Core tips：From the lakeside grandeur of Villa Erba in Cernobbio, five start-ups took the stage at JEC Forum Italy 2025 to challenge the composites status quo. Ranging from AI-powered traceability and sensorless SHM systems to hybrid 3D tooling and closed-loop GFRP
Composites manufacturers, gathered on 11 and 12 June for the JEC Forum Italy in Cernobbio, had the opportunity to attend presentations by five start-ups. Their pitches, delivered in the dedicated JEC Start-up session curated by Benjamin Debusschère, JEC’s Head of events, demonstrated how deep tech and sustainability are no longer optional. As he stated in his opening to the session, “We’re witnessing a real shift in the composites industry, and it’s being led by start-ups.”
From tooling as a service to bioinspired lightweighting
At the heart of the innovation wave is Acus, a Padua-based start-up aiming to revolutionize composite tooling by combining 3D thermoset printing and pin moulding. “We found that tooling is the main bottleneck. It takes time, money, and space. Traditional machining leads to waste and long lead times,” explained Riccardo Bergamin, CEO of Acus.
Their hybrid tooling solution, consisting of a reusable structural frame and a 3D-printed thermoset skin, achieves a reduction of 85% in material usage and 30% in production time. By 2025, Acus plans to offer tooling-as-a-service, followed by full-scale equipment delivery in 2026 and the launch of an integrated manufacturing plant by 2028. “We are looking for investors ready to help scale this vision,” Bergamin noted.
Fibionic, an Austrian deep-tech start-up led by Elias Hirschbichler, takes a radically different route by merging bionics, fiber placement and computer vision. Their FFP (Faster Fiber Placement) technology introduces structural “skeletons” to injection-molded parts, reducing fiber use by up to 60% while boosting performance. “We apply bionic principles to optimize load paths, creating stronger and lighter components such as bike saddles, shoe soles, and drone arms,” said Hirschbichler. The technology is fully automated, scalable to high-volume production, and suitable for cost-sensitive markets. “Our goal is to unlock new design and performance thresholds for injection-molded composites,” he added, citing ongoing work on multilayer reinforcements and manufacturing speed.
Lifecycle intelligence and circular composites
A new frontier for composites lies in real-time, certifiable data flows, and this is where FuturAI steps in. With clients in aerospace and defence, Alessandro Mattioli, CEO of the Italian start-up, pitched an automated traceability platform that integrates blockchain and QR-based data access.
“The problem is fragmented, offline, and insecure data in critical supply chains,” Mattioli explained. “Our software automates the recording process from module to machine, replacing PDFs and spreadsheets with real-time certification.” By scanning a QR code embedded on a composite part, users can instantly access the full lifecycle record, stored immutably on a decentralized blockchain. This B2B SaaS platform offers scalability, ERP integration, and predictive analytics — a disruptive tool for regulated industries.
Another standout was Rescomp, a spin-off from the University of Padova founded in March 2025. Its dual innovation combines Fatigue Life Analysis (FLA) and Sensorless Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) into one engineering suite. “We offer a discrete damage approach that predicts stiffness degradation and failure without needing node releases, cohesive laws, or remeshing,” said President Marino Quaresemin. Rescomp-FLA can be used with any FE code, while the SHM tool relies on electrical measurements alone, eliminating the need for embedded sensors or fiber optics. This sensorless approach, validated on a carbon-epoxy wing structure, enables in-service monitoring and damage localization in real time, with use cases ranging from aerospace to hydrogen tanks and sports equipment. “Together, FLA and SHM provide unparalleled design feedback and operational reliability,” Quaresemin emphasized. Talks are ongoing with software giants and OEMs including Leonardo, Stellantis, and Dallara.
Closing the loop on composites waste, Fibereuse Tech targets Europe’s 700,000 tonnes/year of GFRP waste, much of which still goes to landfill. As Marco Diani, CTO, pointed out, “Recycled GFRP is currently more expensive than virgin material, and the properties are not yet up to standard. That’s the barrier we are breaking.”
Developed through a Horizon 2020 project, Fibereuse’s patented recycling technology enables semi-finished product manufacturing via open moulding, continuous lamination, and hybrid pultrusion. A pilot recycling plant is expected by 2026. “We follow a demand-driven model, from waste collection to reprocessing and product design,” said Diani. The ambition is clear: industrial-scale circularity for a composite class long considered unrecyclable.
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