FVI

What FVI does

FVI (Forum Vision Instandhaltung e.V.) is a German non-profit professional association founded on March 5, 2004 at the Fraunhofer Institut IML in Dortmund and officially registered as an eingetragener Verein (e.V.) on March 17, 2004. Headquartered in Ratingen, Germany, the organization operates exclusively within the domestic German market and positions itself as the expert network (Expertennetzwerk) for industrial maintenance professionals. Its functional purpose is to close the gap between research and practice by bundling current Instandhaltung know-how into a shared knowledge pool and providing a forum for experience exchange across industries. The organization marked its 20th anniversary in 2024, with founding figure Harald Neuhaus appointed Ehrenvorsitzender (Honorary Chairman).

The association's core platform is its expert network, delivered through working groups (Arbeitskreise), FVI-Treffen meetings, publications (Fachbeiträge, Dissertationen, Richtlinien und Normen), and the flagship MainDays annual conference, which is scheduled for its 26th edition on May 5-6, 2026 in Berlin. Active research initiatives include the Interreg NWE-funded More4Sustainability project on sustainable asset management, energy efficiency, and emissions reduction, and the P4 project on fuel cell technology. A Förderpreis Instandhaltung award supports emerging maintenance research, and a Wissenschaftlicher Beirat (scientific advisory board) anchors academic credibility. Distribution channels include the ipih.de website, LinkedIn, Facebook, Xing, and Twitter. FVI does not offer commercial software products, APIs, or proprietary technology platforms; its digital footprint consists of membership applications via easyverein.com and content publishing.

FVI is funded primarily through membership fees and sponsorship and does not publicly disclose financial information. Governance rests with a four-member Vorstand (Jens Reissenweber, Björn Höper, Marcel Hahn, Harald Holzvoigt). The Premiumsponsoren sponsorship program and a growing training portfolio (e-learning plus classroom training with mainnovation) represent the main commercial levers beyond individual and corporate memberships.

Name

FVI

Legal name

Forum Vision Instandhaltung e.V.

Website

https://ipih.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

FVI (Forum Vision Instandhaltung e.V.) is a German non-profit association founded in 2004 that operates as an expert network for industrial maintenance professionals, facilitating knowledge exchange between research and practice through working groups, the MainDays annual conference, and research projects.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Ratingen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

FVI (Forum Vision Instandhaltung e.V.) is a German non-profit association that operates an industrial maintenance expert network. It sells member access to working groups (Arbeitskreise), hosts industry events such as the MainDays conference, and coordinates collaborative applied research projects such as More4Sustainability and P4 fuel cells, serving maintenance practitioners and organizations in German-speaking industry.

Product overview

FVI (Forum Vision Instandhaltung e.V.) is a professional association and expert network for industrial maintenance, not a software product company. It serves as a knowledge exchange platform connecting research and practice in the maintenance field. The organization facilitates networking through events (such as MainDays annual conferences and FVI-Treffen working group meetings), research projects (including More4Sustainability on sustainable asset management and P4 on fuel cell technology), and publications/articles on maintenance topics. FVI does not offer commercial software products or services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MainDays Industry Conference Annual flagship conference hosted by FVI for members and the wider German industrial maintenance community, providing a venue for knowledge exchange, peer networking, and presentations on maintenance practice, sustainability, and emerging technologies.
• Maintenance Working Groups (Arbeitskreise) Member-only expert working groups convened by FVI on industrial maintenance topics, where practitioners collaborate to develop guidance, share benchmarks, and define positions on maintenance standards and methods.
• Collaborative Maintenance Research Projects Applied research consortia coordinated by FVI in cooperation with the Fraunhofer Institut IML ecosystem, including named projects such as More4Sustainability and P4 fuel cells, open to member companies as research partners.
• FVI Association Membership Institutional membership in Forum Vision Instandhaltung e.V. granting companies and individuals access to working groups, MainDays, and research collaboration with the Fraunhofer-aligned industrial maintenance network.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• VDI (Verein Deutscher Ingenieure): Germany's largest technical-scientific professional association serving engineers across industries. Directly comparable as a member-based German engineering association offering working groups, events, and knowledge exchange — overlapping FVI's professional-association model.
• GPM (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Projektmanagement): German professional association for project management offering certifications, events, and working groups. Comparable to FVI as a German member-based association delivering industry-relevant events, standards, and professional networking for industrial practitioners.
• DGQ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Qualität): German quality management professional association offering certifications, events, and networking for quality professionals. Comparable to FVI as a German member association covering maintenance-adjacent topics (quality, continuous improvement) with similar non-profit structure.
• REFA (REFA-Verband): German association for industrial engineering, work organization, and productivity. Comparable as a German non-profit association providing training, working groups, and events to industrial practitioners, overlapping with FVI's industrial-maintenance professional audience.
• DECHEMA (Gesellschaft für Chemische Technik und Biotechnologie): German technical-scientific society for chemical engineering and biotechnology with strong industry-networking activities. Comparable as a German non-profit technical association hosting working groups, conferences, and applied research collaboration similar to FVI.
• EFNMS (European Federation of National Maintenance Societies): Pan-European federation of national maintenance societies. Directly comparable as a maintenance-focused professional association, representing the international layer of the same network category FVI operates in domestically.

Broad incumbents

• VDMA (Verband Deutscher Maschinen- und Anlagenbau): Germany's main trade association for the mechanical engineering industry, including equipment manufacturers and related service providers. Comparable as a larger industry association serving industrial maintenance-adjacent sectors, though operating at broader industry-portfolio scope.
• BDI (Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie): Germany's umbrella federation of industrial associations representing the broader industrial sector. Comparable at the meta level as a federation of industry associations, but at substantially larger scope than FVI's maintenance-specific focus.
• IHK (Industrie- und Handelskammer): German Chambers of Industry and Commerce serving as institutional business membership organizations across Germany. Comparable as a broader business-membership association ecosystem within which FVI operates as a more specialized maintenance-focused body.

Emerging players

• mainnovation GmbH: Dutch/German consultancy and training provider specializing in maintenance excellence and asset management — directly collaborating with FVI on training programs (Frank Hoffman trainer). Comparable as a commercial maintenance-focused organization operating adjacent to FVI's network.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/FVI_DasNetzwerk
• Facebookfacebook.com/FVI.DasNetzwerk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/forum-vision-instandhaltung-e-v-?trk=biz-companies-cym

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 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 FVI