K Show 2025 Germany – After the Crowds: Key Technologies and Industry Trends

Two weeks after K Show 2025 in Germany concluded, the bustle has faded but the innovations and conversations revealed there continue to shape the industry’s direction. Across injection molding, extrusion, blown film and molds, exhibitors demonstrated not just machines but the design logic and systems thinking that underpin the factory of the future: higher precision, deeper integration, algorithmic intelligence and end-to-end digitalization.

Key takeaways

1. Specialized, scenario‑focused machines will outpace general‑purpose equipment.
2. Algorithmic intelligence (sensors + control software) is now a decisive competitive differentiator.
3. Component‑level intelligence (e.g., molds with process memory) is as strategically important as whole‑machine upgrades.
4. Sustainability and closed‑loop thinking are integrated into production and recycling design.
5. Global service networks and localized support models will accelerate technology adoption.

Highlights by sector

1. Injection molding – precision, integration and scenario-specific solutions

• Yizumi presented a suite centered on ultra‑precision and integrated production: a micron‑level micro injection molding machine, the PH high‑speed series and industrial 3D printing solutions.
• The micro precision machine achieves micron‑level accuracy through a high‑rigidity structure, a dedicated control system and cleanroom compatibility-targeting demanding medical and micro‑component applications.
• The PH high‑speed series targets packaging by consolidating 4-6 composite tubing production steps into one, cutting cycle times and cost while enabling rapid label changes and customization.
• Yizumi’s multi‑material flexible manufacturing solution breaks traditional molding limits and demonstrates how digital, flexible production can deliver rapid response and energy efficiency for verticals such as office supplies.
• Takeaway: General-purpose machines are increasingly marginalized; growth now favors specialized, scenario‑optimized solutions where value is defined by “how well” a technology serves a specific application.

2. Extrusion – full‑chain coverage and sustainability

• Kingwell Machinery occupied several major booths and showcased a “global ecosystem” approach aligned with the exhibition theme “Green – Intelligent – Responsible.”
• Demonstrations emphasized customized extrusion systems that address core industry needs across sectors: clean energy (photovoltaics), green building and municipal engineering, and high‑performance food packaging.
• Solutions integrate energy‑saving design and recycling concepts, supporting a low‑carbon closed loop from production to recycling. Kingwell’s “service center + factory” model aims to accelerate global expansion and local support.
• Takeaway: Extrusion suppliers are positioning as full‑chain partners, combining mature process technology with sustainability and global service networks.

3. Blown film – autonomously optimized production

• W&H drew attention with a five‑layer co‑extrusion blown film machine that applies an “autopilot” concept: it senses ambient temperature, airflow and bubble stability in real time and self‑optimizes operating parameters.
• On site, the system increased output from 750 kg to 1,068 kg without affecting film quality or uniformity – demonstrating that algorithmic control can raise throughput and reduce dependence on operator experience.
• Takeaway: Competitiveness will shift to the intelligence of equipment – systems that optimize themselves through sensors and algorithms will define next‑generation blown film production.

4. Molds – “process memory” and faster stabilization

• Jingcheng showcased intelligent precision mold heads for lithium battery separators, perovskite coatings and blown film applications.
• Its IM System uses AI‑driven, point‑to‑point motor adjustments to optimize parameters in real time. This capability reduces new‑job stabilization time from roughly 30 minutes to 5-10 minutes, improving repeatability and production intelligence.
• Intelligent molds—components with process memory and self‑adjustment – are becoming critical for downstream consistency and for enabling digital‑twin, end‑to‑end manufacturing systems.
• Takeaway: The competitive battle for intelligent manufacturing is extending from whole machines to core components; mold intelligence underpins reliable, repeatable automated production.

5. Broader themes and industry implications

• Intelligentization is no longer conceptual. Across booths and demonstrations, intelligence (sensing + algorithms) tangibly improved capacity, stability and product consistency.
• Efficiency, energy consumption, reliability and data‑driven repeatability were consistent priorities – from micron‑level precision to autonomous blown‑film control and molds with process memory.
• The value proposition is moving from “what a machine can do” to “how well it performs in a specific scenario.” Custom, refined and application‑driven solutions are the growth vectors.
• Exhibitors increasingly couple technology with service and global deployment strategies (e.g., “service center + factory”), signaling a shift toward integrated product‑service ecosystems.

Media and outreach

Live streaming was an important amplifier: Sulink’s seven‑day Douyin live stream achieved 3.01 million impressions and more than 260,000 viewers, reflecting high global attention on the show’s innovations.

K Show 2025 showed a clear industry trajectory: smarter, more efficient, less operator‑dependent production systems built around precision, algorithmic control and component‑level intelligence. The fair’s close marks not an end but a moment of consolidation – companies will spend the next three years refining these strengths and return in 2028 with further advances. For manufacturers, the message is clear: invest in scenario‑tailored solutions, digital intelligence and service ecosystems to remain competitive in the next wave of plastics and rubber manufacturing.