Carl Fruth, CEO of the FIT Additive Manufacturing Group, warmly welcomed the guests and introduced his company in person. He founded the company in 1995 with just one employee at his home in Lupburg. Today, the FIT Additive Manufacturing Group is a medium-sized, internationally active group of companies with around 200 employees that provides innovative manufacturing solutions in the field of 3D printing. FIT AG fulfils around 11,000 different orders each year and produces a total of 42,000 different components. These figures show that the company's focus is on customised, high-quality solutions in small quantities.
‘We spend a lot of money on research and development, as much as 20% of our annual turnover. It's in the nature of things and because I simply enjoy it,’ says Carl Fruth, summarising his enthusiasm for progress. He has always been one step ahead and invested in the latest technologies at an early stage. ‘At FIT AG, we are very interdisciplinary. We have to do many things for the first time that have never been done before,’ says Carl Fruth. He makes no secret of the fact that the joy of innovation also harbours risks. During a tour of successful but also failed projects, he gives the guests an insight into the versatility and complexity of additive manufacturing. FIT AG specialises in the automotive, aerospace and medical sectors, among others, but Carl Fruth also sees numerous potential applications in the fields of architecture and construction.
From Carl Fruth's point of view, the great strength of additive manufacturing is that it has a creative stimulating effect. It is therefore also ideal for the production of prototypes. This is demonstrated, among other things, by the fact that FIT AG is involved in numerous research projects, including in cooperation with OTH Regensburg. But, ‘3D printing is not the solution for everything. Whenever the question is whether it can be done more cheaply, 3D printing doesn't have any good solutions,’ emphasises Carl Fruth. ‘Instead, we are able to use additive manufacturing to develop solutions that simply cannot be realised any other way. This is an important factor for competitiveness and future viability, especially in today's world.’
During the subsequent tour of the company's three production halls, the alumni and friends of OTH Regensburg were given a comprehensive insight into technologies and materials.
Afterwards, the guests had the opportunity to ask further questions and discuss what they had learnt over a delicious snack.
Together with the OTH Regensburg Alumni Network, the Association of Friends of OTH Regensburg e.V. organises alumni get-togethers with company excursions. The networking event offers all alumni and friends of the university the opportunity to get to know companies in the region and make interesting contacts.
