The big reunion in Leipzig
After 2 years of online events and meetings, we need to get out, collect new inspiration and meet the people of the industry again. Under the theme “the big reunion,” the crew behind OT World, the international congress and exhibition for all manufacturers, distributors, and service providers in modern orthopedic treatment and care, called for a global class reunion in Leipzig.
So with the curious mind of the new kid in the class, we headed down to Leipzig to learn if 3D printing and especially the idea of customized and decentralized production was adopted by the industry or on the way to being adopted.
Notable tendencies
At OT World, we saw loads of innovative products that radically improve people’s abilities and life quality with a need for orthopedic and prosthetic devices.
The three things that awed us the most were:
- Almost all exhibitors presented at least one 3D-printed device. For some – just a prototype, for others – a fully functional part of their portfolio
- The industry is actively looking for alternative production methods and exploring 3D printing as the obvious alternative to traditional crafting
- There is still a certain level of skepticalness towards the maturity of additive manufacturing among the ones who have not adopted it yet
For insoles, the future is now
We didn’t come empty-handed. We built up a print farm with our CUBIX solution presented at the booth shared with Go-Tec and Covestro. From our point of view, insoles show one of the most mature trends when it comes to 3d printing and decentralized production, as we saw at OT World. It is nice, easy, and scalable to set up even a small local production. It seems like 3D printing is getting a more significant share of the insoles market.
The new kid will be back
In conclusion, we were so impressed with the technology level and the openness we have experienced towards 3D printing. Undoubtedly, additive manufacturing is a part of an industry where customization makes a positive difference in people’s lives. We are looking forward to the next reunion as well.
What were your highlights?
