MDC Max Daetwyler

What MDC Max Daetwyler does

MDC Max Daetwyler GmbH, founded in 1990 and headquartered in Griesheim, Germany, is a specialized B2B manufacturer and distributor serving the rotogravure and flexographic printing industries. The company is a subsidiary of Heliograph Holding, a diversified industrial group that combines seven brands across 14 global offices with competencies in galvanics, automation, surface treatment, engraving, and laser systems. MDC functions as the group's consumables and precision-measurement brand, offering a catalog of 39,000+ doctor blade (Rakel) configurations supplied under a 40+ year exclusive partnership with Daetwyler SwissTec AG of Switzerland, alongside branded sub-lines (Longlife, Ultralife, Optilife, Optilife PLUS, Duralife, Soft, Goldstar, Bluestar, Pearlstar, Gamutstar, Rotostar, Gold, Rostfrei, and plastic variants) tailored to specific ink chemistries and substrates.

The company's product portfolio is organized into two operational divisions. The Print Room (Drucksaal) division provides doctor blades plus cleaning consumables (Heliowash Ink Remover, WB, UV, and Intensiv cleaners), accessories (chamber seals, sealing paste, magnetic filters, circular knives, filter bags, blade protection), and on-site application engineering for troubleshooting print quality issues such as streaking, toning, and ink contamination. The Prepress (Druckvorstufe) division supplies cylinder-preparation consumables (HelioFace cutting plates, HelioGrind grinding stones, Heliomicrofinishing bands, Lappingfilm, HelioBrush) and a family of proprietary handheld measuring instruments (Thickness-Star FE for copper coating thickness, RZ-Star and Rz-Printer for roughness, MicroMet for dual copper/chrome coating, R-Met, Dia-Met for cylinder geometry, Duro-Met for hardness via UCI method, and Helio-Met for engraveability via eddy current).

MDC operates a hybrid go-to-market combining direct field sales with application technicians for German customers and a global distribution partner network covering Europe (France, UK, Spain, Russia, Benelux), Asia (Japan, Singapore, India, China), Africa (South Africa), and the Americas (USA, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico). Revenue is generated through one-time sales of consumables and hardware, augmented by professional services including on-site consulting, training, and maintenance. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The company holds stated market leadership in Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium, but discloses no revenue figures and operates with a headcount of 11-50 employees, characteristic of a niche industrial consumables specialist within a larger corporate parent.

Name

MDC Max Daetwyler

Legal name

MDC Max Daetwyler GmbH

Website

https://daetwylergmbh.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

MDC Max Daetwyler GmbH is a German B2B manufacturer and distributor of doctor blades, cleaning consumables, prepress cylinder-preparation materials, and precision measuring instruments for the rotogravure and flexographic printing industries, operating under Heliograph Holding with global distribution partners across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Griesheim

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Doctor Blades (Rakel): Core product line including MDC Longlife, Ultralife, Optilife, Duralife, Soft, Rostfrei, Standard, Goldstar, Bluestar, Pearlstar, Gamutstar, Rotostar, Gold variants and plastic doctor blades. Sold primarily to rotogravure and flexo printing operations.
2. Consumables: Cleaning products (Ink Remover Gel, Heliowash series), accessories (chamber blade seals, sealing paste, circular knives, cleaning accessories, sieve bags, color magnetic filters, blade protection), and cleaning tanks for printing machines
3. Prepress Consumables: Turning, grinding, and polishing materials including HelioFace cutting plates, HelioGrind grinding stones, HelioMicrofinishing bands, Lappingfilm, HelioBrush, filter candles, and HelioFilter bands for cylinder production
4. Measuring Instruments: Specialized measuring devices including Thickness-Star FE, RZ-Star, Rz-Printer, MicroMet, R-Met, Dia-Met, Duro-Met, and Helio-Met for quality control in cylinder manufacturing
5. Technical Service: On-site technical consulting, application support, training programs, maintenance, and repair services for customer printing operations

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

MDC Max Daetwyler manufactures and distributes doctor blades (Rakel), printing consumables, prepress grinding and polishing materials, and proprietary handheld measuring instruments used by rotogravure and flexographic printing operations and by gravure cylinder manufacturers. The company supplies a portfolio of more than 39,000 doctor blade configurations sourced primarily from its long-standing partner Daetwyler SwissTec AG, complemented by Heliowash cleaning agents, HelioGrind/HelioFace prepress consumables, and in-house developed measuring devices for coating thickness, roughness, hardness, diameter, and engraveability.

Product overview

MDC Max Daetwyler GmbH offers a comprehensive portfolio of products for the printing industry, organized into two main divisions: the Print Room (Drucksaal) and Prepress (Druckvorstufe). The Print Room division includes doctor blades (19 distinct MDC brand products including Longlife, Ultralife, Optilife, Optilife PLUS, Duralife, Soft, Rostfrei, Standard, Goldstar, Bluestar, Pearlstar, Gamutstar, Rotostar, Gold, and plastic variants like Durapro, Polypro, Unipro, Kunststofflippenrakel, and Waschrakel), cleaning consumables (Ink Remover Gel, Heliowash product line for UV, WB, and gravure inks, plus accessories like chamber seals, magnetic filters, and cleaning tools), and troubleshooting services. The Prepress division supplies turning/engraving consumables (HelioFace T-CUT, R-CUT, Steel-CUT cutting plates, CFM EasyLock system), grinding and polishing materials (HelioGrind HG stones, Grinding Stone series, Heliomicrofinishing, Lappingfilm, HelioBrush), and filter products (Filterkerzen, HelioFilter Band). Specialized measurement devices include Thickness-Star FE, RZ-Star, Rz-Printer, MicroMet, R-Met, Dia-Met, Duro-Met, and Helio-Met for quality control in cylinder manufacturing. The company also provides technical service, application consulting, and training for printing operations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• MDC Longlife: Doctor blade product line for printing applications
• MDC Ultralife
• MDC Optilife
• MDC Duralife
• MDC Soft
• MDC Standard
• MDC Goldstar
• MDC Bluestar
• MDC Pearlstar
• MDC Gamutstar
• MDC Rotostar
• MDC Gold
• MDC Rostfrei
• Heliowash
• Heliomicrofinishing
• Lappingfilm
• HelioBrush
• HelioGrind
• Thickness-Star FE
• RZ-Star
• MicroMet
• R-Met
• Duro-Met
• Dia-Met
• Helio-Met

Products and services

• MDC Doctor Blades (Rakel) Portfolio of 39,000+ doctor blade configurations supplied by Daetwyler SwissTec AG, covering rotogravure and flexographic printing applications across packaging, publication, labels, wallpaper, and security printing. Includes product lines MDC Longlife, Ultralife, Optilife, Optilife PLUS, Duralife, Soft, Rostfrei, Standard, Goldstar, Bluestar, Pearlstar, Gamutstar, Rotostar, Gold, plus plastic variants Durapro, Polypro, Unipro, Kunststofflippenrakel, and Waschrakel.

Quantifiable outcome

• Reduced printing defects through proper doctor blade selection and technical consultation
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Daetwyler SwissTec AGcoreTechnology or IntegrationSwiss partner supplying high-quality doctor blades for over 40 years. This partnership has made MDC the market leader in Germany, Netherlands, and Belgium, and has established Daetwyler SwissTec as the worldwide benchmark for doctor blade quality. Products include MDC Longlife, Ultralife, Optilife, Duralife, and other doctor blade variants.
• Heliograph Holding GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent company providing strategic direction and network support. Heliograph combines competencies in galvanics, automation, surface treatment, engraving and laser systems for rotogravure and letterpress printing. MDC is one of 7 brands under the holding with 14 global offices.
• Daetwyler IBO Tec GmbHminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner company located in Bad Schwartau, Germany, supporting the distribution network.
• RK Siebdrucktechnik GmbHminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner company in Rösrath, Germany specializing in screen printing technology.
• Adkow B.V.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner company in Waardenburg, Netherlands supporting distribution in the Benelux region.
• K. Walter Service Corporation (USA)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for American markets, Mr. Bob Speiss serves as contact.
• MDC Max Daetwyler do BrasilminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Brazilian markets, Mr. Matthias Meuli serves as contact.
• Daetwyler Colombia, S.A.S.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Colombian markets, Mr. Hans Gerhard Solterbeck serves as contact.
• Max Daetwyler de Mexico, S.A. de C.V.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Mexican markets.
• MDC Max Daetwyler (Pty.) Ltd. (South Africa)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for African markets, Mr. Werner Hämmig serves as contact, based in Paarl, South Africa.
• Heliograph JapanminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Japanese markets, Mr. Yoshito Takayama serves as contact.
• Heliograph (S.E.A.) Pte Ltd (Singapore)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Southeast Asian markets, Mr. Martin Raab serves as contact.
• Daetwyler Graphics India Pvt. Ltd.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Indian markets, Mr. Judhir Dhotey serves as contact.
• HELL Gravure Technologies (Beijing) Co., Ltd.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Chinese markets, Mr. Tie Jun Lin serves as contact.
• Daetwyler-Hell France SASminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for French markets, Mr. Jean-Philippe Mouiche serves as contact.
• HELL Gravure Systems RussiaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Russian markets, Mr. Konstantin Kruk serves as contact.
• MDC Max Daetwyler UK Ltd.minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for UK markets, Mr. Tom Dean serves as contact.
• Daetwyler-Hell Iberica S.L. (Spain)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Spanish markets, Mr. Siegfried Rostock serves as contact, based in Segur de Calafell, Tarragona.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• BOBST: Global incumbent supplying packaging printing and converting machinery, including gravure and flexo presses. Comparable as a broad vendor whose installed base consumes doctor blades and consumables similar to those MDC supplies.
• Ohio Gravure Technologies Inc. Sister Heliograph Holding brand supplying gravure cylinder production and laser engraving systems. Comparable as a peer within the same rotogravure value chain targeting cylinder makers.
• Flint Group: Major global supplier of printing inks, blankets, sleeves, and consumables for packaging and publication print. Comparable because it serves the same flexo and gravure customers with adjacent consumables categories.
• Kaspar Walter GmbH & Co. KG: Sister Heliograph Holding business focused on surface treatment and cylinder-related equipment. Comparable because it serves the same cylinder manufacturing customers that buy MDC's prepress consumables and measurement devices.
• HELL Gravure Systems GmbH & Co. KG: Sister company within Heliograph Holding and a major manufacturer of rotogravure printing and engraving machinery. Comparable because it sells complementary equipment into the same gravure and flexo printing customers.

Emerging players

• Maxcess International: Supplier of web handling, tension control, and rotary tooling for printing and converting lines. Partially overlapping with MDC's customer base and adjacent in consumables for press rooms.
• Allison Systems: Manufacturer of doctor blades and printing press accessories, particularly for flexo applications. Comparable as a smaller specialist competing in the same doctor blade category as MDC.

Direct peers

• Flexo Concepts: Specialist in doctor blades and blade-related consumables for flexographic printing. Overlaps directly with MDC's flexo blade SKUs (Bluestar, Pearlstar, Gamutstar) and serves similar packaging converters.
• Daetwyler SwissTec AG: Swiss-based core supplier of doctor blades to MDC and a sister company under Heliograph Holding; produces the MDC Longlife, Ultralife, Optilife, and Duralife blade families. It is the closest functional peer because it manufactures essentially the same product line that MDC distributes.
• Apex International: Manufacturer of doctor blades and anilox rollers serving flexo and gravure printers globally. Apex competes head-to-head with MDC's blade portfolio and sells into the same printing customer base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 MDC Max Daetwyler