Mafelec

What Mafelec does

Mafelec is a French designer and manufacturer of control and signaling subassemblies for severe environments, founded in 1950 (approximately 1947 per some sources) and headquartered in Chimilin, France. The company develops products that withstand sealing, shock/vibration, climatic, and electromagnetic interference requirements for railway, defense, energy, industrial vehicles, elevators, and bus/coach markets. Core product families include the M-LIGHT LED front lighting range for rail vehicles, M-Door door control systems (including touchless pushbuttons), the C22 safety equipment range, M-Charge on-vehicle power and USB charging modules, and switching products (C400, C800, K4) for industrial and railway applications. Manufacturing is vertically integrated from PCB assembly to series production in-house at the Chimilin site, with additional production through the TSL-ESCHA subsidiary in Halver, Germany (acquired 2021), and regional subsidiaries in China, Poland, UK, and Czech Republic.

Name

Mafelec

Legal name

Mafelec

Website

https://mafelec.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1950

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Mafelec designs and manufactures control and signaling subassemblies (pushbuttons, switches, LED lighting, charging modules) for severe environments, serving railway, defense, energy, elevator, industrial vehicle, and bus/coach OEMs globally through in-house production in France and Germany.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Railway and Industrial Control & Signaling Equipment

NAICS

Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (33451), Electrical Equipment Manufacturing (33531), Electrical Equipment, Appliance, and Component Manufacturing (335)

SIC

Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823), Electrical Industrial Apparatus (3620), Printed Circuit Boards (3672)

akta.pro primary industry

PCB Assembly (PCBA/EMS) (HDAHAOAI)

Keywords

• Railway signaling equipment
• Industrial push buttons
• Harsh environment electronics
• LED front lighting
• Control and switching systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Chimilin

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Custom Equipment Sales: Design and manufacture of customized control and signaling equipment for severe environments. Products include push buttons, switches, indicators, lighting systems, control boxes for OEMs and operators.
2. Standard Product Sales: Off-the-shelf standard solutions for classic applications across railway, defense, energy, industrial vehicles, elevators, and bus/coach markets.
3. Aftermarket and Spare Parts: Maintenance support, spare parts, and obsolescence management solutions for existing installations. Technical and commercial teams support customers throughout project lifecycles including after-sales.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Mafelec designs, develops, and manufactures control and signaling equipment for harsh environments, including push buttons, switches, indicators, lighting systems, control boxes, safety equipment, and charging solutions. Products are engineered to withstand sealing, shock/vibration, climatic, and electromagnetic interference challenges, serving railway, defense, energy, industrial vehicle, elevator, and bus/coach OEMs and operators worldwide. The company provides standard, semi-custom, and full-custom solutions with in-house PCB assembly through series production at Chimilin, France.

Product overview

Mafelec develops control and signalling solutions for severe environments across railway, defence, energy, industrial vehicles, bus/coach, and elevator markets. The product portfolio centers on interconnected product families: the M-LIGHT LED lighting range (ML5-1/170, MLHE/120, MLMT/120, MLT/140, HL18) for railway front lighting with optional M-SMART Interface intelligence; the M-DOOR and C22/C800/C400/K4 control and switching ranges for door control, push buttons, pedals, signal boxes, and cam/snap-action switches; the M-CHARGing range for power sockets and USB modules; and elevator buttons for OTIS. Products are designed for harsh environments with requirements for sealing (IP54-IP69K), shock/vibration resistance, electromagnetic compatibility, and compliance with railway standards including EN15153-1, EN45545-2, and TSI LOC&PAS.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• M-LIGHT: LED lighting solutions for railway vehicles, including combined lights, headlights, and marker lights compliant with EN15153-1 standard.
• M-Charge
• C22
• M-Door
• M-Desk
• C400 Range
• C800 Range

Products and services

• M-LIGHT LED Front Lighting Systems LED front lighting range including combined headlights, markers, searchlights, and track lights for rail vehicles, with optional M-SMART Interface for predictive maintenance, sensors, data logging, and remote configuration via CAN/Ethernet. Compliant with EN 15153-1 and TSI LOC & PAS standards; includes ML5-1/170 combined lights, MLHE/120 and MLHE/PAR56 headlights, MLMT/120 marker lights, MLT/140 track lights, and HL18 handrail interior lights.
• M-DOOR Door Control Push Buttons Push buttons, indicators, buzzers, and alarm handles for railway and bus vehicle doors. Includes M-DOOR-GM glue-on-glass technology without drilling, self-adjusting for glass thickness 3-20mm; slim/single and double push buttons for doors, toilets, and help requests; and M-Desk compact backlit buttons for instrument panels with PLC control interface.
• M-CHARGE Power Sockets and USB Charging Power socket and USB charging modules for buses, coaches, defense, and railway applications. Includes 230VAC/16A Type E and Type F sockets (NFC61-314 / DIN49440-1), USB modules rated for 5,000 insertion/extraction cycles and up to 2.4A per port, and marine-grade sockets (24V/130V/230V) compliant with EN 45545-2 and IP65/IP66/IP67.
• C22 Safety Equipment Range Industrial control and safety components for severe environments including emergency stop buttons compliant with EN 418/ISO 13850 with 30/40/70mm tappet diameters and IP69K waterproofing, VACMA safety pedals rated up to 5 million operations, LED signal boxes with 6-36 adaptable spaces, EN 16334-compliant alarm handles, and LED brake indicators with IK06 tempered glass.
• C400 and C800 Switching Systems Snap-action and cam switches for high-current applications including C400 rated 16A to 4000A AC/DC with up to 32 wiping contacts across 16 stages, C800 cam switches rated 16A with 2 to 8 positions and up to 80 self-cleaning contacts, and K4 wiping contact switches rated 4A for railway use.
• Elevator Push Buttons Elevator push buttons for control panels and landing boxes meeting accessibility standards EN 81-20, EN 81-70, EN 81-71, EN 81-72, and ASME-A17.1, with voltage from 5VDC to 230VDC/VAC. Supplied to OTIS for over 50 years including installations at Burj Khalifa (162 floors) and Empire State Building (73 elevators).
• Waterproof Control Boxes (BBE) Fixed waterproof control box with 4-12 customizable control units designed for severe environments in waste collection and industrial vehicle applications, supplied to Terberg for skip lifts.
• Terminal Blocks, Insulators, and Bushings Rod terminal blocks with pitch from 10.5mm to 43mm for lug or bar connections (UL94 V0 compliant) and polyester fibreglass insulators and bushings for low and medium voltage applications with male or female connections.
• Visual and Audible Signaling Devices Multi-tone buzzer with 7 programmable sound sequences and 10dB adjustment (350-3000Hz), 44mm LED indicator lights, multidirectional LED displays with curved glass visible from all directions, and lighted banners (340mm/430mm) for accessible/locked door status visualization. Compatible with TSI PMR and EN 14752.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 5 million operations lifespan for VACMA pedals
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and regional.

• TSL-ESCHAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021TSL-ESCHA, based in Halver, Germany, joined MAFELEC TEAM in 2021. Specializes in door area solutions and touchless pushbutton technology for railways. With 130 employees, maintains deep regional roots while gaining access to MAFELEC TEAM's global markets and accelerating innovations like touchless technology development.
• Mafelec ChinaregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional subsidiary operating in Chinese market for MAFELEC group products.
• Mafelec Team PolskaregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional subsidiary operating in Polish market for MAFELEC group products.
• Mafelec Team UKregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional subsidiary operating in UK market for MAFELEC group products.
• Mafelec Team Czech RepublicregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional subsidiary operating in Czech Republic market for MAFELEC group products.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• E2S Warning Signals: UK-based manufacturer of visual and audible signaling devices (beacons, sounders, buzzers) for hazardous and industrial environments; closely comparable to Mafelec's M-Door buzzer and indicator range.
• Schaltbau: German manufacturer of rail door systems, control equipment, snap-action switches, and DC power components; competes with Mafelec across rail driver controls, door push buttons, and safety equipment.
• EAO: Swiss-based HMI specialist manufacturing push buttons, indicator lights, and switches for railway, industrial, and harsh-environment applications — directly comparable product-by-product to Mafelec's M-Door, M-Desk, and C22 lines.
• Mors Smitt (Wabtec): Railway signaling relay and interface specialist now under Wabtec; directly comparable to Mafelec's railway control, signaling, and switching portfolio.
• Schmersal: Industrial safety switch and emergency-stop specialist (EN ISO 13850); directly comparable to Mafelec's C22 emergency-stop range across industrial, elevator, and rail safety applications.

Broad incumbents

• Legrand: Global electrical and digital building infrastructure group; competes with Mafelec's OTIS elevator button business through building-electrical systems distribution and adjacent product portfolios.
• Wabtec: Large diversified rail equipment and digital solutions provider; competes broadly with Mafelec across rail signaling, door systems, and connected rolling-stock technologies.
• Knorr-Bremse: Global leader in rail braking, door, and HVAC systems; overlaps with Mafelec on rail door-control push buttons and brake indicators as part of a much wider systems portfolio.
• Pepperl+Fuchs: Industrial sensor and hazardous-area equipment manufacturer; comparable severe-environment electronics and signaling portfolio, with much broader scale across process industries.
• Siemens Mobility: Major rail signaling, automation, and rolling-stock OEM; increasingly integrating front lighting, predictive-maintenance, and TCMS connectivity that compete with M-SMART.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/mafelecteam
• Facebookfacebook.com/Mafelec-Team-742706585886062
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mafelec-team

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries10 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 Mafelec