INVITE
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersLeverkusen, Germany
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
INVITE firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- INVITE
- Legal name
- INVITE GmbH
- Website
- https://invite-research.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
INVITE industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Pharmaceutical and Chemical Process Research Services
- NAICS
- Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Management Consulting Services (54161)
- SIC
- Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)
- akta.pro primary industry
- CMC, Process Development & Tech Transfer Staffing FSP (HLAGAOAK)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Small-Molecule CMC Documentation & Regulatory Support (DMF/CMC) (HLAGAHAM)
Keywords
Where INVITE is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Leverkusen
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
INVITE business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Research Project Funding: EU-funded research projects including CONSENS, CO2RRECT, F³-Factory, MoBiDiK, SYNFLOW, ModLife, BioNanoGel, and others. Also receives European public funding (EFRE) for infrastructure extensions.
- DDIC Consortium Membership: Open consortium with founding tier members (Bayer AG, LB Bohle GmbH, Merck KGaA, UCB S.A.) and university partners (TU Dortmund, HHU Düsseldorf) paying membership to participate in pre-competitive pharmaceutical research
- Public-Private Partnership Funding: Funding from NRW government, European regional development funds (EFRE), and the partnership between TU Dortmund, HHU Düsseldorf, and Bayer AG
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
INVITE product offering
Product offeringCore offering
INVITE operates an open innovation research center at CHEMPARK Leverkusen, Germany, conducting pre-competitive applied research in smart automation, formulation technology, and sustainable production for the pharmaceutical and chemical industries. It sells consortium membership (notably the Drug Delivery Innovation Center), collaborative research projects, and access to demonstration facilities such as the Digital Plant Showcase Center.
Product overview
INVITE GmbH operates as a research center and open innovation platform at CHEMPARK Leverkusen, Germany. The company functions as a Public-Private Partnership between TU Dortmund, HHU Düsseldorf, and Bayer AG, conducting pre-competitive research in three core areas: Smart Automation (including Robotics Lab, Digital Plant Showcase Center, Lab Orchestration Platform, and AI projects like NextGenAI Lab), Formulation Technology (including the Drug Delivery Innovation Center consortium and Formulation & Process Lab), and Sustainability. Key offerings include demonstration showcases like the Digital Plant with SIMATIC PCS neo and MTP modules, as well as educational outreach through Baylab@INVITE and regular Science Talks and annual Science Day events. Research projects span modular production (F³-Factory), robotics competitions (AIRA Challenge), teleoperation, and pharmaceutical formulation development.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- DDIC (Drug Delivery Innovation Center): An open consortium focused on drug delivery and manufacturing research, fostering international multi-disciplinary networks in collaboration with academia and pharmaceutical industry.
- Baylab@INVITE
Products and services
- Drug Delivery Innovation Center (DDIC) Consortium Membership Open consortium membership program providing pharmaceutical and chemical companies with access to pre-competitive drug delivery research, specialized laboratory facilities at CHEMPARK Leverkusen, and collaborative innovation networks. Founding tier and standard tier memberships available for industry partners.
- Digital Plant Showcase Center
Quantifiable outcome
- ReeL project recovered approximately 7,000 tonnes of shaving waste annually in Germany alone from leather production, with worldwide estimates of 600,000 tonnes annually
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use INVITE
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
INVITE technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration7 records
AI capability7 records
Feature6 records
INVITE partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
24 partnerships are on record, tiered minor, major and core.
- digiMminorDDIC member specializing in micro-imaging data solutions for pharmaceutical applications.
- Syntegon GmbHminorDDIC member with decades of experience in processing and packaging solutions for pharmaceutical industry.
- Physiolution GmbHminorDDIC member specializing in dissolution behavior testing of solid oral dosage forms under bio-relevant conditions, strengthening formulation technology capabilities.
- Bilfinger SEmajorCooperation on Industry 4.0 and NAMUR Open Architecture (NOA) for process analytics technology. Jointly working on standardized semantic data capture from field devices and cyber security requirements.
- BASF SEcoreSponsor and co-organizer of AIRA (Advanced Industrial Robotic Applications) Challenge robotics competition, focusing on autonomous mobile robots for chemical plants.
- Boehringer IngelheimcoreSponsor and co-organizer of AIRA Challenge robotics competition, contributing to development of mobile robotics for pharmaceutical production environments.
- Wacker Chemie AGcoreSponsor and co-organizer of AIRA Challenge robotics competition, focusing on mobile robot applications in chemical manufacturing.
- Merck KGaAcoreSponsor and co-organizer of AIRA Challenge robotics competition for mobile industrial robots in pharmaceutical and chemical production.
- Janssen Pharmaceutica N.V.minorDDIC member bringing pharmaceutical development and manufacturing expertise from Johnson & Johnson family.
- CEPLASminorExcellence cluster partner in Carbon Challenge school competition, collaborating on educational outreach and CO2 research activities.
- Phoenix Contact GmbH & Co. KGminorDDIC member contributing expertise in automation and control technology for pharmaceutical manufacturing.
- Solid-Chem GmbHminorDDIC member specializing in solid dosage form development and manufacturing solutions.
- Siemens AGmajorTechnology provider for Digital Plant Showcase Center using SIMATIC PCS neo process control system and SIMATIC Module Type Package (MTP) library for modular automation.
- Ashland Industries Deutschland GmbHminorDDIC member contributing specialty chemical expertise for pharmaceutical formulation applications.
- INOSIM Consulting GmbHminorDDIC member specializing in process simulation and optimization for pharmaceutical manufacturing.
- Bayer AGcoreFounding partner of INVITE's public-private partnership alongside TU Dortmund and HHU Düsseldorf. Bayer AG chairs INVITE's Supervisory Board and Shareholders Committee. Provides industrial perspective and funding for innovation center concepts.
- TU Dortmund UniversitycoreFounding academic partner in INVITE's public-private partnership, contributing research expertise in pharmaceutical technology and process engineering.
- Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf (HHU)coreFounding academic partner contributing expertise in pharmaceutics and biopharmaceutics to INVITE's research programs.
- LB Bohle GmbHcoreFounding Tier 1 member of Drug Delivery Innovation Center (DDIC) consortium, contributing pharmaceutical manufacturing expertise.
- Merck KGaAcoreFounding Tier 1 member of DDIC consortium, contributing pharmaceutical and chemical industry perspective to drug delivery research.
- UCB S.A.coreFounding Tier 1 member of DDIC consortium, representing international pharmaceutical industry perspective.
- ModLife EU ConsortiumminorEU-funded training network bringing together 5 European universities, 4 global industrial players, and 2 SMEs for research in bioprocess optimization and control for life sciences industries.
- LANXESS AGmajorProject partner in ReeL (Resource-efficient Leather Chemicals) project, leading development of technology for producing tanning agents from leather production waste. Received IKU award 2017 for this collaboration.
- HELLER-LEDER GmbH & Co. KGmajorPartner in ReeL project hosting the modular pilot plant for leather chemical production from production waste. Represents end-user industry perspective.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights6 records
INVITE competitors and assessment
Company assessmentRegional players
- TNO (Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research): Dutch applied research organization with pharma manufacturing and process technology programmes. Comparable on applied R&D model and European public-private funding, but anchored in the Netherlands/Benelux market rather than competing directly in INVITE's German heartland.
- VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland: Finland's applied research organization with pharma process and biotechnology divisions. Comparable on the state-funded applied R&D model and industrial consortium work, though geographically focused on Finland and broader Nordics rather than Germany.
- SINTEF: Norway's largest independent research institute with strong process and bio-process industry engagements. Comparable on broad applied-research-for-industry model, though its pharma process depth is narrower than INVITE's.
Broad incumbents
- Lonza Group: Global CDMO leader with deep formulation, drug-delivery, and modular bioprocess capabilities. Comparable as a commercial scale-player targeting the same pharma manufacturers that participate in INVITE's consortium.
- Catalent Pharma Solutions: Large CDMO with formulation and drug-delivery development services adjacent to INVITE's DDIC remit. A broader commercial incumbent that operates across the value chain INVITE serves at the pre-competitive stage.
- Eurofins Scientific: Large laboratory testing services group including pharmaceutical discovery, formulation, and analytical services. A broad incumbent addressing overlapping pharma R&D testing and characterization needs.
Others
- Sartorius AG: Supplier of bioprocess and laboratory equipment, including PAT/sensor systems used in INVITE-style process automation work. Adjacent ecosystem participant rather than a direct research competitor, but a key technology enabler to INVITE's industrial partners.
Direct peers
- RCPE GmbH (Research Center Pharmaceutical Engineering): Austrian public-private research center jointly owned by academia and industry (including pharma majors) focused on process development and pharmaceutical manufacturing sciences. Directly comparable to INVITE on mission (pre-competitive pharma process R&D), ownership structure, and core technical domains (formulation, continuous manufacturing, process analytical technology).
- Fraunhofer IPA (Institut für Produktionstechnik und Automatisierung): Germany's leading Fraunhofer institute for production technology and automation, with substantial pharmaceutical-production and robotics research streams. Closely aligned with INVITE's Smart Automation and digital plant demonstration work, and runs comparable industry-funded research consortia.
- CPI (Centre for Process Innovation): UK-based innovation centre running industry-academia consortia in pharma, biopharma, and process manufacturing. Comparable to INVITE on the open-innovation consortium model, demonstration-facility model, and UK/EU public-private funding approach.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
INVITE social profiles
Digital presenceINVITE financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
INVITE leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
INVITE funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
INVITE 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 INVITE
What does INVITE do?
INVITE operates an open innovation research center at CHEMPARK Leverkusen, Germany, conducting pre-competitive applied research in smart automation, formulation technology, and sustainable production for the pharmaceutical and chemical industries. It sells consortium membership (notably the Drug Delivery Innovation Center), collaborative research projects, and access to demonstration facilities such as the Digital Plant Showcase Center.
Is INVITE a public or private company?
INVITE is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was INVITE founded?
INVITE was founded in 2010. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is INVITE based?
INVITE is headquartered in Leverkusen, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does INVITE make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Research Project Funding is the primary driver. The others are DDIC Consortium Membership and public-Private Partnership Funding.
Who are INVITE's main competitors?
Regional players on record are TNO (Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research), VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and SINTEF. Broad incumbents are Lonza Group, Catalent Pharma Solutions and Eurofins Scientific. Sartorius AG is listed as an others. Direct peers are RCPE GmbH (Research Center Pharmaceutical Engineering), Fraunhofer IPA (Institut für Produktionstechnik und Automatisierung) and CPI (Centre for Process Innovation).
Does INVITE have an API?
No public API is recorded for INVITE.
What industry is INVITE in?
INVITE's product category is Pharmaceutical and Chemical Process Research Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAGAOAK, CMC, Process Development & Tech Transfer Staffing FSP, with a secondary code of HLAGAHAM, Small-Molecule CMC Documentation & Regulatory Support (DMF/CMC). Its NAICS code is 5417 and its SIC code is 8731.