From AI to carbon-reinforced concrete – the future of the precast concrete industry in focus

How is artificial intelligence changing the planning and production of precast concrete elements? What potential do carbon-reinforced concrete, automation and new building systems offer? And what fundamental changes will the industry need to prepare for in the coming years? The Engineering Days 2026, taking place on 1 and 2 December at the Salzburg Congress Centre, will provide answers to these and other questions. The programme for the international conference for the precast concrete industry is now available online.

Under the motto “From Component to Building System: Sustainable. Efficient. Precast.”, the Engineering Days 2026 will focus on the transformation of the precast concrete industry. The conference programme is structured around four key themes: “Strategic Focus: Digitalisation & AI”, “Sustainability as a Success Factor”, “Building Systems Meet Automation” and “New Approaches to Production”. International experts and companies from the fields of design, production, mechanical engineering and software development will provide insights into current developments, technologies and practical experience.

Megatrends and AI: What is changing the precast concrete industry?

The keynote “Megatrends and Transformation – What Changes Do We Need to Prepare For?” will examine the major changes taking place in business and society. It will highlight the developments that will shape companies in the future and explore how the industry can adapt to changing conditions.

The role artificial intelligence will play in this transformation is another key focus of the programme. Sunil Pandita, Chief Division Officer Planning & Design at the Nemetschek Group and CEO of Allplan, will explore how AI can be used strategically, from vision to practical implementation, and the impact the technology will have on planning, engineering and prefabrication.

The presentation “AI as a Game Changer for Medium-Sized Precast Plants” will also take a close look at the practical realities of medium-sized companies. It will focus on how precast companies are already using AI today and how they can unlock its potential for their own processes.

From the world’s first carbon-reinforced concrete plant to new sustainability assessment methods

Several presentations in the “Sustainability as a Success Factor” track will demonstrate how sustainable solutions can be implemented in practice within the precast concrete industry. Dr.-Ing. Matthias Tietze, Dr.-Ing. Alexander Kahnt and Matthias Schurig from C_Factory will present the world’s first carbon-reinforced concrete plant and provide insights into new production processes for material-efficient and durable construction.

In his presentation “Reducing CO₂ with CO₂ Classes – or with Precast Concrete?”, Anton Glasmeier from the Austrian Association of Concrete and Precast Plants (VÖB) will examine the contribution that precast construction methods can make to the decarbonisation of construction.

New approaches to assessing precast concrete elements are also on the programme. Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Uwe Pott and Juliane Bräunlich from Sustainable Precast will show how a holistic sustainability assessment that goes beyond CO₂ metrics alone can create greater transparency and support sustainable decision-making.

Automation, robotics and new approaches to production

The future of precast production also features prominently in the programme. Among other topics, Christian Prilhofer will explore whether humanoid robots in precast production are already a future technology with genuine added value – or, for now, primarily hype.

Further presentations will address the digitalisation and industrialisation of stationary production, the intelligent integration of automated precast plants with the supply chain, and new approaches to seamless digital workflows between CAD and CAM.

The Engineering Days will therefore focus not only on individual technologies, but also on the central question of how precast plants can make their processes more productive, flexible and future-ready.

Knowledge transfer and networking for the international precast concrete industry

Alongside the technical presentations, participants can look forward to an extensive workshop programme covering practical topics ranging from flexible formwork strategies and automated concrete compaction to retrofitting, plant layout planning and the selection of technical ERP systems.

The programme will be complemented by a trade exhibition featuring international companies from the fields of plant engineering, automation technology, CAD and ERP. Numerous opportunities for personal exchange, together with the traditional gala dinner on the first day of the event, will provide additional space for networking and building new industry contacts.

Engineering Days 2026 is organized by Allplan, SAA Software Engineering (formerly RIB SAA Software Engineering GmbH), and Prilhofer Consulting.

BFT International will be there as a media partner and exhibitor with its booth on the 2^nd floor.