Hightech Meets Craftsmanship

The symbiosis between traditional craftsmanship and modern technology has developed over centuries: technical innovations expand the possibilities of craftsmanship, while the practical implementation of new technologies is often based on craftsmanship skills. To highlight this interplay, Federal Minister for Technology Dorothee Bär visited the congress ‘ZUKUNFT HANDWERK 2026’ (German only) on 4 March 2026 as part of the International Craft Fair in Munich.

The visit to the craft fair marked the launch of the new “HTAD meets…” format, which also aims to address HTAD stakeholders who are not the traditional main focus of research and technology funding. Bär wants to meet other players besides companies and research institutions who can contribute to innovation and invite them to participate in the HTAD.

“Without craftsmanship, there would be no high-tech,” Bär made clear during a panel discussion (translated from German), pointing out the importance of craftsmanship for Germany as a business location and as a driver of innovation. Most projects in the field of high technology can only be implemented thanks to craftsmanship. Craftsmen and -women build machines and lay cables through which electricity flows in walls that they have previously built. Even launching rockets into space would not be possible without craftsmanship, said Bär.

© BMFTR

Craft trades present innovations

The accompanying exhibition at the “ZUKUNFT HANDWERK 2026” congress clearly shows the various areas in which projects combining craft trades and high-tech are already underway. The minister was impressed by how modern technology helps in everyday working life in very concrete ways. The craft sector provides a convincing example of how the future can work in Germany – meaningful, crisis-proof and close to the people.

The innovationparcours (German only) in the exhibition shows a whole range of different modern developments that can support craftsmen in their work – from training programmes on cyber security to local AI that can be trained for specific tasks directly from the application, to programmes that calculate and predict how much demand there will be for baked goods for a business in the coming days.

© BMFTR

The KIgÜBA (German only), an AI-supported, inter-company training programme and a collaboration between the German Research Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) and the Lower Franconia Chamber of Crafts (Handeskammer Unterfranken), is a successful example of cooperation between science and the skilled trades. Bär tested how the programme can support trainees in tasks such as installing security doors. The programme recognises which tools the trainees are using and provides real-time instructions on the next steps.

The Seifriz Prize honours successful transfers of science into the skilled trades. Prize winners presented their projects at the trade fair. Among others, they presented applications that result from material innovations, such as a resource-saving sandblasting system for processing components, a sustainable and washable baking mat, and a vacuum fusion process for using domestic woods in yachts. Artificial intelligence is also being transferred into practical applications – in the acoustic detection of damage in stone and concrete objects, which the minister also tested. Small craft businesses collaborated with research institutions on all of these projects.

The minister also exchanged ideas with representatives of the Federal Association of Women Entrepreneurs in the Skilled Trades. In this network, women in the skilled trades join forces and network in order to tackle challenges together.

© BMFTR

BMFTR promotes craftsmanship 

The Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) wants to maintain these strengths in the future. To do so, the right spirit, the right framework conditions and targeted promotion of innovation throughout the country are needed. This is exactly where the High-Tech Agenda Germany comes into play: technology should support people in their everyday work. The BMFTR promotes practical research for innovations to quickly reach where they are needed – including in the craftsmanship.

This is because craftsmanship plays an important role in virtually all key technologies. This is a fact that the BMFTR has been taking into account since 2007, for example with the ‘KMU-innovativ: IKT’ funding guideline: craft businesses that want to develop innovations can apply here. One successful example from said programme is a Dresden-based roofing company. As part of the project funding, it has developed a modular robot platform that helps with covering flat roofs.

Another example is the BMFTR's “6G-life” transfer hub, which focuses on collaborative robotics, i.e. the cooperation between humans and machines. An important goal of the project is the use of collaborative robotics as a solution to labour shortages and rising personnel costs – explicitly not only for large-scale industry. In this way, the skilled trades benefit from the goals and results of the HTAD.

Around 800 exhibitors from over 60 trades present their work at the International Craft Fair in Munich every year. Last year, around 85,000 people visited the five-day fair.