What DECHEMA does

DECHEMA Gesellschaft für Chemische Technik und Biotechnologie e.V. is a Germany-based, registered non-profit professional society (eingetragener Verein) founded in 1926 in Frankfurt am Main, with 101-250 employees and approximately 5,000 individual and supporting members. Its core function is to serve as the expert network and coordinating Fachgesellschaft for chemical engineering and biotechnology across science, industry, politics, and society, consolidating know-how, running committees, working groups, specialist divisions, and joint research projects funded by public bodies (BMBF, AIF, EU) and industrial partners through the affiliated DECHEMA Forschungsinstitut (DFI).

DECHEMA's commercial-scale assets are its event and recognition portfolio. ACHEMA, held triennially in Frankfurt am Main, is the world's leading trade show for chemical and pharmaceutical engineering, process engineering, biotechnology, and industrial environmental technology, supplemented by ACHEMASIA in Asia and conference series such as EuroMOF and the PEMT Annual Meeting. Approximately 15 prestige awards (DECHEMA Prize, Alwin Mittasch Prize sponsored by BASF, Otto Roelen Medal sponsored by OXEA, Hellmuth Fischer Medal, Willy Hager Medal/Prize, Carl Hanson Medal, DECHEMA Industrial Bioprocess Award, Student and Polytechnic Awards, ACHEMA Start-Up Award) underpin the society's authority. Distribution and member-engagement channels include the dechema.de website, free topic newsletters, the DECHEMA App (with digital membership card), social media, the DECHEMA Blog, and webinars via Microsoft Teams, with conference registration and member onboarding handled through the Converia platform and the DECHEMA Community Tool.

The business model blends four revenue streams: recurring individual and corporate membership dues; tiered transaction-fee revenue from conferences and trade shows (with published tiered pricing visible in e.g. PEMT 2026 fees ranging €250-€775 across industry/academia/student categories); professional-services revenue from Industrielle Gemeinschaftsforschung and research coordination; and publication and studies income, executed through two wholly-owned subsidiaries (DECHEMA Forschungsinstitut for research and continuing education, DECHEMA Ausstellungs-GmbH for exhibitions). Customer segments span chemical engineering professionals, academic researchers, process-industry companies, students and young professionals, and German and EU policy makers, with ACHEMA providing global distribution reach.

Name

DECHEMA

Legal name

DECHEMA Gesellschaft für Chemische Technik und Biotechnologie e.V.

Website

https://dechema.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1926

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

DECHEMA is a Germany-based, non-profit professional society (e.V.) founded in 1926 that serves as the expert network for chemical engineering and biotechnology across science, industry, politics, and society, representing approximately 5,000 members and operating the world's leading ACHEMA trade show.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Frankfurt

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership dues from approximately 5,000 individual and supporting members in the chemical engineering and biotechnology fields
2. Conference and Event Registration: Revenue from organizing conferences, trade shows (ACHEMA, ACHEMASIA), workshops, and continuing education courses with tiered pricing for members and non-members
3. Research Coordination and Industrial Community Research: Coordination of joint research projects funded by public bodies (BMBF, AIF, EU) and industrial partners
4. Publications and Studies: Sale of studies, position papers, and technical publications on chemical engineering and biotechnology topics

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

DECHEMA is a non-profit professional society (eingetragener Verein/e.V.) that operates as the expert network for chemical engineering and biotechnology in Germany. It organizes the ACHEMA and ACHEMASIA world-leading trade shows, runs specialized conferences and continuing education courses, coordinates industrial community research projects, and administers a portfolio of scientific awards and prizes for catalysis, bioprocess engineering, and chemical engineering.

Product overview

DECHEMA is a non-profit professional society for chemical engineering and biotechnology in Germany, not a software product company. The organization offers a portfolio of event-based services including the ACHEMA and ACHEMASIA trade shows (world-leading exhibitions for process industries), specialized conference series (EuroMOF, PEMT Annual Meeting), and professional development events. DECHEMA manages numerous awards recognizing excellence in catalysis, chemical engineering, and biotechnology (DECHEMA Prize, Alwin Mittasch Prize, Otto Roelen Medal, Hellmuth Fischer Medal, Willy Hager Prize, Carl Hanson Medal, DECHEMA Industrial Bioprocess Award, Student Awards). Additional services include the DECHEMA App for event management and digital membership cards, topic newsletters, Analysis + Consulting services, the DECHEMA Research Institute (DFI), DECHEMA Young for early-career professionals, and the DECHEMAX student competition. These offerings are interconnected through DECHEMA's role as the expert network connecting science, industry, politics, and society.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ACHEMA: The world forum for chemical and pharmaceutical engineering, process engineering, biotechnology and industrial environmental technology, and the world's leading trade show for the life science and process industries
• ACHEMASIA
• DECHEMA Forschungsinstitut
• DECHEMA Research Institute
• DECHEMA Young
• DECHEMAX
• German Catalysis Society (GeCatS)

Products and services

• ACHEMA The world's leading trade show for chemical and pharmaceutical engineering, process engineering, biotechnology, and industrial environmental technology, held triennially in Frankfurt am Main. Targets process industry companies, equipment manufacturers, and professionals.
• ACHEMASIA International exhibition and conference series for process engineering and biotechnology held in Asia, serving as the regional counterpart to ACHEMA for process industry companies in the Asian market.
• EuroMOF Conference Series Licensed international conference series on Metal Organic Frameworks and Porous Polymers, organized by varying hosts in different countries under DECHEMA license. Targets academic researchers and industry scientists in MOF chemistry.
• PEMT Annual Meeting Annual Meeting of Process Engineering and Materials Technology organized by DECHEMA/VDI Division, covering topics such as circular value creation, transformation in energy supply, digitalization, and modular plants. Targets chemical and process engineering researchers and practitioners.
• DECHEMA Research Institute (DFI) Research institute within the DECHEMA Group focused on applied research in chemical engineering, process safety, and biotechnology, providing continuing education courses (DFI courses) in process safety, heat exchangers, process control, and materials selection.
• Analysis + Consulting Services Analysis and consulting services including databases, engineering software, and materials/corrosion expertise. Serves process industry companies needing technical reference data and engineering decision support.
• Themen-Newsletter (Topic Newsletters) Free topical newsletters covering Chemistry, Bioeconomy, Pharma, Energy and Climate, Water Management, and Resources to keep professionals and researchers updated on developments in chemical engineering and biotechnology.
• DECHEMA Young Membership and engagement program for young professionals and early-career scientists in chemical engineering and biotechnology, providing career development, networking, and visibility opportunities.
• DECHEMA Prize Award granted for outstanding research work in technical chemistry, process engineering, biotechnology and chemical engineering, with particular consideration for younger scientists at an early career stage.
• DECHEMAX Competition Competition for school students (Schülerwettbewerb) designed to promote interest in chemistry and biotechnology among secondary school pupils.

Quantifiable outcome

• Network of 5,000 individual and supporting members
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and moderate.

• DECHEMA Forschungsinstitut (DFI)coreOthersDECHEMA's research institute conducting applied research in chemical engineering, process safety, and biotechnology. Provides continuing education courses (DFI courses) in process safety, heat exchangers, and other topics.
• DECHEMA Ausstellungs-GmbHcoreOthersDECHEMA's exhibition company responsible for organizing ACHEMA and other trade shows.
• VDI-GVC (Verfahrenstechnik und Chemieingenieurwesen)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint Fachgruppen (specialist groups) in areas such as adsorption, fluid process engineering, heat and mass transfer, crystallization, drying technology, and more.
• German Catalysis Society (GeCatS)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlatform for German catalysis community in research and application. Supported by DECHEMA, VDI-GVC, GDCh, DGMK, and DBG. Has approximately 1,000 members from industry and academia.
• GDCh (Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGerman Chemical Society - partner in German Catalysis Society (GeCatS) and joint Willy Hager Prize
• DGMK (Deutsche Wissenschaftliche Gesellschaft für Erdöl, Erdgas und Kohle)moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in German Catalysis Society (GeCatS)
• DBG (Deutsche Bunsen-Gesellschaft für Physikalische Chemie)moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in German Catalysis Society (GeCatS)
• Society of Chemical Industry (UK)moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint founder of Carl Hanson Medal with DECHEMA, awarded for lifetime achievement in solvent extraction science and technology.
• Converia GmbHmoderateTechnology or IntegrationConference management system provider for online registration and event coordination.
• Sendinblue GmbHmoderateTechnology or IntegrationNewsletter tool provider for DECHEMA's topical newsletters.
• Langdock GmbHmoderateTechnology or IntegrationAI service provider for AI-supported services. Data processing guaranteed on EU servers only, data not used for AI training.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker (GDCh): German Chemical Society — the largest chemical sciences professional society in Germany. Directly comparable as a non-profit membership association for chemistry professionals, co-administers multiple awards with DECHEMA, and shares overlapping member base.
• American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE): US professional society for chemical engineers. Closest direct functional peer to DECHEMA — same mission (chemical engineering professional community), same business model (membership dues, conferences, publications, awards), different geography.
• Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE): UK-based professional society for chemical, biochemical and process engineers. Directly comparable as a chartered membership body operating events, awards, and accreditation in the same chemical-engineering space as DECHEMA.
• Society of Chemical Industry (SCI): UK-based international society promoting the application of chemistry and chemical engineering. Direct peer in mission and activities, and an actual partner with DECHEMA on the joint Carl Hanson Medal for solvent extraction.

Broad incumbents

• American Chemical Society (ACS): One of the world's largest scientific societies, serving chemistry and adjacent chemical engineering professionals through publications, conferences, and awards. Highly comparable membership-association model with much larger scale and a more global footprint.
• VDI - Verein Deutscher Ingenieure: Germany's largest engineering association. Overlaps with DECHEMA through VDI-GVC (process engineering and chemical engineering division), which jointly operates specialist groups and events with DECHEMA.

Regional players

• European Federation of Chemical Engineering (EFCE): Europe-wide umbrella organization for chemical engineering, of which DECHEMA is a member society. Comparable as a federation of chemical engineering associations organizing events, working parties, and awards across European member societies.
• European Chemical Society (EuChemS): European umbrella organization for chemical sciences, comparable as a continental federation of national chemical societies with similar member-association, conference, and award activities.

Emerging players

• BIO Deutschland: German biotechnology industry association. Comparable as a German-sector membership body representing biotech, but narrower scope and more industry-lobbying oriented versus DECHEMA's scientific breadth.

Others

• Dechema Ausstellungs-GmbH (subsidiary event operator) - compare to Messe Frankfurt: While DECHEMA itself is a society, its ACHEMA exhibition operations are run via subsidiary DECHEMA Ausstellungs-GmbH in cooperation with Messe Frankfurt as venue/operations partner. Messe Frankfurt is thematically related as a major trade-fair infrastructure provider.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about DECHEMA