WILCO

What WILCO does

WILCO AG is a Swiss-headquartered manufacturer of container closure integrity testing (CCIT) and automated visual inspection (AVI) equipment, serving primarily pharmaceutical manufacturers, with secondary applications in food and beverage and cans and aerosols. The company is based in Wohlen (Aargau) in the Swiss Midlands, has operated for roughly fifty years, and is a member of the Bausch+Ströbel group. Its offering spans lab testing equipment, automated inline CCIT and AVI platforms, automated process analytical technology (PAT) systems including headspace analysis and NIR spectroscopy, combined multi-inspection platforms, and inline leak testers for metal packaging.

The technology stack centers on deterministic leak detection methods classified under USP <1207>, including the proprietary LFC method (liquid-filled container vacuum decay), force-sensor-based leak detection for flexible packaging reaching 1 µm sensitivity, and laser-based headspace analysis using TDLAS. Visual inspection uses the Vision CAV platform with ParticleTrack (image-subtraction-based particle detection) and CosmetiX (360° cosmetic defect inspection), augmented by AI for bubble-versus-particle discrimination in the EVO CAX system. Achieved performance benchmarks include 60,000 BFS containers per hour, 15,000+ IV bags per hour across eight parallel robots, over 400 vials per minute across 17 formats on the VARIO MTX platform, and 99.5% factory acceptance test reliability on installed production lines.

WILCO operates a consultative enterprise sales model with no disclosed public pricing, selling capital equipment combined with a full lifecycle services portfolio (solution design, lab services, project management, qualification and documentation, installation and commissioning, after-sales support). Revenue is generated from hardware sales, professional services, and managed after-sales support. The company uses direct enterprise sales globally with no intermediary distribution, supporting customers through a multilingual digital presence and country-coded inquiry channels.

Name

WILCO

Legal name

Wilco AG

Website

https://wilco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1971

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

WILCO AG is a Swiss manufacturer of container closure integrity testing and automated visual inspection systems, primarily serving pharmaceutical manufacturers with secondary applications in food, beverage, aerosol, and metal packaging from its Wohlen headquarters.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pharmaceutical Inspection Equipment

NAICS

Industrial Machinery Manufacturing (33324), Instruments and Related Products Manufacturing for Measuring, Displaying, and Controlling Industrial Process Variables (334513), Other Measuring and Controlling Device Manufacturing (334519)

SIC

Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823), Special Industry Machinery, Nec (3559), Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826)

akta.pro primary industry

Inspection, Checkweighing & Detection Systems (Vision, Metal, X-ray) (IMALAOAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Industrial Vision & Quality Inspection (HDAAAEAG), Inspection, Checkweighing & Metal Detection Systems (IMAHAOAJ)

Keywords

• Container closure integrity testing
• Automated visual inspection
• Leak detection systems
• Pharmaceutical inspection equipment
• Headspace analysis

Headquarters

HQ city

Wohlen

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Inspection Equipment Sales: Sale of capital inspection equipment including lab testing equipment, automated CCI testers, automated visual inspection systems, combined AVI/CCI testers, inspection modules, and leak testing systems for metal packaging. Equipment ranges from manual lab systems to fully automated high-speed inline inspection systems.
2. Professional Services: Comprehensive service portfolio including Solution Design, Lab Services (feasibility studies, method development, positive/negative controls), Project Management, Qualification & Documentation, Installation & Commissioning, and After-Sales Customer Service. Services span the entire product lifecycle.
3. Equipment Maintenance and Support: After-sales services ensuring machine availability, profitability, and reliability throughout the machine lifecycle. Includes training, spare parts, and ongoing technical support as part of the 360° Services offering.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

WILCO AG designs, manufactures, and sells capital inspection equipment for the pharmaceutical, food & beverage, and metal packaging industries. Its portfolio spans Container Closure Integrity Testing (CCIT) systems based on vacuum decay (LFC method®), force sensor, and laser-based headspace analysis technologies, Automated Visual Inspection (AVI) systems with proprietary AI for particle and cosmetic defect detection, Process Analytical Technology (PAT) using NIR spectroscopy, and multi-inspection platforms (VARIO MTX, DUO MTX) that combine multiple inspection technologies on a single system.

Product overview

WILCO AG is a Swiss-based company specializing in Container Closure Integrity Testing (CCIT) and Automated Visual Inspection (AVI) solutions for the pharmaceutical, food & beverage, and cans & aerosols industries. The product portfolio is organized as integrated platform-based solutions consisting of: (1) Lab Testing Equipment including Headspace Lab Analyzers, CCI lab testers for small/large volume parenterals and blisters, and Lab Automation Solutions with NEO series; (2) Automated CCI Testers including CCIT systems for various formats (SVP, BFS cards/bottles, IV bags, pouches) utilizing LFC method, differential pressure, and force sensor technologies; (3) Automated Visual Inspection systems including AVI for small volume parenterals, high-mix/low-volume products, and BFS cards using the Vision CAV platform with ParticleTrack and CosmetiX; (4) Automated PAT combining Headspace Analysis and NIR Spectroscopy for real-time process monitoring; (5) Combined Inspection Platforms including the award-winning VARIO MTX (combining AVI, CCIT, and NIR) and DUO MTX for comprehensive vial inspection; and (6) Inspection Modules and Leak Testing solutions for metal packaging including inline testers for aerosol and steel cans. The company integrates AI capabilities for particle detection, cosmetic defect inspection, and bubble/particle discrimination. Service offerings cover solution design, lab services, project management, qualification & documentation, installation & commissioning, and after-sales support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Lab Testing Equipment Comprehensive suite of laboratory leak testing and inspection equipment for pharmaceutical quality control, including Headspace Lab Analyzers, CCI lab testers for small/large volume parenterals and blister packs, Inherent CCIT systems, and Lab Automation Solutions. Sold to pharmaceutical manufacturers and QC laboratories.
• Headspace Lab Analyzer for SVP Laser-based Headspace Analysis system for manual laboratory testing of small volume parenterals, measuring oxygen (O2), carbon dioxide (CO2), and water vapor (H2O) concentrations in container headspace. Designed for pharmaceutical QC laboratories.
• CCI Lab Tester for Small Volume Parenterals Container Closure Integrity testing system for small volume parenteral containers, utilizing differential pressure technology for deterministic leak detection. Built for pharmaceutical QC laboratories.
• CCI Lab Tester for Large Volume Parenterals Container Closure Integrity testing system designed for large volume parenteral containers, featuring force sensor technology for flexible packaging leak detection. Sold to pharmaceutical QC laboratories.
• CCI Lab Tester for Blister Leak detection system specifically designed for blister pack containers using force sensor technology. Targets pharmaceutical manufacturers running blister packaging lines.
• Lab Automation Solutions Automation solutions for laboratory testing environments, enabling automated CCIT processes with the NEO series systems. Designed for pharmaceutical QC laboratories.
• Automated CCI Tester High-speed automated Container Closure Integrity testing systems for 100% inline inspection, utilizing LFC method and differential pressure technologies for various container formats. Sold to pharmaceutical production lines.
• CCIT for Small Volume Parenterals (Inline) Automated inline CCIT system for small volume parenteral containers, capable of inspecting up to 60,000 containers per hour with sensitivity down to 10µm. Built for high-speed pharmaceutical fill-finish lines.
• CCIT for BFS Cards Automated leak testing system for Blow-Fill-Seal cards, utilizing LFC method for 100% integrity testing compliant with EU GMP Annex 1 requirements. Designed for BFS pharmaceutical production lines.
• CCIT for BFS Bottles R DPPB automated CCIT system for BFS bottles including LVP formats, featuring deep vacuum technology and robust transport system for autoclave-sterilized containers. Built for BFS pharmaceutical production lines.
• CCIT for IV Bags Force sensor technology-based CCIT system for infusion bags, featuring vertical orientation testing and robotic handling for throughputs exceeding 15,000 bags per hour. Built for IV bag pharmaceutical production.
• CCIT for Pouches Leak detection system for flexible pouch packaging using force sensor technology. Targets pharmaceutical and consumer health pouch production lines.
• Automated Visual Inspection AI-powered automated visual inspection systems for pharmaceutical containers, including particle detection, cosmetic defect inspection, and camera-based inspection with the Vision CAV platform. Sold to pharmaceutical fill-finish operations.
• AVI of Small Volume Parenterals Automated visual inspection system for small volume parenteral containers, utilizing ParticleTrack and CosmetiX technologies for comprehensive defect detection. Designed for pharmaceutical manufacturers.
• AVI of High Mix - Low Volume Parenterals Flexible automated visual inspection solution designed for high-mix, low-volume parenteral production environments such as contract manufacturing and specialty pharma.
• AVI of BFS Cards

Quantifiable outcome

• BFS inspection sensitivity: detects defects of 10μm and below
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature9 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Bausch+Ströbel GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWILCO AG is a member of the Bausch+Ströbel group of companies. This affiliation provides strategic backing and integration within a larger pharmaceutical equipment manufacturing group. The partnership enables shared resources, technology development, and market positioning within the pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment sector.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Antares Vision: Italian provider of inspection systems, serialization, and track & trace for pharma and life sciences. Direct competitor in automated visual inspection and leak detection for pharmaceutical containers; now part of Stevanato Group.
• Sotax: Swiss-headquartered specialist in dissolution testing, physical testing, and pharmaceutical content uniformity inspection. Comparable as a Swiss pharma-focused testing equipment vendor serving similar QA/QC buyers.
• Stevanato Group: Italian pharma packaging and inspection solutions provider offering automated visual inspection and CCIT for vials, syringes, and cartridges. Direct competitor in pharmaceutical container inspection, now expanded via acquisition of Antares Vision.
• Seal Integrity / Leak Detection Associates: US-based specialist in helium-based leak detection for pharmaceutical container closure integrity testing. Direct competitor in deterministic CCIT methods serving the same pharmaceutical packaging customers as WILCO.

Broad incumbents

• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Global life sciences and laboratory instrumentation leader. Overlaps with WILCO's NIR spectroscopy, laboratory analytical instruments, and Process Analytical Technology (PAT) product lines for pharmaceutical quality control.
• Mettler-Toledo International: Global manufacturer of precision instruments including laboratory analytical equipment and process analytical technology (PAT). Overlaps with WILCO's NIR spectroscopy and laboratory testing portfolio for pharmaceutical QC applications.
• Syntegon Technology: German global supplier of processing and packaging technology for the pharmaceutical and food industries. Offers inspection modules as part of broader filling and packaging lines, competing with WILCO on full-line tenders.
• Körber Pharma: Pharmaceutical packaging and inspection solutions provider within the Körber Group. Competes with WILCO in automated visual inspection and packaging inspection modules for pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Emerging players

• Lighthouse Worldwide Solutions: Provider of contamination monitoring and leak detection solutions for pharmaceutical and semiconductor cleanrooms. Comparable technology overlap in deterministic leak detection for sterile pharmaceutical environments.

Others

• Bausch+Ströbel: Parent company and fellow group member of WILCO AG; specializes in filling and closing machines for pharmaceutical injectables. Adjacent rather than directly competitive - the strategic group partner with shared customer base in sterile injectable manufacturing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wilco-ag

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 WILCO