Gramm goes formnext!
Additive manufacturing is moving from “Can we print it?” to “Can we produce it, repeat it, qualify it, and customize it at scale?” That shift is exactly why Formnext matters.
This year, Gramm will be at Formnext with a team focused on one of the most practical and high-impact areas in additive manufacturing: FDM, also known as FFF or Material Extrusion, for industrial quality mass production.
If you are attending Formnext and want to talk about production-ready additive manufacturing, mass customization, reliable FDM workflows, or what it takes to scale from prototype to repeatable output, this is a great time to connect with Gramm.
The Gramm team attending includes additive manufacturing engineers Abhi Patel, Sawan Vaghani, Malay Pipaliya, Bhavinkumar Prajapati. CEO Harald Schmid is also going to be atttending (Wednesday, Thursday). They bring hands-on experience across FDM systems, production planning, process control, and the practical details that make the difference between a promising printed part and a dependable manufacturing program.
Why Formnext is a key event for additive manufacturing
Formnext has become one of the most important annual gatherings for the additive manufacturing industry. It brings together machine builders, material suppliers, software teams, post-processing specialists, service providers, researchers, and manufacturers who are trying to solve real production challenges.
That mix is what makes the event valuable. Additive manufacturing does not succeed because of one machine or one material alone. It succeeds when the full chain works together:
Part design
Material selection
Print process control
Build planning
Quality checks
Post-processing
Documentation
Repeatability
Cost control
Delivery planning
For many companies, these pieces are still disconnected. A part may print well once, but mass production demands more. The process has to work again and again, under changing order volumes, part mixes, operator shifts, and customer requirements.
Formnext is where those conversations become concrete. It is a place to compare approaches, ask hard questions, see what is ready now, and get a sense of where the industry is heading next.
For Gramm, that makes the event more than a showcase. It is a working forum for discussing additive manufacturing solutions that can support real output, real quality, and real business needs.
Gramm’s focus at Formnext this year
Gramm’s participation at Formnext this year centers on a clear theme: making additive manufacturing more useful for industrial quality mass production.
That phrase matters. Many teams already know that 3D printing is powerful for prototyping, tooling, fixtures, and product development. The next step is harder. It asks a different set of questions.
Can the process support larger batch sizes?
Can the output stay consistent across machines?
Can the same part meet the same requirements next week, next month, and next quarter?
Can the workflow support variation without adding manual chaos?
Can customization scale without making every order feel like a one-off engineering project?
These are the questions Gramm is focused on.
FDM, FFF, and Material Extrusion are often underestimated in this space because people still associate them with early-stage prototypes or small workshop use. In practice, the technology can play a strong role in production when the full process is designed correctly.
That means choosing the right material, tuning process parameters, building repeatable workflows, managing machine fleets, and checking quality in ways that match the end use of the part.
The Gramm team is coming to Formnext ready to talk about those details.
Meet the Gramm team attending Formnext
The people behind a manufacturing process matter. Good additive manufacturing work depends on judgment, testing, problem-solving, and a clear understanding of what production requires.
At Formnext, Gramm will be represented by:
Abhi Patel
Sawan Vaghani
Malay Pipaliya
Bhavinkumar Prajapati
Harald Schmid
Together, they bring strong experience in FDM, FFF, Material Extrusion, and the wider production thinking needed to turn additive manufacturing into a dependable manufacturing method.
Their work is especially relevant for companies exploring questions like:
How do we move from prototype printing to production printing?
How do we reduce variation across batches?
How do we choose the right FDM material for the job?
How do we handle custom part families without slowing everything down?
How do we plan for quality when print volumes grow?
How do we decide which parts are right for additive manufacturing?
These are not abstract questions. They affect cost, lead time, customer delivery, operator workload, and confidence in the final part.
If you are at Formnext and looking for a practical discussion rather than a buzzword-heavy pitch, reach out to the team. They are ready to talk through real use cases.
Why FDM still has a major role in AM mass production
FDM has been around long enough that it is easy to take it for granted. Yet it remains one of the most accessible and flexible additive manufacturing processes, especially when companies want to balance cost, material options, machine availability, and production scalability.
FDM can be a strong fit for many categories of industrial work, including:
Functional components
Production aids
Jigs and fixtures
End-use polymer parts
Low-volume and mid-volume production
Customized parts and part families
Replacement parts
Assembly tools
Packaging and handling aids
The key is matching the process to the right application.
FDM is not the answer to every manufacturing problem. No additive process is. But when the part requirements, material properties, geometry, and production model align, FDM can deliver strong value.
For mass production, the conversation changes from print success to process success.
A single successful print is only the starting point. Production requires repeatability, planning, and control. The team has to think about:
Print orientation
Material drying and storage
Bed adhesion
Layer bonding
Strength direction
Thermal behavior
Dimensional tolerance
Batch traceability
Machine maintenance
Part inspection
Operator training
Post-processing steps
Each of these details can affect whether a printed part becomes a dependable product.
That is where Gramm’s expertise comes in. The team understands the practical gap between printing parts and running production. At Formnext, that is the conversation they are excited to have.
Industrial quality means more than a good-looking part
In industrial additive manufacturing, a part cannot simply look right. It has to perform as expected.
That performance may involve strength, heat resistance, chemical resistance, dimensional accuracy, repeatable fit, surface finish, or long-term durability. It may also involve documentation and traceability, especially when parts are used in controlled production environments.
Industrial quality means the process can answer questions such as:
What material was used?
Which machine produced the part?
What settings were applied?
Was the part inspected?
Did it meet the required dimensions?
Can the same part be produced again?
Can the process handle higher volume?
What happens when new customization requirements appear?
These questions are where many additive manufacturing programs either grow or stall.
A team may start with a great use case. Then production expands, and the weak points begin to show. Maybe the print time is too long. Maybe the material behaves differently between batches. Maybe post-processing becomes a bottleneck. Maybe the team can make five parts well, but struggles to make 500 with the same confidence.
Gramm’s work looks at the full system, not just the printed object.
That includes the machines, the materials, the people, the workflow, and the quality expectations. When all of those elements are aligned, additive manufacturing becomes much more than a prototyping tool. It becomes a practical production method.
Customization is becoming a production requirement
One of the most exciting parts of additive manufacturing is its ability to support variation. Traditional manufacturing often pushes companies toward standardization because change costs time and money. Additive manufacturing can change that, if the workflow is designed well.
Customization can mean many things:
Different sizes of the same part
Customer-specific features
Part families with shared design logic
On-demand replacements
Application-specific fixtures
Small changes without new tooling
Localized production models
Personalized functional components
The challenge is that customization can quickly become messy. If every new part variation needs manual design work, manual setup, manual checks, and manual communication, the process does not scale.
That is why Gramm is developing new solutions related to AM mass production and customization.
These solutions are being built around the idea that customization should not break production flow. The goal is to support variation while keeping the process controlled, repeatable, and practical.
More details will be shared soon, but the direction is clear: Gramm is working on ways to make additive manufacturing more ready for scaled production, flexible part families, and customer-specific output.
For companies facing pressure to produce more variants, reduce lead times, or support specialized customer needs, this is an area to watch closely.
Let’s talk at Formnext on Wednesday and Thursday
If you are going to Formnext this year, there is a good chance we should talk.
I’ll be available on Wednesday and Thursday and would be glad to connect with anyone interested in:
FDM, FFF, and Material Extrusion for production
Industrial quality additive manufacturing
Scaling from prototype to production
Mass production workflows
Customization at scale
Material and process selection
Production planning for printed parts
Use cases that could benefit from additive manufacturing
The best conversations often start with a real part, a real problem, or a real production target.
Bring a challenge. Bring a question. Bring a part idea that has been stuck between design and manufacturing. The Gramm team will be ready to discuss what is possible, what needs testing, and what a practical next step could look like.
You can also reach out if you want to coordinate time with Abhi Patel, Sawan Vaghani, Malay Pipaliya, or Bhavinkumar Prajapati during the event.
What to expect from Gramm after Formnext
Formnext is a meeting point, but it is also a launchpad for what comes next.
Gramm is actively working on new solutions that connect additive manufacturing with the needs of mass production and customization. The focus is not just on printing more parts. It is about building better ways to manage variation, quality, and repeatability as demand grows.
That work will continue beyond the event.
Expect more updates from Gramm on:
Production-focused FDM workflows
Scalable additive manufacturing methods
Custom part production
Quality-centered process planning
Practical tools for AM mass production
New ways to support customer-specific manufacturing
For many manufacturers, the next phase of additive manufacturing will be less about proving the technology and more about making it work every day. Gramm is excited to be part of that shift.
Formnext is the perfect place to continue the conversation. If you will be there on Wednesday or Thursday, reach out and say hello. Meet the team, share what you are working on, and let’s explore how additive manufacturing can support stronger, faster, and more flexible production.
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