Hess GmbH

What Hess GmbH does

Hess GmbH is a German manufacturer of designed outdoor lighting and high-quality urban furniture, founded in 1948 and headquartered in Villingen-Schwenningen, Baden-Württemberg. The company produces a comprehensive portfolio across two core categories: outdoor luminaires (Leuchten), poles (Maste), architectural lighting, and solar lighting under the NOVEA brand; and urban furniture (Mobiliar) including benches, seating, and waste receptacles. Its CITY ELEMENTS multifunctional poles integrate WLAN, cameras, speakers, environmental sensors, qi-charging stations, and e-mobility charging points, positioning the hardware as a Smart City data-infrastructure layer with integration into platforms such as UrbanPulse, City Cockpit, and Cleverciti.

The company sells primarily through B2B and B2G channels, targeting German and international cities, municipalities, and government infrastructure buyers, as well as urban planners, landscape architects, and lighting designers. Distribution is direct via a regional sales network, supplemented by the GROUPE RAGNI group structure (which also owns the VULKAN sub-brand) and online configurators for CITY ELEMENTS and RENO ELEMENTS, plus a DIALux Plugin for professional specification. Revenue is generated through one-time hardware sales of luminaires, furniture, custom Sonderlösungen, and LED retrofit kits (Umrüstsätze) on quote-based procurement typical of municipal tenders. Hess is a private GmbH subsidiary of the French parent GROUPE RAGNI, with no public listing or venture funding; it serves markets in DACH, the USA, and Australia, and operates with 251-500 employees.

Name

Hess GmbH

Legal name

Hess GmbH

Website

https://hess.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1948

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Hess GmbH is a German manufacturer of designed outdoor lighting and urban furniture (founded 1948, headquartered in Villingen-Schwenningen), serving cities, municipalities, and government infrastructure buyers across DACH, the USA, and Australia via direct project-based sales and the GROUPE RAGNI distribution network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Outdoor Lighting Manufacturing

NAICS

Commercial, Industrial, and Institutional Electric Lighting Fixture Manufacturing (335132), Electric Lighting Equipment Manufacturing (3351)

SIC

Electric Lighting & Wiring Equipment (3640)

akta.pro primary industry

Outdoor & Area Lighting (Street, Roadway, Parking, Flood, Sports/Architectural exterior) (IMAGAIAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Street Lighting & Area Lighting Electrical Infrastructure (IMAFAHAJ), Lighting Design Services (BPAHAKAJ)

Keywords

• Outdoor lighting
• Urban furniture
• Street lighting
• Architectural lighting
• Smart city infrastructure

Headquarters

HQ city

Villingen-schwenningen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Outdoor Lighting Products: Sale of designed outdoor luminaires including street lights, floodlights, architectural lighting, solar lighting (NOVEA brand), and specialty lighting (Night Lounge, VULKAN brand). Products range from functional-technical to multifunctional smart luminaires.
2. Urban Furniture: Sale of city furniture including benches, bollards, trash receptacles, and other public space elements. Smart furniture includes qi-charging stations and other integrated technologies.
3. Custom/Special Solutions: Project-specific custom lighting and urban furniture solutions developed for specific municipal requirements. Includes Sonderlösungen (special solutions) as referenced in the product range.
4. Conversion Kits (Umrüstsätze): LED conversion kits for retrofitting existing lighting infrastructure to modern, energy-efficient systems.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Hess GmbH designs, manufactures, and sells designed outdoor luminaires and high-quality urban furniture for cities, municipalities, and public spaces. Their portfolio spans functional-technical street lighting, multifunctional smart poles (CITY ELEMENTS) with integrated sensors and E-Mobility charging, architectural lighting, solar lighting (NOVEA), LED retrofit kits, and urban furniture such as benches and waste bins. They enable holistic urban space design by combining lighting and furniture under brands Hess, VULKAN, and NOVEA within the GROUPE RAGNI group.

Product overview

Hess GmbH is a leading international manufacturer of designed outdoor luminaires and high-quality urban furniture, operating as part of GROUPE RAGNI. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio centered around two core product lines: outdoor lighting (Leuchten) including luminaires, solar lighting (NOVEA), architectural lighting, and lighting poles (Maste), as well as urban furniture (Mobiliar) including benches and seating. Key product series include CITY ELEMENTS and RENO ELEMENTS (with online configurators), SERA 2, SHADOW LIGHTS, REVARA, LINEA, VILLAGE 300, and Night Lounge. Through the VULKAN sub-brand, Hess extends its lighting offerings. The products support smart city applications via integration with sensors, WiFi, cameras, and e-charging stations, with some solutions featuring DIALux Plugin integration for lighting design planning. The company specializes in holistic urban space concepts combining lighting and furniture for public spaces.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• VULKAN: A brand of Hess offering outdoor lighting solutions
• NOVEA
• Public Outdoor Creations

Products and services

• Leuchten (Outdoor Lighting Luminaires) Outdoor lighting luminaires for streets, paths, and public spaces, including various series and designs for different applications. Targeted at cities, municipalities, and public infrastructure projects.
• Mobiliar (Urban Furniture) Urban furniture including benches, seating, waste bins, and other street furniture with optional integrated functions like Qi-charging. Targeted at municipalities and public space projects.
• Maste (Light Poles and Masts) Light poles and masts serving as the structural foundation for Smart City infrastructure, with mounting capabilities for various sensors, cameras, WLAN access points, and E-Mobility charging stations.
• Umrüstsätze (LED Retrofit Kits) LED retrofit kits for modernizing existing lighting installations to energy-efficient LED technology. Targeted at municipalities seeking to upgrade legacy infrastructure without full replacement.
• Architekturlicht (Architectural Lighting)

Quantifiable outcome

• Environmental sensor data enables air quality microclimate mapping for cities
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• GROUPE RAGNIcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHess GmbH is part of GROUPE RAGNI, a French parent company. The partnership provides Hess with access to a broader European market and complementary brand portfolio including RAGNI, LEC, NOVEA, ECO-INNOV, SEVⓔ, and VULKAN brands. GROUPE RAGNI acquired Hess to strengthen its position in outdoor lighting and urban furniture markets. Hess GmbH Licht + Form appears as a brand under the GROUPE RAGNI umbrella on the group website.
• Peter Andres LichtplanungminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHess collaborated with Peter Andres Beratende Ingenieure für Lichtplanung on expert interviews discussing urban lighting. Prof. Peter Andres is a renowned lighting designer and Honorarprofessor für Lichtplanung at PBSA Peter Behrens School of Architecture in Düsseldorf.
• SINAI Gesellschaft von Landschaftsarchitekten mbHminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHess collaborated with landscape architecture firm SINAI for expert interviews on outdoor space design. SINAI, based in Berlin with ~40 architects, specializes in contemporary landscape architecture for urban spaces.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Schreder: Belgian-headquartered specialist in outdoor lighting for streets, tunnels, and Smart City applications, serving municipalities and urban planners across Europe. Closely comparable to Hess in customer base (cities), product category (street/area luminaires), and connected lighting roadmap.
• WE-EF Leuchten: German manufacturer of architectural and outdoor luminaires for streets, façades, and public spaces. Comparable to Hess as a DACH-region specialist in design-grade exterior lighting with municipal and architectural specifier channels.
• Bega: German manufacturer of high-quality outdoor luminaires for streets, squares, and architectural applications. Comparable to Hess in design-led outdoor lighting for public spaces with a strong German engineering brand.
• Selux: German-headquartered manufacturer of architectural and urban outdoor lighting with strong presence in municipal and urban-planning projects. Comparable to Hess in design-driven exterior luminaires for streets, plazas, and architectural applications.
• Thorn Lighting: European outdoor and infrastructure lighting brand within the Zumtobel Group, focused on street lighting, sports, and urban applications. Comparable to Hess in customer base (municipalities) and product category (street/area luminaires), with broader group backing.
• AEC Illuminazione: Italian specialist in technical outdoor lighting for streets, urban areas, and architectural applications. Comparable to Hess in municipal customer focus and outdoor luminaire portfolio with strong European specification channels.
• iGuzzini: Italian architectural lighting brand (part of Signify) specializing in design-grade interior and exterior luminaires for public, urban, and architectural projects. Comparable to Hess in design-driven outdoor lighting for urban and architectural applications.
• Leipziger Leuchten: German manufacturer of street lighting and public-space luminaires serving municipalities and infrastructure projects. Comparable to Hess as a DACH-based street lighting specialist competing for similar municipal tenders.

Broad incumbents

• Signify: Global lighting leader (formerly Philips Lighting) with deep outdoor, street, and Smart City (Interact City) portfolio. Comparable as a much larger incumbent competing for the same municipal tenders and connected-lighting software opportunities as Hess.
• Zumtobel Group: Austrian-based lighting group encompassing Zumtobel, Thorn, and Tridonic with broad indoor and outdoor portfolios. Comparable as an established European lighting group competing with Hess across both architectural and infrastructure segments.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/hess_news
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hess-gmbh-licht-form

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Hess GmbH