What ATM Holding does

ATM Qness GmbH, operating as QATM (formerly ATM - Advanced Materialography), is a German manufacturer of materialography and hardness testing equipment founded in 1980 and integrated into the Verder Scientific division of the Verder Group. The company designs and produces precision instruments covering the full metallographic sample preparation workflow — cutting (precision, standard, and large cut-off machines; clamping tools), mounting (hot mounting presses including the Qpress 40 and UV-based Qmount devices), grinding/polishing/etching (pre-grinders, manual and automatic grinders/polishers, fully automated systems, electrolytic polishers/etchers), and hardness testing (micro, Rockwell, and macro testers). It also sells complementary consumables (cutting, mounting, grinding, polishing, etching supplies, diamond suspensions, solution boxes), an inverse macroscope optical analyzer (Qeye 200-800), AI-powered image evaluation software (Q*AI*), and complete turnkey system laboratory solutions.

The business model blends one-time equipment sales, recurring software subscriptions, high-margin consumables tied to the installed base, and recurring technical service/maintenance contracts — the latter formalized in 2025 through structured Service Plans. Go-to-market combines direct enterprise sales with product demonstrations and a global channel of 40+ partners, served by 150+ employees across a localized digital presence in 8+ languages. Customer segments span manufacturing companies (quality and process control), research institutions and analytical laboratories, plus selected verticals including mining and technical ceramics. Pricing is quote-based with no public list prices, reflecting an enterprise field-sales motion.

In 2025 the company executed a concentrated portfolio refresh: the Q*AI* AI-powered image evaluation software (its first AI-native product), the award-winning Qpress 40 hot mounting press, QPREP Diamond Suspensions, and structured Service Plans. The company claims 55,000+ installed products worldwide and 40+ years of operating history. As a subsidiary within Verder Scientific — alongside Carbolite, ELTRA, Retsch, Microtrac, and ERWEKA — QATM benefits from shared distribution and cross-selling infrastructure but does not independently disclose revenue or capital structure.

Name

ATM Holding

Legal name

ATM Qness GmbH

Website

https://atm-m.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

QATM (ATM Qness GmbH) is a German manufacturer of materialography and hardness testing equipment, serving manufacturing companies, research institutions, analytical laboratories, and mining/ceramics verticals with precision instruments, consumables, software, and laboratory solutions since 1980.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Mammelzen

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. Equipment Sales: Sale of materialography and hardness testing equipment including precision cut-off machines, mounting presses, grinders, polishers, and hardness testers
2. Consumables: High-quality consumables for metallographic sample preparation including cutting, mounting, grinding, polishing, etching and analyzing products
3. Software Licenses and Options: Software options for hardness testing and analysis including Q*AI image evaluation technology
4. System Laboratory Solutions: Complete laboratory solutions including lab furniture and fully equipped materialographic laboratories
5. Technical Service and Maintenance: Technical service including annual maintenance, extended warranty, and maintenance plans for laboratory equipment

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ATM Holding operates through its subsidiary ATM Qness GmbH (QATM), which manufactures and sells materialography and hardness testing equipment for metallographic sample preparation across all material classes. The portfolio covers the full workflow of cutting, mounting, grinding/polishing/etching, hardness testing (micro, Rockwell, macro), optical analysis, complemented by consumables, AI-powered software (Q*AI), and complete system laboratory solutions.

Product overview

QATM (ATM Qness GmbH) is a manufacturer of materialography and hardness testing equipment, operating as part of the Verder Scientific division of the Verder Group. The company offers a comprehensive product portfolio organized around the metallographic sample preparation workflow: cutting (precision cut-off machines, standard cut-off machines, large cut-off machines, and clamping tools), mounting (hot mounting presses including the award-winning Qpress 40, and UV mounting devices via Qmount), grinding/polishing/etching (pre-grinders, manual and automatic grinders & polishers, fully automated systems, and electrolytic polishers & etchers), and hardness testing (micro, Rockwell, and macro hardness testers with Qsolution customized solutions and Mobile Image Evaluation). The portfolio also includes the Qeye 200-800 optical analyzer/inverse macroscope for analysis, Q*AI* AI-powered image evaluation software, comprehensive consumables (cutting, mounting, grinding, polishing, etching supplies, and diamond suspensions), and complete system laboratory solutions. QATM positions itself as a quality and technology leader with over 40 years of experience serving material analysis applications across all material classes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Precision Cut-off Machines High-precision cutting equipment for metallographic sample preparation, used by manufacturing quality labs and research institutions requiring accurate sectioning of materials.
• Cut-off Machines Standard cut-off machines for cutting metallographic samples, targeted at materials testing laboratories.
• Large Cut-off Machines Industrial-scale cut-off machines for large samples, serving heavy-industry and large-format materialography applications.
• Clamping Tools Precision clamping tools for securing samples during cutting operations in metallographic preparation.
• Hot Mounting Presses Hot mounting presses for embedding metallographic samples in resin, enabling subsequent grinding, polishing, and analysis.
• Qpress 40 Hot Mounting Press Award-winning fast hot mounting press for metallographic sample preparation, offering higher throughput than prior models.
• Qmount UV Mounting Devices UV-based cold mounting devices for materialographic sample preparation, providing an alternative mounting method without heat.
• Pre-Grinder Initial grinding equipment for materialographic sample preparation, used to flatten samples after mounting.
• Manual Grinder & Polisher Manual grinding and polishing equipment for metallographic sample preparation in laboratory settings.
• Automatic Grinder & Polisher Automated grinding and polishing systems delivering consistent, repeatable sample preparation for industrial labs.
• Fully Automated Grinding/Polishing/Etching Systems Fully automated grinding, polishing, and etching systems built for high-throughput materialographic laboratories.
• Electrolytic Polisher & Etcher Electrolytic equipment for polishing and etching metallographic samples, used in metallographic preparation workflows.
• Micro Hardness Testers Precision micro hardness testing equipment for small samples and thin materials in quality control and research labs.
• Rockwell Hardness Testers Rockwell hardness testing equipment for standard hardness measurement in industrial quality control.
• Macro Hardness Testers Macro hardness testing equipment for larger samples and bulk materials used in materials testing laboratories.
• Qsolution Customized Hardness Testing Solutions Customized hardness testing solutions tailored to specific customer requirements, including mobile image evaluation options.
• Q*AI* Software AI-powered image evaluation software that automatically detects and evaluates hardness test impressions, including difficult surfaces, integrated with QATM hardness testers.
• Qeye 200-800 Optical Analyzer Inverse macroscope for high-resolution optical analysis with fast weld seam measurement, used in metallographic inspection workflows.
• Metallographic Consumables High-quality consumables for cutting, mounting, grinding, polishing, etching, analyzing, and geology/mineralogy applications, plus hardness testing consumables and solution boxes.
• QPREP Diamond Suspensions Diamond suspension consumables for polishing applications in metallographic preparation, marketed as more precise, more efficient, and more powerful.
• System Laboratory Solutions Complete laboratory solutions including lab furniture and fully equipped materialographic laboratories for end-to-end lab setup.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Verder ScientificcoreOthersVerder Scientific is the Scientific Division of the VERDER Group that sets standards in high-tech equipment for quality control, research and development of solid matter. QATM (ATM Qness GmbH) is a subsidiary operating under Verder Scientific alongside other well-known companies including Carbolite (Heat Treatment), ELTRA (Elemental Analysis), Retsch (Milling & Sieving), and Microtrac (Particle Characterization).

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Buehler (ITW): Buehler, part of Illinois Tool Works, is a US-headquartered leading manufacturer of metallographic sample preparation and hardness testing equipment. It directly competes with QATM across cutting, mounting, grinding/polishing and hardness testing product lines.
• PRESI: PRESI is a France-based manufacturer of metallographic and hardness testing equipment with a comparable product portfolio spanning cutting, mounting, polishing and hardness testers. It is a direct competitor to QATM particularly in European markets.
• Allied High Tech Products: Allied High Tech Products is a US-based manufacturer of precision cutting, grinding/polishing and lapping equipment used in metallographic and materials analysis labs. It competes directly with QATM in sample preparation equipment for industrial and research customers.
• Struers: Struers is a Denmark-based global leader in materialographic equipment and consumables, offering cutting, mounting, grinding/polishing and hardness testing products. It is the closest direct competitor to QATM with a similar workflow coverage and customer base.
• Kemet International: Kemet International is a UK-based manufacturer of metallographic consumables, precision cutting machines and polishing equipment. It is a direct competitor to QATM in metallographic sample preparation consumables and equipment.
• Metkon: Metkon is a Turkey-based manufacturer specializing in metallographic sample preparation equipment, including cutting, mounting, grinding/polishing and hardness testing instruments. It overlaps directly with QATM's core product categories.

Broad incumbents

• Thermo Fisher Scientific (Materials & Structural Analysis): Thermo Fisher is a global broad incumbent in analytical instruments with materials characterization offerings including hardness testers and microscopy. It does not specialize in metallographic sample preparation but overlaps with QATM in hardness testing and optical analysis segments.
• Evident (formerly Olympus Scientific Solutions): Evident offers industrial microscopes and materials analysis instruments including hardness testing systems. It is a broad incumbent that competes with QATM in hardness testing and optical analysis but does not cover the full metallographic sample preparation workflow.
• LECO Corporation: LECO is a US-based broad analytical instruments manufacturer offering elemental analysis, metallography and materials characterization equipment. It overlaps with QATM in hardness testing and metallographic sample preparation as part of a wider analytical instrument portfolio.
• Carl Zeiss (ZEISS Industrial Quality & Research): ZEISS is a global broad incumbent in microscopy, optical analysis and industrial metrology. Its materials analysis solutions overlap with QATM's Qeye optical analyzer and microscopy-adjacent hardness testing workflows, but it is not specialized in metallographic sample preparation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCzY5yeh0DsPaFsPt_ji8g7Q
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/atm---advanced-materialography

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ATM Holding