the main topic of “Injection moulding in Europe”.

VDWF President Prof. Thomas Seul opened the practice forum with the words: “We are taking a look at the future and at highly interesting topics that should not be missed if you want to stay informed about the latest developments in the plastics industry.” Together with Fabian Diehr, Managing Director of wortundform, he guided the audience through the approximately three-hour programme, which examined the ‘phenomenon’ of plastics from a wide variety of perspectives.

Volker Faust, Managing Director of Kunststoffwerk M. Faust in Glandorf, kicked things off. As an injection moulding engineer with roots in the New Economy and start-up consulting, he brought a fresh perspective to the SME-dominated industry. Instead of secrecy based on the motto “do good and tell no one”, he advocated more cooperation, networking and openness — not only among injection moulders, but also with toolmakers in particular. Such a communicative mindset not only gives companies greater clout with customers, but also allows them to better communicate their own service portfolio, which leads to more orders in the long term. “The most successful people and companies are those who actively build and maintain networks,” said Faust.

Dr. Wolfgang Schepers took the participants on a “discovery tour of the German Plastics Museum,” of which he is president. Using iconic seating designs — from the Panton Chair to the Monoblock — he demonstrated the creative significance of plastic as a material. His remarks made it clear that plastic should be understood not only as a mass-produced commodity, but also as a medium for innovative design. The exhibits from the museum's collection in Oberhausen, Germany, demonstrate the freedom of form in design and the versatility of the material. They are an integral part of everyday life and design history.

Sustainability and digitalisation as key topics

Steffen Hachtel, Managing Director of F. & G. Hachtel in Aalen, Germany, highlighted the challenges and opportunities of the European Green Deal, which aims to make the economy carbon neutral by 2050. The solution, he said, is a ‘mosaic’ of many measures. As concrete examples, the engineer showed how energy consumption can be reduced in manufacturing with optimised process technologies and also presented the “good-cup”, a sustainable injection-moulded product — a compostable, recyclable and dishwasher-safe drinking cup developed and produced by Hachtel itself.

How do you determine the quality of a recycled material, and how can processes be adapted accordingly? Dr. Natalie Rudolph from Netzsch-Gerätebau in Selb addressed this question in her presentation. She showed how artificial intelligence can be used to analyse the thermal fingerprint of plastic recyclates and thus control the processing quality.

Efficiency and automation in plastics processing

Dr Ruth Markut-Kohl, team leader for digital injection moulding architecture at Engel, followed up on the need for networked processes in her presentation. She explained why injection moulding machines, moulds and peripheral devices should be viewed as a single unit rather than separate systems. With a view to process optimisation and smooth sampling, she explained how seamless interaction can be ensured, thereby allaying participants' concerns that such processes require an industrial IT specialist.

Klaus Lemke from Marktspiegel Werkzeugbau spoke about the need for reliable data in the industry. He made it clear that conventional key figures from the free economy cannot be readily transferred to tool and mould making or the injection moulding business. This makes it all the more important to participate in the cooperative initiative in order to generate reliable data from and for the industry — with the aim of being able to draw on sound figures for decisions in addition to one's own gut feeling.

Kathrin Gruber, Managing Director at Wartenfelser in Hemhofen, showed in her presentation “Endurance runners in small series production — using robot manufacturing” how changing market conditions can be countered: In view of the increasing individualisation of products, series sizes are shrinking, which requires additional work steps — for example, when using inserts, which then often have to be fed manually. Gruber showed how automation and handling systems can make processes more efficient in the long term while also helping to secure production sites in Germany and Europe.

Looking ahead and thinking outside the box

The lively participation of the audience, the numerous questions and intensive discussions highlighted the relevance of the topics. “Once again this year, the diverse programme offered new approaches for the participants” day-to-day business, but also inspiration to look beyond the horizon,’ summarised Prof. Thomas Seul, who is already looking forward to developing the topics for next year’s Practical Forum on Plastics Technology.

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