P.J. Prause Durotec

Name

P.J. Prause Durotec

Legal name

P. J. Prause Durotec GmbH

Website

https://prause-durotec.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Arnsberg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Customized Composite Leaf Springs Manufacturing: Manufacture and sale of customized S-Ply® composite leaf springs and components. Products include S-Ply® yellow, yellow HT, blue, carbon, carbon blue variants and GHGW reinforcement plates. Production in batch sizes starting from quantity 1, with geometries tailored to customer requirements.
2. Technical Engineering Services: Technical consultation and professional spring calculation services for optimal leaf spring design. Engineers provide customized advice on material selection and spring geometry for specific applications.
3. Finishing and Processing Services: Post-processing services including sealing (edge/surface), application of GHGW reinforcement plates, copper foil for static dissipation, edge bevels, drilling, tapping, countersinking, printing and marking. Increases value and functionality of base leaf spring products.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

P.J. Prause Durotec manufactures customised composite leaf springs and spring elements using its proprietary S-Ply® fibre-reinforced material platform (glass and carbon fibres in epoxy resin matrix). Production covers the full chain from UD prepregs to pressed, cut, and finished components, in batch sizes starting from one unit, serving industrial buyers across plant engineering, food processing, medical technology, automotive, furniture, sporting goods, paper, and aviation.

Product overview

P.J. Prause Durotec is a manufacturer of composite leaf springs and customized parts, specializing in fiber-reinforced polymer materials. The core product line is the S-Ply® family of leaf springs, which includes S-Ply® yellow (standard), S-Ply® yellow HT (high temperature), S-Ply® blue (food-grade with antimicrobial protection), S-Ply® carbon (carbon fiber reinforced with 3x higher modulus), and S-Ply® carbon blue (food-grade carbon variant). Supporting products include Glass fibre-reinforced polymer (GFRP/GHGW) reinforcement materials in green, blue, and carbon variants for reducing notching stress. The portfolio is complemented by finishing services (sealing, drilling, printing) and technical services (spring calculation, engineering consultation). All products are manufactured in Germany at the Arnsberg facility, with batch sizes starting at quantity 1.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• S-Ply®: Proprietary fibre composite material brand for leaf springs, originally based on 3M Scotchply technology, trademarked in 2002. Available in variants: yellow, yellow HT, blue, carbon, and carbon blue.

Products and services

• S-Ply® yellow Standard composite leaf springs made of glass fibre reinforcement with epoxy resin matrix for industrial OEM applications; offers larger specific spring effect, high internal damping, balanced spring behaviour, and 6x greater elastic energy storage than spring steel.
• S-Ply® yellow HT (High Temperature) High-temperature variant of S-Ply® yellow with operational range up to 160°C, providing temperature resistance for high-heat industrial environments while maintaining low E-modulus and high mechanical strength.
• S-Ply® blue Food-grade glass fibre composite leaf springs with antimicrobial protection for food contact applications in automated dosing, weighing, and packaging machines; compliant with European Food Standard (EC) No. 1935/2004 and US FDA Standard § 177.2280.
• S-Ply® carbon Carbon fibre reinforced composite leaf springs providing 3x higher modulus of elasticity than S-Ply® yellow, enabling construction of thinner and lighter components with high load capacity for premium sporting goods, aviation, and lightweight industrial applications.
• S-Ply® carbon blue Food-grade carbon fibre reinforced composite leaf springs combining high strength and lightweight of S-Ply® carbon with food-contact compatibility and lifetime antimicrobial protection; intended for food processing applications requiring high stiffness.
• Glass fibre-reinforced polymer (GFRP / GHGW) Epoxy resin reinforcement plates with glass roving fabric (GHGW) supplied in green (electrically insulating), blue (food-grade with antimicrobial protection), and carbon variants; designed to reduce notching and shear stress when installing S-Ply® leaf springs, available in various thicknesses.
• Finishes (Post-processing) Post-processing services for S-Ply® leaf springs including edge/surface sealing (standard and food-safe), GFRP reinforcement plate bonding, copper foil application for static charge dissipation, edge bevels, slotted and threaded holes, drilling, countersinking, tapping, and printing/marking.
• Spring calculation service Technical service for designers and users to calculate S-Ply® leaf spring designs considering spring material, length, weight, frequency, and deflection parameters for optimal long-term strength.
• Technical advice service Engineering consultation service providing individual design of leaf springs for specific applications, including professional spring calculation and tailored technical support for OEMs.

Quantifiable outcome

• 6x greater elastic energy storage capacity compared to spring steel
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• RWTH Aachen University (Cobots Research)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Membership in project committee investigating how 'collaborative robots' (cobots) can support production of fibre-reinforced plastic components. Focus on imitation learning where cobots learn draping techniques from skilled workers. Company participates as potential end-user of such production technologies.
• RWTH Aachen University (Institute for Textile Technology)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Research partnership as member of project committee in 'Durable Hybrid' project led by Professor Thomas Gries. Investigates increasing fatigue strength of GFRP leaf springs through hybrid reinforcing textiles with crack-retaining fibres. Project involves C. Cramer Weberei GmbH & Co.KG and Krempel GmbH alongside P.J. Prause Durotec GmbH.
• Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Provided S-Ply® carbon moulded parts for student quadrocopter project in 5th Tübitak International Competition for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. Carbon fibre components for base plate and arms helped maintain flying weight under 1.7 kg.
• NASA (Student Programs)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Support for NASA Rover Challenge teams providing composite leaf spring components for airless tire vehicles. World champion teams of 2010 and 2015 used Prause Durotec springs. 2017 teams from Leipzig, Moscow, and Rio de Janeiro received parts; NASA awarded 'International Award' to Managing Director Tim Prause.
• South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences (Fachhochschule Südwestfalen)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014University collaboration enabling students taking Lightweight Construction electives supervised by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Mark Fiolka to visit company for excursions and gain insights into fibre composite processing. Over 15 diploma, bachelor and master theses realized in 20-year partnership examining new material combinations, applications, and economic efficiency vs steel springs.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Toray Industries: World's largest carbon fibre producer with deep presence in aerospace, automotive, and industrial composite applications. Comparable in fibre-composite materials and structural component manufacturing serving overlapping automotive and industrial customers.
• Benteler International: Global automotive supplier of chassis, suspension, and engineered metal/plastic components. Competes in similar automotive lightweighting programmes and serves comparable European OEM customers.
• SGL Carbon: Leading German manufacturer of carbon-based products including carbon fibres and composite materials. Operates upstream of Prause in fibre-reinforced composite supply chain and competes for similar lightweighting applications.
• Mubea: World's largest manufacturer of automotive suspension components, including steel leaf springs, serving the same OEM customers with overlapping applications. Broad incumbent competing in spring technology across automotive, commercial vehicles, and industrial segments.
• Hexcel: Global leader in advanced composites manufacturing carbon fibre reinforcements and resin systems. Comparable in fibre-composite technology stack with overlap in aerospace, automotive, and industrial end markets where Prause also serves customers.
• Trelleborg: Large polymer engineering group producing anti-vibration, sealing, and engineered polymer components for industrial OEMs. Comparable B2B industrial motion targeting similar applications (vibration damping, machine components) using polymer-based solutions.
• Lesjöfors: Major European industrial spring manufacturer with broad portfolio across compression, torsion, and leaf springs for industrial customers. Comparable B2B technical-sales motion and customer base in plant engineering and general industrial applications.
• Teijin: Japanese carbon fibre and composite materials producer with automotive, aerospace, and industrial lightweighting focus. Competes at the materials layer of the same composite value chain as Prause Durotec.

Direct peers

• ZF Friedrichshafen: Global automotive technology supplier that acquired LiteFlex, a direct competitor in composite leaf springs for vehicle suspension. Most directly comparable competitor in fibre-reinforced leaf springs at industrial scale.
• Gutekunst Federn: German precision spring manufacturer offering custom-engineered springs and stamped metal components to European industrial customers. Directly comparable German Mittelstand engineering-sales peer in the spring industry.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/p-j-prause-durotec-gmbh

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 P.J. Prause Durotec