Research Society Forming Technology

What Research Society Forming Technology does

Forschungsgesellschaft Umformtechnik mbH (FGU) is a Stuttgart-based, privately held German engineering research company founded in 1980 by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Dr. h.c. Kurt Lange, specializing in metal forming technology. The firm operates on a pre-competitive basis, bridging academic research from the University of Stuttgart's Institute for Metal Forming Technology (IFU) with industrial application through three cooperation models: short-term bilateral projects with individual partners, medium-term working groups for companies with shared challenges, and longer-term research cooperations funded by multiple industrial partners. Its service portfolio spans tool and process design, servo press application, FEM-based forming simulation, material characterization (metallurgic, tribological, FLC testing), innovative shearing including the proprietary counter shearing (Konterschneiden) method for burr-free components, and a training and consulting sub-brand called FormImpulse.

FGU generates revenue through negotiated bilateral project fees, annual working group membership subscriptions, research cooperation funding from industrial consortia, paid training courses, and ancillary services including technical translation and a literature/patent research service. Pricing is not publicly disclosed; working groups operate on fixed annual fees, bilateral projects are individually scoped, and research cooperations are multi-year engagements. GTM is dominated by direct enterprise field sales into automotive manufacturers, tier-1 suppliers, press and tool technology OEMs (Schuler, Trumpf), factory automation (Festo), consumer industrial firms (WMF, Stihl), and material suppliers (Outokumpu, Novelis), supported by industry events, conferences co-organized with IFU, and academic networks. The delivery team of approximately 10 people, including Scientific Director Prof. Liewald, Technical Director Christian Held, project engineers, a project technician, and administrative staff, executes all engagements from the Stuttgart facility or on customer sites.

Name

Research Society Forming Technology

Legal name

Forschungsgesellschaft Umformtechnik mbH

Website

https://fgu-mbh.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

FGU is a Stuttgart-based metal forming technology research and engineering firm founded in 1980, serving automotive, press technology, and industrial manufacturers with bilateral R&D projects, working groups, forming simulation, and training services in close cooperation with the University of Stuttgart.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Stuttgart

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Bilateral Project Fees: Short-term exclusive research projects conducted with individual industrial partners. Projects are customized to partner interests with results exclusively delivered to that partner. Characterized by short project duration and fast results.
2. Working Group Memberships: Annual fixed-price membership enabling participation in working groups addressing specific metal forming challenges. Results are shared exclusively with working group participants. Membership can be renewed annually.
3. Research Cooperation Projects: Cross-company research developments funded by multiple industrial partners addressing shared technical challenges in metal forming technology areas.
4. Consulting and Coaching Services: Technical consulting in metal forming including process and tool analysis at customer site, optimization potential identification, organizational consulting, technological expert questions, market analysis, technology scouting, literature and patent research, cost structure analysis.
5. Literature and Translation Services: Sale of dissertations, conference books, publications, and multi-day literature and patent research services. Technical translation and editing services for German, English, and French texts in metal forming technology.
6. Training Programs (FormImpulse): Training courses offered under the FormImpulse brand, covering sheet metal forming, bulk metal forming, tool startup, material fundamentals, and process planning. Conducted with the Institute for Metal Forming Technology (IFU).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Forschungsgesellschaft Umformtechnik mbH (FGU) provides pre-competitive research, engineering, and consulting services in metal forming technology. Its offerings span tool and process design, FEM-based forming simulation, material characterisation (metallurgic and tribological testing), innovative shearing methods (including proprietary counter shearing for burr-free components), and on-site process/tool analysis, delivered through bilateral projects, working groups, and multi-partner research cooperations.

Product overview

The Forschungsgesellschaft Umformtechnik mbH (FGU) is a research and engineering company founded in 1980, offering a comprehensive portfolio of metal forming technology services rather than a single software product. The core offerings comprise four main service areas: (1) Modern Forming Processes covering tool/process design, servo technology, process regulation, and component analysis; (2) Forming Simulation & Material Characterisation providing FEM simulation and material testing services including metallurgic and tribological investigations; (3) Innovative Shearing focused on burr-free cutting methods, process optimisation, and wear testing; and (4) FormImpulse Coaching & Consulting offering training programs, process/tool analysis, strategic consulting, literature services, and technical translations. Additionally, FGU provides collaborative research models including bilateral projects, working groups (such as Aluminium Alloy Extrusion and Burr-free Cutting), and formal research cooperations for industry partners seeking pre-competitive development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FormImpulse: A coaching and consulting sub-brand offering training programs, process and tool analyses, consulting services, and literature service in metal forming technology.

Products and services

• Modern Forming Processes (Moderne Umformprozesse) Comprehensive forming technology engineering services covering tool and process design, servo technology applications, process regulation concepts, and process/component analysis for industrial partners working in sheet metal and bulk metal forming.
• Forming Simulation and Material Characterisation (Umformsimulation & MAT-Charakterisierung) FEM-based forming simulation combined with material characterisation services, including metallurgic and tribological investigations, to support accurate simulation predictions and material behaviour analysis for industrial forming processes.
• Innovative Shearing (Innovatives Scherschneiden) Special shearing methods including proprietary counter shearing (Konterschneiden) for burr-free components, cutting process optimisation, and wear/endurance testing services for industrial shearing applications.
• FormImpulse Coaching and Consulting Training programs, on-site process and tool analyses, strategic consulting in metal forming, literature and patent research services, and technical translation/editing in German, English, and French, delivered under the FormImpulse sub-brand jointly with IFU University of Stuttgart.
• Bilateral Projects (Bilaterale Projekte) Short-term exclusive cooperation with individual industrial partners, focused on specific project interests, with results delivered exclusively to the project partner. Pricing is project-based and individually negotiated.
• Working Groups (Arbeitskreise) Medium-term cooperative research groups for companies facing similar challenges in metal forming technology. Active working groups include Extrusion of Aluminium Alloys, Burr-free Cutting, and Material Characterisation. Membership operates on fixed annual pricing, with results presented exclusively in regular sessions.
• Research Cooperations (Forschungskooperationen) Long-term research cooperations addressing shared technical challenges across companies, coordinated by FGU with support from the IFU at the University of Stuttgart, targeting current research goals at the highest technical and scientific level.

Quantifiable outcome

• Process robustness can be estimated through process deviations and tolerances using forming simulation
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Institut für Umformtechnik (IFU) - University of StuttgartcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTraditional close cooperation and networking with the Institute for Metal Forming Technology of the University of Stuttgart under the direction of Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing. Dr. h.c. Mathias Liewald MBA. This partnership ensures research in metal forming technology represents the current scientific state of the art. The IFU supports FGU in addressing modern questions and current research goals with industrial partners at the highest technical and scientific level.
• Audi AGmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAutomotive manufacturer and bilateral project partner. FGU conducts exclusive short-term research projects addressing Audi-specific forming technology challenges.
• Robert Bosch GmbHmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustrial technology company and bilateral project partner in metal forming research and development.
• FestomajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFactory automation company and bilateral project partner in metal forming technology.
• WMF GroupmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerManufacturer of household appliances and bilateral project partner.
• Andreas Stihl AG & CoKGmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPower equipment manufacturer and bilateral project partner.
• Daimler AGmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAutomotive manufacturer listed as reference and project partner.
• Schuler Pressen GmbHmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeading press technology manufacturer and reference partner for metal forming solutions.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• ESI Group: Provider of virtual prototyping and manufacturing simulation software, including sheet metal forming. Overlaps with FGU's simulation services and targets similar OEMs/Tier-1s through software-plus-services engagements.
• Porsche Engineering: Automotive engineering services provider offering vehicle development including body, chassis, and forming-related process design. Comparable to FGU in serving premium OEMs with deep forming expertise and project-based work, but at substantially larger scale.
• Batz Group: Toolmaker and engineering services firm for stamping, forming, and assembly. Provides tool/process design and production support to automotive customers, with comparable technical scope to FGU's modern forming processes practice but focused on serial tooling.
• EDAG Engineering: Large independent engineering services provider for the automotive industry, covering body-in-white, tool and process development including forming simulation. Operates in adjacent niches to FGU but at much greater scale and broader scope.
• Fraunhofer Institute for Machine Tools and Forming Technology (IWU): Germany's leading applied research institute for production technology, including sheet and bulk metal forming. Like FGU, IWU conducts pre-competitive metal forming R&D, FEM simulation, and material characterisation for industrial partners, with similar funding mechanisms and customer overlap in automotive.
• AutoForm Engineering: Swiss-headquartered specialist in sheet metal forming simulation software and engineering services. Directly comparable to FGU's FEM forming simulation practice, also serving automotive OEMs and Tier-1s with process design and tool optimisation work.

Broad incumbents

• Schuler Group: Global market leader in press technology and automation for metal forming. While a customer of FGU rather than a direct service competitor, Schuler's R&D arm performs in-house forming engineering that overlaps with FGU's tool-and-process design scope across shared automotive customers.
• voestalpine AG: Austrian steel and technology group whose automotive division performs metal forming components and in-house R&D on forming processes. Comparable to FGU in steel/material characterisation services and in serving European automotive OEMs.
• AP&T Group: Manufacturer of forming automation, presses, and press lines that also offers process and tooling services for sheet metal forming. Comparable to FGU in customer base and forming technology focus, but anchored in equipment manufacturing rather than research services.
• Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe: Major steel producer with significant in-house forming R&D and material characterisation capabilities serving automotive customers. Comparable to FGU's material characterisation and working-group offerings through its own research framework.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/held-riedl

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 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 Research Society Forming Technology