Kühme Armaturen

What Kühme Armaturen does

Kühme Armaturen GmbH is a privately held German Mittelstand manufacturer founded in 1967 in Bochum, specializing in pneumatic special valves for safety-critical fuel shut-off in energy and process plants. The company designs, engineers, and produces engineered-to-order quick-closing ESD valves, hybrid control/shut-off valves, single-plate slide gates, butterfly flap valves, Duplex Gas Valves, HIPPS-function quick-closing valves, and fully integrated valve skids and stations. Its core technology is self-medium (pneumatic) control — valves operate autonomously without auxiliary power, delivering closing times below 0.1 seconds, absolute zero leakage (100% helium-tight), and over 200,000 switching cycles, with H2-ready variants certified for hydrogen content up to 97.4%. The company holds key certifications including TÜV, DVGW, ISO 9001 (since 1994), and HAF 604 for the Chinese nuclear market, and operates a patent-pending Automatic Leakage Control Device for liquid media.

Kühme serves primary segments in power generation (coal, gas, nuclear, CHP, HRSG, gas turbines), process industries (refineries, petrochemical, steel, glass, marine gas engines), and specialized use cases in hydrogen service and aviation refueling. The business model is built on direct enterprise field sales from Bochum, supported by a partner network of 40+ valve specialists across 16+ countries, with a wholly-owned Indian subsidiary (KUHME Valves India Pvt. Ltd., Pune, established 2016) serving the Indian market and acting as a production hub for Asia. Revenue is generated through project-based, quote-based sales of engineered equipment with high unit prices (reference projects include DN 1100 butterfly flap valves at 1,900 kg per unit, and 200+ valve stations / 1,000+ quick-closing valves delivered to Indian customers in a single year). Typical named customers include Vattenfall Europe Wärme AG, TIANWAN Nuclear Power Plant (China), SADARA (Saudi Arabia), Vattenfall Berlin CCGT, and large Rhineland refineries and steel mills.

The company is described as a Hidden Champion and one of the global market leaders in special valve technology for fuel safety shut-off, active in 50+ countries with no public listing, no external institutional investment, and ownership continuity under founder Klaus Reusch and co-Managing Director Peter Reusch. Marketing and customer development rely on industry events (TU Dresden Power Plant Technology Colloquium), technical seminars (KWS), trade publications, a bilingual website, and direct application engineering — reflecting a high-touch, technical-credibility-driven B2B sales motion rather than broad consumer outreach.

Name

Kühme Armaturen

Legal name

KÜHME Armaturen GmbH

Website

https://kuehme.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1967

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Kühme Armaturen GmbH is a German Mittelstand manufacturer founded in 1967 that designs and produces pneumatic special valves for safety-critical fuel shut-off in power plants, refineries, gas turbine systems, and nuclear facilities worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Safety Valves (Energy Technology)

NAICS

Industrial Valve Manufacturing (332911), Metal Valve Manufacturing (33291), Fluid Power Valve and Hose Fitting Manufacturing (332912)

SIC

Oil & Gas Field Machinery & Equipment (3533), General Industrial Machinery & Equipment (3560)

akta.pro primary industry

Valves & Cartridge Valves (Directional, Pressure, Flow Control) (IMAHAGAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Reactor Vessel, Internals & Primary Circuit Components (RPV, piping, pumps, valves) (EUAKADAE)

Keywords

• Pneumatic safety valves
• Quick-closing valves
• ESD shutoff valves
• Process industry valves
• Gas turbine skids

Headquarters

HQ city

Bochum

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Special Industrial Valves: KÜHME designs, engineers, and manufactures custom pneumatic special valves (quick-closing valves, ESD valves, hybrid valves) for safety-critical fuel shut-off in energy and process plants. Products are sold on a project/quote basis as engineered-to-order equipment. Payment terms for orders above EUR 30,000 include 1/3 down payment, 1/3 at readiness for dispatch, and 1/3 within 30 days of delivery (max 60 days after readiness).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

KÜHME Armaturen designs, develops and manufactures pneumatic special valves (quick-closing valves, ESD valves, hybrid shut-off/control valves) for safety-critical fuel shut-off in energy and process plants. The product portfolio spans individual valves, valve combinations and fully integrated valve stations / skids, with autonomous self-medium-controlled operation (no auxiliary power required), closing times under 0.1 seconds, 100% helium-tight zero leakage and hydrogen-ready capability. All products are engineered to individual customer specifications and delivered as turnkey subsystems to power plants, refineries, gas turbine operators, steel works and aviation refueling facilities worldwide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Schnellschlussventile (Quick-Closing Pneumatic ESD Valves)

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered regional and core.

• Conai Equipamentos Industriais Ltda.regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 October 2020Brazilian industrial equipment partner that recently equipped a combustion gas train with KÜHME automatic quick-closing safety shut-off valves (KVII/F series). The application operates with residue gas containing up to 97.4% hydrogen. KÜHME valves provided proven first-class internal and external tightness for the Brazilian customer's industrial combustion system.
• KUHME Valves India Pvt. Ltd. (KVI)coreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 March 2016Wholly-owned subsidiary in Pune, India, established following KÜHME Germany's onboarding to the 'Make in India Mittelstand' program in 2015. Certificate of Incorporation granted March 2016. Specializes in production of highly integrated valve skids tailored for individual power plant applications. Serves the important local Indian market with KÜHME technology under the 'Make in India' initiative. Acts as production hub for other Asian countries. ISO 9001 certified. Contact: Mr. Sharadchandra Karkhanis.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Broad incumbents

• Pentair (Flow & Filtration Solutions): US-listed diversified flow control company serving industrial, commercial, and infrastructure markets. Overlap in industrial valves for commercial and process heating, cooling, and energy applications.
• Flowserve Corporation: US-listed global leader in pumps, valves, seals, and flow control automation for power, oil & gas, chemical, and water industries. Larger incumbent with overlapping products in safety/ESD valves for power and process plants.
• Emerson Electric (Fisher / Anderson Greenwood): Global automation conglomerate whose Fisher and Anderson Greenwood lines supply control and safety valves to power, refinery, and process industries. A broad incumbent competitor in industrial safety shut-off valves and integrated skid solutions.

Direct peers

• IMI plc: UK-listed global specialist in motion and fluid control technologies, including severe-service industrial valves for power, petrochemical, and oil & gas. Direct competitor in engineered safety and control valves for power/process plants.
• Samson AG: Frankfurt-based German industrial valve specialist focused on control valves and process automation. Highly comparable to Kühme as a privately-held German Mittelstand manufacturer of high-spec industrial valves for power, chemical, and refinery applications.
• CIRCOR International (Crane Co.): Specialty valve manufacturer (now part of Crane Co.) serving power generation, oil & gas, and process industries with critical-service valves and skid solutions. Comparable product overlap in ESD and quick-closing valves for fuel shut-off.
• Koso Group (Koso Group Int.): Japanese specialist manufacturer of industrial control valves, safety valves, and process automation for power plants, petrochemical, and steel. Comparable in engineerd-to-order safety and control valves for power and process industries.
• KSB SE & Co. KGaA: German-listed manufacturer of pumps, valves, and related service for power generation, water, and process industries. Comparable as a German industrial fluid-handling specialist with overlap in power plant and process safety valve applications.
• Velan Inc. Canadian manufacturer of industrial valves including severe-service and nuclear-grade products. Comparable in power generation, nuclear, and process industry safety valve applications with similar engineering-driven GTM.

Regional players

• Neway Valve (Suzhou Neway Valve): Chinese manufacturer of industrial valves for oil & gas, power, and chemical applications. Comparable in safety shut-off and severe-service valves, primarily competing in Asia where Kühme also has its Indian subsidiary.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/kuehme_valves
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kuhme-armaturen-gmbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 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 Kühme Armaturen