25th International Dresden ­Lightweight Engineering Symposium

Neutral lightweight engineering – routes to a world in balance

Sustainable management of our planet's resources can only be achieved by reducing consumption to the bare minimum. This does not necessarily require strict asceticism, but in any case a conscious use of the valuable materials that are only finitely available. The necessary approaches and solutions have always been at the core of modern lightweight system engineering, as developed in Dresden in the early 1990s. Climate-friendly lightweighting technologies are one of the most powerful levers for the industrial future of our society in a social and ecological market economy.

We must meet the special challenges that lie ahead of us all with ambitious and courageous goals. Already in 2017, the Institute of Lightweight Engineering and Polymer Technology (ILK) at TU Dresden has therefore committed itself to research environmentally neutral and globally fair product and process design with a view to neutral lightweight engineering. The derived research fields reach far beyond the current state of the art. In addition to the major challenges, however, there is also broad potential for research, development and, above all, application in the coming decades.

After two pandemic years, we wish for face-to-face meetings this year at the 25th International Dresden Lightweight Engineering Symposium to outline and discuss the paths to a liveable future together with our partners from science, industry and politics. Under the special bias of the anniversary, we are looking forward to numerous top-class lectures and more than 300 guests who, with their deep insights and valuable contributions, will help to shape this still unwritten future of lightweight engineering. Particularly, we are looking forward to presentations that use concrete examples to show how we can use economic driving forces as catalysts for environmental protection and resource conservation in the future. Only in this way, we will succeed in using limited resources to create a liveable, socially fairer world for the next generations.

The International Dresden Lightweight Engineering Symposium 2022 will focus on forward-looking socio-eco-technological ideas and innovations that implement the triad of humans, technology and environment in an exemplary manner. This year's motto is "Neutral lightweight engineering - Ways to a world in balance", which unites the keynote lectures and specialized lectures in order to provide you with new approaches and concrete ideas for your own actions in line with neutral lightweight engineering.