Innocut Solution Schäfer GmbH

What Innocut Solution Schäfer GmbH does

Innocut Solution Schäfer GmbH is a German contract waterjet cutting service provider (Lohnfertigung) headquartered in Bad Nauheim, Hesse. The company operates a fleet of CNC waterjet cutting machines in four bed sizes ranging from 1000x500mm to 4000x2000mm, configured with up to eight pure-water or four abrasive cutting heads running at pressures up to 6200 bar — above the 4000 bar industry standard. Customers can submit customer-supplied material or rely on the company to procure material, with processing available in pure water and abrasive modes for metals, stone, glass, plastics, rubber, composites, sealing materials and wood, with thickness capability reaching 400mm in special cases and dimensional tolerances quoted at ±0.05mm.

The firm prices on a per-project basis across five cut quality tiers (Q1 Super-Cut through Q5 Trennschnitt), with up to 500% price differentials between the highest and lowest quality bands, and accepts orders via phone, email and its website. Go-to-market is sales-led and direct: dedicated regional landing pages cover all 16 German states, supported by named contacts for sales, production and accounting. Customer base spans industrial manufacturing (automotive, medical technology, aerospace), construction and crafts (stone intarsia, decorative cuts), and sealing technology, with named engagements including Formula Student Germany sponsorship and a Mathematikum Gießen exhibit. Ancillary services include vibratory grinding (Gleitschleifen) finishing and CADCAM data import.

The business was carved out of the KMT Waterjet Group contract manufacturing division in 2016 by Jochen Schäfer, who had joined the predecessor organization in 2005. Operations draw on nearly three decades of accumulated waterjet cutting experience inherited from the Best-Matic and KMT Waterjet lineage. The company is privately held as a German GmbH with a 1–10 employee footprint and no disclosed external investors, no subsidiaries, and no patent activity.

Name

Innocut Solution Schäfer GmbH

Legal name

Innocut Solution Schäfer GmbH

Website

https://ics-wasserstrahlschneiden.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Innocut Solution Schäfer GmbH is a privately held German contract manufacturer in Bad Nauheim that provides pure and abrasive waterjet cutting services up to 6200 bar across all material types for industrial, construction, crafts and educational customers nationwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contract Waterjet Cutting Services

NAICS

Cutting Tool and Machine Tool Accessory Manufacturing (333515)

SIC

Sheet Metal Work (3444), Machine Tools, Metal Cutting Types (3541), Coating, Engraving & Allied Services (3470)

akta.pro primary industry

Pressure Washing & Jetting Equipment (IMAHALAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Surface Preparation & Abrasive Blasting (Sand/Grit/Shot/Waterjet) (IMAIAKAC)

Keywords

• Contract waterjet cutting
• Abrasive waterjet services
• CNC waterjet machining
• Precision cutting services
• Industrial material cutting

Headquarters

HQ city

Bad Nauheim

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Contract Waterjet Cutting Services: The company operates as a contract manufacturer (Lohnfertigung) providing waterjet cutting services on a per-project basis. They process customer-provided materials or procure materials themselves. Pricing varies significantly based on cut quality level (up to 500% price difference between quality levels), material type, thickness, and order volume.
2. Material Supply and Procurement: The company offers to procure materials for customers. They stock commonly used materials and arrange short-term procurement for non-stocked materials as part of their service offering.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Innocut Solution Schäfer GmbH provides contract waterjet cutting services (Lohnfertigung) from its Bad Nauheim facility, processing customer-supplied or company-procured materials using CNC waterjet cutting machines at pressures up to 6200 bar. The two core methods are abrasive waterjet cutting (water plus garnet sand for hard materials like metals, stone, ceramics, and composites) and pure water cutting (for soft materials like plastics, rubber, foam, and sealing materials), supported by vibratory grinding finishing and CADCAM-based data import.

Product overview

Innocut Solution Schäfer GmbH operates as a contract waterjet cutting service provider (Lohnfertigung) offering both pure water and abrasive waterjet cutting technologies. The company's core service portfolio consists of CNC waterjet cutting machines in four sizes (4000x2000mm, 3000x2000mm, 2000x1000mm, and 1000x500mm) with up to 8 cutting heads operating at pressures up to 6200 bar. Their primary service offering includes abrasive waterjet cutting for hard materials (metals, stone, ceramics, composites) and pure water cutting for soft materials (plastics, rubber, foam, seals). Supporting services include vibratory grinding for finishing, and CADCAM data import capabilities. The company processes materials including structural steel, stainless steel, tool steel, aluminum, copper, brass, titanium, natural stone, glass, tiles, concrete, plastics, rubber, sealing materials, composites, and wood, with thickness capabilities ranging from 2x2mm parts up to 400mm in exceptional cases.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Contract Waterjet Cutting (Lohnfertigung Wasserstrahlschneiden) End-to-end contract waterjet cutting service accepting customer-supplied drawings or images (DXF, DWG, ORD, IGS), producing cut parts from customer-supplied or company-procured materials across metals, stone, glass, composites, plastics, rubber, and seals, with optional vibratory grinding finishing and nationwide German shipping.
• Abrasive Waterjet Cutting Waterjet cutting method using high-pressure water mixed with garnet sand abrasive to cut hard materials such as metals, ceramics, stone, ballistic glass, and composites, at pressures up to 6200 bar with cutting widths of 0.76–1.1mm.
• Pure Water Cutting (Reinwasserverfahren) Waterjet cutting method that uses sapphire or diamond nozzles to create ultra-thin cutting beams (0.12–0.25mm) without abrasive media, for soft materials such as foam, rubber, insulation materials, and sealing materials, at near double the speed of sound.
• Vibratory Grinding (Gleitschleifen) Secondary finishing service providing deburred, rust-free components for cut parts up to 200x500mm across all material types, delivered after waterjet cutting to remove burrs and finish edges.
• Material Procurement Service Service offering for customers without their own material supply; ICS stocks commonly used materials and arranges short-term procurement of specialty materials to support fast delivery.
• CADCAM Data Import Service (Datenübernahme) Technical drawing and image-to-CNC-program conversion service, accepting vector drawings (DXF, DWG, ORD, IGS) and creating programs from sketches or images using CADCAM and nesting software.

Quantifiable outcome

• Material tolerances achievable: ±0.05mm
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Team Efficiency TH MittelhessenminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Sponsored student team participating in Shell Eco-marathon competition. Shared focus on optimal resource utilization mirrors company's efficiency philosophy.
• Formula Student GermanyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Sponsorship of Formula Student racing competition where university teams design and build race cars. Part of company's community engagement and youth support.
• KMT Waterjet GmbHcoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 1989Historical connection to KMT Waterjet, one of the world's largest manufacturers of ultra-high pressure technology for waterjet cutting. The company was part of KMT Waterjet Group for 27 years (1989-2016) before being sold to form Innocut Solution Schäfer GmbH. This relationship provides technical expertise and cutting parameter knowledge for various materials.
• Partner Companies for Further ProcessingminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFor further processing steps beyond waterjet cutting, the company works with partners who perform additional manufacturing steps. Also partners available for laser and plasma cutting when waterjet is not optimal.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Jet Edge: Jet Edge (USA) designs and manufactures ultra-high pressure waterjet cutting systems, including abrasive and pure-water machines up to 90,000 PSI. It operates in the same ultra-high-pressure waterjet segment Innocut uses, but as an equipment vendor rather than a contract service bureau.
• OMAX Corporation: OMAX (USA) is a leading manufacturer of abrasive waterjet cutting machines and software. While primarily an equipment vendor rather than a contract service bureau, OMAX overlaps with Innocut in waterjet technology domain and serves many of the same end-customers (machine shops, OEMs) that outsource cutting work.
• Shape Technologies (Flow International): Shape Technologies (USA, formerly Flow International) is one of the world's largest waterjet technology groups, manufacturing ultra-high pressure pumps and waterjet systems — directly comparable to the equipment heritage Innocut inherited from KMT Waterjet, but operating at much greater scale and breadth.
• ESAB: ESAB (USA/Sweden) is a global manufacturer of cutting and welding equipment, including plasma, oxy-fuel, and waterjet solutions. A broad incumbent addressing the same industrial cutting buyer as Innocut, but with a much wider product portfolio.
• Bystronic: Bystronic (Switzerland) is a major manufacturer of sheet metal processing equipment including laser and waterjet cutting systems. It competes for the same industrial customer wallet and overlaps with Innocut's waterjet capability, but as a much broader portfolio player.
• STM Waterjet: STM Waterjet (Turkey/Europe) manufactures CNC waterjet cutting machines and gantry systems. Comparable on the machine-tool side of Innocut's value chain; serves European metalworking customers with overlapping applications.

Direct peers

• Resato International: Resato (Netherlands) is both a high-pressure pump/equipment manufacturer and an operator of contract waterjet cutting services. It is the closest geographic and business-model comparable to Innocut, combining equipment heritage (analogous to KMT Waterjet) with contract cutting operations.

Others

• Knuth Werkzeugmaschinen: Knuth (Germany) is a German machine tool vendor offering waterjet, laser, plasma, and milling systems. It is comparable to the equipment ecosystem surrounding Innocut's operations and serves overlapping German metalworking customers, but as a machine tool reseller rather than a contract service bureau.
• Stihler Group (KMT Waterjet): Stihler Group holds the KMT Waterjet ultra-high pressure technology business — Innocut's historical parent until 2016. It is included as a peer because of the direct technical heritage and because it sells the same ultra-high pressure pump technology Innocut uses in its machines.
• Aquajet Systems AB: Aquajet Systems (Sweden) designs waterjet cutting robots and equipment primarily for concrete demolition and surface preparation, rather than precision industrial cutting. It is thematically related to high-pressure waterjet technology but serves a different application set than Innocut's precision manufacturing customers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/jochen.schafer.5496

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Innocut Solution Schäfer GmbH