Frankfurt – October 31, 2026 -- Fractions of a micrometer in grinding now decide the efficiency and noise level of electric vehicle drivetrains, and machine builders are answering with sub-micron surface finishing and digital twin process control. The topic is in focus at GrindingHub, organized by the VDW (German Machine Tool Builders' Association), which runs May 5-8, 2026 in Stuttgart.

Stuttgart – – October 31, 2026 -- Foreign orders for grinding technology fell 51% in January and February 2026, even as GrindingHub opened in Stuttgart with 462 exhibitors from 28 countries. The trade fair is running against a weak demand backdrop for machine builders, tool makers and industrial users.

Stuttgart – October 31, 2026 -- GrindingHub 2026 closed in Stuttgart with about 11,000 visitors and 462 exhibitors, and 37% of buying-influential attendees plan to invest within six months, organizer VDW said.

Frankfurt am Main – October 31, 2026 -- Fabio Schoppet, a 28-year-old apprentice at K.H. Müller Präzisionswerkzeuge GmbH, won the two-day live "Grinder of the Year" (GOTY) competition at GrindingHub in Stuttgart on May 6-7. He beat Max Bergner (2nd), Laurin Mink (3rd) and Arman Hamidi (4th). Finalists received education vouchers worth between 3,000 and 500 euros.

Frankfurt am Main – October 31, 2026 -- German machine tool orders rose 15 percent in the first quarter of 2026, the first notable upturn after three difficult years, while production fell 11 percent to EUR 2.8 billion, according to the VDW (German Machine Tool Builders' Association).

VDW chief economist Bernhard Geis said the trough has probably been passed but a clear trend reversal is still some way off. The coming months will show whether the recovery holds. Higher uncertainty and costs linked to the Middle East conflict are weighing on investment appetite.

Frankfurt am Main – October 31, 2026 -- GrindingHub 2026 drew about 11,000 visitors and 462 exhibitors from 28 countries, with foreign participation above 50 percent, as grinding-technology suppliers pitched networked process chains to an industry facing falling output.

Frankfurt – October 31, 2026 -- Orders at German machine tool makers rose 12% year on year in the second quarter of 2026, following a 15% gain in the first quarter and bringing the first-half increase to 14%, according to the VDW (German Machine Tool Builders' Association). Domestic orders climbed 16% and foreign orders 13%.

Frankfurt am Main – October 31, 2026 -- The German Machine Tool Builders' Association (VDW) will launch NexGeM (Next Generation Metalworking), a new trade show on digital metalworking, as a co-located event of Hannover Messe from April 5 to 8, 2027.

VDW Managing Director Dr. Markus Heering said the move was overdue. Machine tools are embedded in the full digital industrial value chain, from planning to service, he said, yet connected machines receive too little attention outside a few specialist fairs.

Frankfurt – October 31, 2026 -- Eike Rodenbäck of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) won the VDW Research Institute's Research Project of the Year award on September 17 for identifying where AI can pay off for machine tool manufacturers. The prize was presented at the AMB trade fair in Stuttgart for his work in the KI4WZM project.

Marburg – October 30, 2026 -- More than 180 participants attended the first Menopause Day at University Hospital Marburg (UKGM), which put menopause on the agenda of workplace health management under the motto "Menopause at Work - Inform, Connect, Support."

Women's Health Center runs hybrid format with two lecture blocks

The Women's Health Center at UKGM Marburg organized the event. Attendees could join on site or online. Individual medical consultations followed the lectures, so participants could raise personal health questions confidentially.