Redefining Manufacturing Excellence

European Manufacturing Summit 2025: Shaping the Future of Production

European Manufacturing Summit 2025 | Reading time : 5 mins

The European Manufacturing Summit 2025, held in Düsseldorf, Germany on 11-12 November 2025, brought together over 100 industry leaders, technology innovators, and policymakers for two days of insight, collaboration, and forward-thinking discussions. With a focus on resilient, sustainable, and digitally enabled manufacturing, the summit emphasized the interconnection of people, processes, and technology in shaping the future of European production.

Attendees represented a diverse cross-section of the manufacturing ecosystem, including automotive, aerospace, electronics, and consumer goods sectors, making for dynamic discussions and cross-industry learning.

Day 1: Automation, Digital Transformation, and Operational Excellence

Day 2: Leadership, Workforce Development, and Strategic Adaptation

Conclusion

Day 1: Automation, Digital Transformation, and Operational Excellence

The first day began with a warm networking breakfast, providing attendees with the opportunity to meet peers, discuss shared challenges, and exchange insights from their respective industries. Conversations ranged from adapting to supply chain disruptions to the latest trends in smart manufacturing, setting a collaborative tone for the summit.

Opening Remarks

Paolo Falcioni, Director General of APPLiA, and Jonathan Willis, Partner at Chartwell, opened the summit with remarks emphasizing the importance of integrating people, process, and technology to achieve sustainable manufacturing excellence. Their call to action highlighted the need for leaders to embrace digital tools while empowering their workforce to innovate and adapt.

Keynote: Advances in Automation

Stephen Daniel King, Ph.D., SVP Global Manufacturing, Kinder Toys, Ferrero, delivered the first keynote on “Advances in Automation in High Volume Toy Manufacturing.” He described how Ferrero has successfully integrated robotic systems into high-volume operations, improving speed, precision, and quality control.

He shared practical insights:

Automation has enabled the company to reduce repetitive manual work, allowing employees to focus on innovation and strategic planning.
Advanced robotics have cut errors and material waste, improving overall efficiency.
Lessons from Ferrero highlight how technology complements human skills rather than replacing them, a key principle of Industry 5.0 thinking.

Attendees were particularly engaged during Q&A, discussing how to balance human expertise with increasing automation in complex manufacturing lines.

Plenary Sessions: Resilience, Electrification, and AI

The morning plenaries explored strategies to future-proof manufacturing amid global disruption:

Martin Tillmann, Ph.D., Bosch, presented on product-centric steering, focusing on resilience in the face of geopolitical tensions. He emphasized AI-driven decision-making and predictive analytics to safeguard operations.
Stefan-Markus Baginski, Ph.D., BMW Group, shared insights on electrified production systems, highlighting how digital twins and agile workforce practices are transforming shop floor management.
Christoph Rahn, Airbus, addressed quality leadership in a volatile environment, detailing how proactive supplier collaboration and skill development ensure operational continuity under pressure.

Mid-morning networking and refreshments provided an informal setting for attendees to discuss these ideas further, exchange contacts, and explore solutions with technology providers and peers.

Lunch & Learn Roundtables

Lunch was more than a meal—it was a collaborative learning opportunity. Moderated roundtables covered topics such as:

Balancing automation and human ingenuity
Shaping enterprise networks with AI and cloud technology
Operationalizing AI at the edge

Attendees described these sessions as highly valuable, noting that peer-to-peer exchanges provided perspectives they wouldn’t have encountered in plenaries alone.

Afternoon Sessions: Sustainability, Flexibility, and Innovation

The afternoon explored green manufacturing, spare parts optimization, and operational resilience. Speakers from Daimler Truck, Konecranes, Sparetech, and Cybus discussed how their organizations are combining sustainability with digital transformation.

A panel discussion on Smart, Sustainable, and Resilient Manufacturing, featuring Martin Friedl (PALFINGER), Stefan Krug (Siemens), Paolo Falcioni (APPLiA), Stephen Daniel King (Ferrero), and Martin Tillmann (Bosch), explored the integration of Industry 5.0 principles, circular economy practices, and collaborative workforce strategies.

The day concluded with a networking drinks reception, giving participants time to reflect, exchange insights, and explore collaboration opportunities with solution providers and peers.

Workshops and Interactive Learning

Hands-on workshops allowed participants to apply concepts in real-world contexts:

Jonny Kirk, ScreenCloud, demonstrated the use of intelligent screens to improve frontline decision-making and workforce engagement.
Hugues Foltz, Vooban, provided an “Executive AI Playbook,” offering frameworks for identifying high-impact AI projects and scaling them successfully.

These sessions allowed participants to ask questions, share experiences, and leave with practical tools for implementation in their own organizations.

Panel Discussion : Smart, Sustainable, and Resilient Manufacturing: Shaping the Future of Production

Networking Lunch & Learn Roundtables

Keynote : Adapting Manufacturing Strategy Amid Trade Volatility and Shifting Global Tariffs by Adel Emam, COO, MENA @ JBS Foods

Day 2: Leadership, Workforce Development, and Strategic Adaptation

Day 2 opened with a networking breakfast, allowing attendees to reconnect with peers before diving into sessions focused on adaptability, leadership, and workforce transformation.

Keynote: Navigating Global Trade Volatility

Adel Emam, COO MENA, JBS Foods, spoke on strategies for adapting manufacturing in the context of global trade shifts and tariff changes. He highlighted the importance of:

Building regional manufacturing hubs to reduce dependency on global supply chains
Leveraging scenario planning to anticipate geopolitical shifts
Using digital transformation to increase supply chain visibility and responsiveness
Considering nearshoring and dual sourcing as strategic hedges

Plenary: Zero-Defect Manufacturing

Agnes Lesage, Infineon Technologies, emphasized a zero-defect mindset as central to modern manufacturing. By leveraging automation, AI, and digital twins, organizations can predict and prevent defects, while embedding continuous improvement across teams and facilities.

Workshops and Interactive Learning

Interactive sessions provided practical insights for connected manufacturing and AI-driven networking:

Tom Williams & Daan Assen (Pandrol & L2L) shared case studies on reducing downtime through process integration
Markus Nispel (Extreme Networks) demonstrated how AI can transform IT, OT, and security networks, improving predictive insights and operational resilience

Networking during these sessions encouraged cross-industry knowledge sharing, sparking discussions on real-world challenges and solutions.

Women in Leadership Panel

A highlight of the day was the Women in Leadership Panel, featuring Agnes Lesage (Infineon), Isabelle von Babo (Henkel), and Franziska Knauf (Bayer). The panel explored:

Key leadership lessons learned
Barriers overcome and strategies for empowering emerging leaders
The role of mentorship and diversity in fostering innovation

Lunch roundtables continued this interactive theme, combining informal networking with knowledge exchange on topics such as spare parts availability and operational efficiency.

Afternoon Plenaries and Talent Development

Rolf Eisenberg, Canon Production Printing, discussed lean practices in manual assembly, emphasizing operator empowerment and continuous improvement.
The talent panel featured discussions on attracting, retaining, and developing top talent, focusing on upskilling, transformational leadership, and workforce resilience.

The summit closed with Chair’s closing remarks and a prize giveaway, leaving participants with a wealth of insights, practical strategies, and new professional connections.

Conclusion : A Summit of Innovation, Leadership, and Collaboration

Across two days, the European Manufacturing Summit 2025 demonstrated how digital transformation, sustainability, and workforce development are interwoven in shaping the future of manufacturing. Beyond the formal sessions, networking breakfasts, coffee breaks, roundtables, and receptions provided attendees with valuable opportunities to connect with peers, solution providers, and industry experts, fostering collaboration that will continue long after the summit.

From automation and AI integration to leadership and workforce development, participants left equipped with strategies to drive sustainable, innovative, and resilient manufacturing across Europe.

Testimonials

Great presentations from leading experts in their industries in combination with open discussions about the future of manufacturing, especially in Europe.

Stefan Markus Baginski, VP Production, BMW Group

Overall, positive and good for networking and getting some food for thought. Especially great talking to other companies and seeing how they deal with the same or similar challenges.

Georg von Dziembowski, Digital Lead, Bayer

Possibility to have talks from high-level to hands-on, in-depth experiences. The summit brings together a high level of experts/executives.

Thomas Lenzen, Expert Advanced Robotics, Magna

Great experience and insightful presentations. It was great to connect with other industry leaders and learn from each other in a constantly evolving environment.

Josilene Wey, Director, Supply Chain Quality, Johnson & Johnson

Super insightful. The summit is a great size to be able to network with colleagues in a productive way. All of the presentations were detailed enough to have tangible takeaways to work on and implement in my own organization.

Claire Savin, Global Digital & MES Manager, Clariant International

I really appreciated the diversified agenda and the way the content was presented. The format made it easy to get exactly what you came for because you could follow the sessions most relevant to you.

Adel Emam, Chief Operating Officer, MENA, JBS Foods

The most important thing is networking, talking across industries, across companies, getting to know new people who have actually often quite similar experiences, and learning from each other. Large companies, small companies, startups talking together - that's what I like and that's a huge experience.

Timo Flessner, Ph.D., SVP and Head, Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients, Product Supply, Bayer

The summit created great opportunities to connect with colleagues from different fields and discuss shared challenges. This outside perspective is particularly valuable, as large organizations often tend to stay very internal. The event was very well organized, with strong communication and a seamless setup. Overall, it was a fantastic experience for me.

Christoph Rahn, VP and Head, Quality A320 Family, Airbus

Very good and professional setup and management. Networked with high-level delegates

Andy Lendner, Director Sales, Extreme Networks

The summit brings together many key players from different industries, which is important because we learn a lot from each other. There is a high level of openness and very honest discussion about real challenges, not polished marketing presentations.

Thomas Schamberg, SVP, Supply Chain Excellence, Evonik Industries

Learn more about our upcoming European Events:

Redefining Manufacturing Excellence - Summit Recap 2025

European Manufacturing Summit 2025: Shaping the Future of Production

European Manufacturing Summit 2025 | Reading time : 5 mins

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