IMCE
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1995
- HeadquartersGenk, Belgium
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What IMCE does
IMCE NV is a Belgian designer and manufacturer of non-destructive testing instruments for elastic and damping properties of materials, headquartered in Genk and founded in 1995 by Adriaan Brebels, Theo Bollen and Bart Bollen. The company builds the RFDA (Resonant Frequency and Damping Analyzer) product line based on the Impulse Excitation Technique: a sample is tapped with a small projectile and the resulting vibration is captured by microphone or laser vibrometer to derive resonant frequencies and damping (Q-1), from which Young's modulus, shear modulus, and Poisson's ratio are calculated. The portfolio spans room-temperature systems (RFDA Essential, RFDA Professional, Resonalyser), high-temperature furnaces reaching up to 1700°C in air, inert, reducing, or vacuum atmospheres (HT650, HT1600 family, HT1700, HTVP1600, HTVP1700C), and low-to-medium temperature chambers (LTVP800, LT80 covering -80°C to +140°C). Methods are compliant with ASTM E1876-22, ISO, and EN standards and achieve resolution better than 0.1% with ~1% accuracy, including PolyTec QTec laser vibrometer integration for vacuum measurements.
IMCE firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- IMCE
- Legal name
- IMCE NV
- Website
- https://imce.eu
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1995
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where IMCE is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Genk
- HQ country
- Belgium
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices6 records
Markets served
IMCE business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- RFDA Hardware Systems: Sale of RFDA measurement instruments including room temperature systems (RFDA Essential, RFDA Professional, Resonalyser), high temperature furnaces (HT650, HT1600 series, HT1700), temperature-variable chambers (HTVP series, LTVP800, LT80), and associated measurement supports and verification kits.
- Measurement Services: IMCE laboratory performs material characterization testing for customers. Services include room temperature measurements, low/high temperature measurements (-80°C to 1600°C), quick turnaround (avg. 5 working days), 24h express service, detailed reporting, raw data, and sample return. Atmosphere options include air or inert gas flow.
- Training Services: Live online training sessions with IMCE experts including basic training (RT systems, HT systems), advanced training (Non Linear Behavior, Advanced user training), and 1-on-1 user training. Training simulates traditional classroom environment with theoretical and practical components.
- Installation & Maintenance: Professional installation and maintenance services for RFDA testing instruments. Factory-trained service engineers provide proper installation and ongoing maintenance support worldwide through distributors.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | RFDA Essential - Mid-range room temperature system |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | RFDA Professional - Advanced room temperature system |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | High Temperature Systems - HT series furnaces |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Temperature Variable Pressure Systems - HTVP series |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Measurement Services - Laboratory testing |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
IMCE product offering
Product offeringCore offering
IMCE designs, manufactures and sells RFDA (Resonant Frequency and Damping Analyzer) measurement systems based on the Impulse Excitation Technique (IET) for non-destructive material characterization. The product portfolio spans room-temperature instruments (RFDA Essential, RFDA Professional, Resonalyser), high-temperature furnaces up to 1700°C, vacuum/inert-atmosphere systems, and low-temperature chambers down to -80°C. The company also operates an in-house measurement laboratory offering testing services and provides installation, maintenance, and training.
Product overview
IMCE provides the RFDA (Resonant Frequency and Damping Analyser) product line based on the Impulse Excitation Technique for non-destructive material characterization. The portfolio includes room temperature systems (RFDA Essential, RFDA Professional, Resonalyser) for basic to advanced applications, high-temperature furnace systems (RFDA HT650, HT1600, HT1600-DS, HT1600-RB, HT1700) reaching up to 1700°C, vertical tube furnaces (RFDA HTVP1600, HTVP1700C) with vacuum/inert atmosphere capability, and low-temperature chambers (RFDA LTVP800, LT80) for -80°C to +800°C range. The systems measure Young's modulus, shear modulus, Poisson's ratio, and internal friction/damping. IMCE also offers measurement services and accessories including verification kits and measurement supports. Applications span metals, ceramics, refractories, composites, coatings, and building materials.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- RFDA Essential Mid-range room temperature measurement system for non-destructive impulse excitation technique. Semi-automated excitation device with dedicated microphone detects vibration signals to calculate Young's modulus, shear modulus, and Poisson's ratio per ASTM E1876-22 standards.
- RFDA Professional Advanced room temperature measurement system with automated features for impulse excitation testing. Calculates elastic properties including Young's modulus, shear modulus, Poisson's ratio, and internal friction.
- Resonalyser Room temperature resonant frequency and damping analysis system for material characterization using impulse excitation technique.
- RFDA HT650 High-temperature furnace system for impulse excitation measurements up to 650°C.
- RFDA HT1600 High-temperature furnace for impulse excitation measurements up to 1600°C in air atmosphere or with inert gas flow. Bottom loading design for 2 samples simultaneously.
- RFDA HT1600-DS High-temperature furnace with dual-sample capability up to 1600°C, optimized for carbon-containing refractories with light weight refractory brick insulation.
- RFDA HT1600-RB High-temperature furnace optimized for refractory brick applications with light weight refractory brick insulation, up to 1600°C with 1-3°C/min heating/cooling rate.
- RFDA HT1700 High-temperature furnace for impulse excitation measurements up to 1700°C in air atmosphere, with optional gas flow. Bottom loading for 2 samples simultaneously with optional dilatometer.
- RFDA HTVP1600 Vertical tube furnace for high-temperature impulse excitation measurements up to 1600°C in air, inert, or reducing atmosphere. Features adjustable excitation positioning and rotary vane vacuum pump capability.
- RFDA HTVP1700C Vertical tube furnace for high-temperature measurements up to 1700°C in inert atmosphere or up to 1500°C in vacuum (10-2 mbar). Features turbomolecular vacuum pump, graphite heating elements, and optional laser vibrometer.
- RFDA LTVP800 Low-to-medium temperature vertical chamber system for impulse excitation measurements up to 800°C.
- RFDA LT80 Low-temperature measurement system for impulse excitation measurements from -80°C to +140°C, designed for building materials characterization including concrete and asphalt at outdoor temperatures. Features optional inert gas flow atmosphere control, adjustable sample positioning, front loading, and continuous measurements during heating/cooling cycles at 1-5°C/min.
- Measurement Services Professional measurement services for Young's modulus, shear modulus, Poisson's ratio, internal friction, and resonant frequency at room temperature and from -80°C to 1600°C. Includes quick turnaround (avg. 5 working days), 24h express service, detailed reports, raw data, and sample return. Atmosphere options include air or inert gas flow.
- Training Services Live online training sessions with IMCE experts including basic training (RT systems, HT systems), advanced training (Non Linear Behavior, Advanced user training), and 1-on-1 user training. Training simulates traditional classroom environment with theoretical and practical components.
- Installation & Maintenance Services Professional installation and maintenance services for RFDA testing instruments. Factory-trained service engineers provide proper installation and ongoing maintenance support worldwide through distributors.
Quantifiable outcome
- Measurement results available in seconds vs. hours for traditional destructive testing methods
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use IMCE
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
IMCE technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
IMCE partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- University of Limoges / IRCERcoreOngoing research collaboration with Prof. Huger from University of Limoges for continuous material characterization during temperature cycles. IMCE delivered enhanced RFDA HTVP1600 with PolyTec QTec Laser vibrometer integration based on specific research requirements. Collaboration led to innovative engineering solutions and enhanced measurement capabilities.
- Scinco M&T Co., Ltd. (South Korea)coreRegional sales representative for South Korea market. Partnership announced in October 2019 to expand market presence in Korea.
- Nissin Kikai Co.,Ltd. (Japan)coreRegional sales representative for Japan market based in Takamatsu, Kagawa. Partnership announced in October 2019.
- AWS Technical & Service Center (China)coreRegional sales representative and service partner for China market. Provides local sales, support, and service for IMCE products in China.
- Elico Marketing Pvt Ltd (India)coreRegional sales representative and service partner for India market based in Hyderabad. Active participant in industry events including Indian Ceramics Asia.
- Lih Yuan Enterprise Co., Ltd. (Taiwan)coreRegional sales representative and service partner for Taiwan market based in New Taipei City.
- PolyTeccoreTechnology partnership for integration of QTec Laser Doppler Vibrometer into RFDA HTVP1600 system. Provides infrared laser detection with auto focus, remote focus capability, and robust vibration signal detection for vacuum measurements.
- ImerysminorListed as program partner for University of Limoges collaboration, indicating involvement in advanced refractory materials research.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves10 records
Expansion highlights6 records
IMCE competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- MTS Systems: MTS provides servo-hydraulic and electromechanical test systems for materials and structures, covering elastic-property characterization across many of the same industrial R&D environments (steel, automotive, aerospace) where IMCE sells RFDA instruments.
- Instron (Illinois Tool Works): Instron is a broad incumbent in mechanical materials testing (tensile, fatigue, bending), serving overlapping industrial and academic customers for elastic-property workflows; while primarily destructive, it competes for the test-bench budget IMCE targets with its non-destructive RFDA systems.
- Brüel & Kjær (HBK): HBK/Brüel & Kjær dominates vibration, acoustic, and modal-analysis measurement, overlapping with RFDA's impulse-and-frequency-domain methodology and competing for engineering laboratories that characterize mechanical dynamic behavior of structures and materials.
- Mettler Toledo: Mettler Toledo sells precision thermal-analysis and laboratory instrumentation (DSC, TGA) used by the same materials-research buyers that purchase RFDA systems; it competes for both budget allocation and ancillary accessories within analytical lab environments.
- Olympus Scientific Solutions (Evident): Olympus/Evident offers a broad ultrasonic and eddy-current NDT portfolio to industrial QA customers, overlapping with IMCE's non-destructive quality-control positioning in steel, aerospace, and composite materials.
Direct peers
- TA Instruments (Waters): TA Instruments provides dynamic mechanical analyzers (DMA) and thermomechanical instrumentation used by the same academic and industrial materials-research customers as IMCE; both compete for the same R&D lab budget for elastic-property measurement.
- Netzsch Analyzing & Testing: Netzsch offers thermal-analysis and impulse-excitation instrumentation (e.g., for Young's modulus and damping) over comparable temperature ranges, making it the most directly competitive peer to IMCE's RFDA product line for materials characterization labs worldwide.
Emerging players
- Polytec: Polytec is a specialist laser-vibrometer supplier that IMCE already integrates (QTec laser vibrometer for the HTVP1600); both firms target material and component vibration-based characterization, with Polytec pursuing adjacent non-contact measurement use cases from a laser-optics angle.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
IMCE social profiles
Digital presenceIMCE financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
IMCE leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
IMCE funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
IMCE M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about IMCE
What does IMCE do?
IMCE designs, manufactures and sells RFDA (Resonant Frequency and Damping Analyzer) measurement systems based on the Impulse Excitation Technique (IET) for non-destructive material characterization. The product portfolio spans room-temperature instruments (RFDA Essential, RFDA Professional, Resonalyser), high-temperature furnaces up to 1700°C, vacuum/inert-atmosphere systems, and low-temperature chambers down to -80°C. The company also operates an in-house measurement laboratory offering testing services and provides installation, maintenance, and training.
Is IMCE a public or private company?
IMCE is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was IMCE founded?
IMCE was founded in 1995. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is IMCE based?
IMCE is headquartered in Genk, Belgium, in the Europe region.
How does IMCE make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. RFDA Hardware Systems are the primary driver. The others are measurement Services, training Services and installation & Maintenance.
Who are IMCE's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are MTS Systems, Instron (Illinois Tool Works), Brüel & Kjær (HBK), Mettler Toledo and Olympus Scientific Solutions (Evident). Direct peers are TA Instruments (Waters) and Netzsch Analyzing & Testing. Polytec is listed as an emerging player.
Does IMCE have an API?
No public API is recorded for IMCE.