Helfer Equipements Industriels

What Helfer Equipements Industriels does

Helfer Equipements Industriels is a French industrial automation firm registered as a Société en nom propre (sole proprietorship) headquartered in Lutterbach, France, with operations led by Serge Helfer. The company designs and integrates modular feeding, distribution, and robotic cell systems for industrial production lines, including blade elevators capable of up to 1,000 pieces per minute, vibrating bowls for simple small parts, FDA-certified centrifuges for food/pharmaceutical/cosmetic sectors, palletizers (manual to automatic), and turnkey robotic cells. Core offerings are extended through three named technology partners: IFSYS (camera-guided universal feeding and robotic cells), KMT Montagetechnik (orbital/rotary riveting and crimping machines), and WALTHER-2000 (automatic grease and oil dosing systems).

The underlying technology stack centers on modular feeding architectures combined with computer-vision-enabled robotics. The IFSYS universal feeding system uses up to four cameras with backlight silhouette detection to direct robots in recognizing part form and orientation, enabling random-part feeding without dedicated fixtures and reducing new-reference learning time to minutes. Offline 3D programming reduces island setup from 8 hours to 15 minutes via reverse engineering with a digitizing arm or CAD import. The company explicitly positions its blade elevator as a solution for part types that vibrating bowls and competing feeding devices cannot handle (tangled, fragile, or large items).

The business model is enterprise B2B direct sales of custom turnkey equipment with quote-based pricing. The company enters each project via a feasibility study and specification definition, then delivers installation, training, and maintenance as a single point of contact. The customer base is heavily oriented toward automotive OEMs (AUDI, BMW, Daimler, Volkswagen, Porsche, PSA, Ford, GM/Opel, Volvo) and tier-1 suppliers (ZF, ThyssenKrupp, SKF, Benteler, Autokabel, NTN-SNR, Delphi, Federal Mogul, GKN), with additional reach into pharmaceutical, food, cosmetics, chemical, machining, and plastics sectors via direct sales and OEM integration through special machine builders. No financial, headcount, or funding disclosures are available, and the legal form and dated web presence suggest a small, owner-operated business.

Name

Helfer Equipements Industriels

Legal name

HELFER Equipements Industriels

Website

https://helfer.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Helfer Equipements Industriels is a French industrial automation firm that designs and integrates modular feeding, distribution, and robotic cell systems for industrial production lines, primarily serving European automotive OEMs and tier-1 suppliers via custom turnkey equipment.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Automation Equipment

NAICS

Other General Purpose Machinery Manufacturing (3339), Commercial and Service Industry Machinery Manufacturing (33331)

SIC

General Industrial Machinery & Equipment, Nec (3569), General Industrial Machinery & Equipment (3560)

akta.pro primary industry

Conveying, Feeding & Accumulation Systems (Packaging Lines) (IMAHAOAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Palletizing & Depalletizing Systems (IMAHAOAC), End-of-Line Integration & Packaging Line Systems (IMAHAOAN)

Keywords

• Industrial automation equipment
• Automated parts feeding
• Robotic cell integration
• Bulk material handling
• Vibratory feeding systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Lutterbach

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Industrial Equipment Sales: Sale of automated feeding, distribution, and robotized equipment including blade elevators, vibrating bowls, centrifuges, palletizers, and robot cells. Custom turnkey solutions with integrated modules and standard automation components.
2. Engineering and Design Services: Feasibility studies with specifications definition, turnkey study and realization, technical assistance including installation, training, and maintenance. B2B engineering services integrated with equipment sales.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Helfer Equipements Industriels designs, manufactures, and integrates automated feeding, distribution, and robotic systems for industrial production lines. The portfolio includes blade elevators, vibrating bowls, centrifuges, palletizers, and turnkey robotized cells (IFSYS technology) for machine loading/unloading, deburring, machine-to-machine transfer, and robotic palletizing. Standard components from partners KMT (crimping/riveting) and WALTHER (automatic greasing), together with engineering studies, 3D offline programming, and turnkey project delivery, form the integrated offering.

Product overview

Helfer Equipements Industriels is an industrial automation company offering a portfolio of feeding and distribution equipment for bulk parts, complemented by robotic cells and standard mechanical components. The core product line comprises blade elevators (Élévateur à lames) for high-speed universal feeding up to 1000 pieces/minute, vibrating bowls for economic simple-part feeding, centrifuges for high-cadence geometric-part distribution, and manual-to-automatic palletizers. These are complemented by turnkey robotic cells (from IFSYS) covering universal camera-guided feeding, deburring, loading/unloading, machine transfer, robotic palletizing, and offline 3D programming. Standard components sourced from partners WALTHER (automatic grease/oil dosing systems) and KMT (crimping/riveting machines) are integrated as part of the standard offering. Supporting services include a 3D/2D engineering bureau, feasibility studies, turnkey project delivery, and technical assistance including training and maintenance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Elevateur à lames (Blade Elevator) Automatic blade-elevator feeder for bulk pieces, delivering cadences up to 1,000 pieces per minute. Handles pieces from 1 to 5,000 grams including tangled, fragile, or large items, with optional accessories such as hoppers, tipplers, and separators. Designed for industrial production lines that cannot be served by vibrating bowls or other feeding devices.
• Bol vibrant (Vibrating Bowl) Economic vibrating-bowl feeder for simple small parts such as rivets, screws, nuts, washers, balls, springs, and similar components. Provides a cost-effective solution for simple piece geometries in industrial production lines.
• Centrifugeuse (Centrifuge) High-speed centrifugal feeder for geometrically simple pieces at cadences up to 1,000 pieces per minute. Available in sizes from 400 mm to 1,720 mm diameter, FDA food-certified in stainless steel/PEHD, suitable for pharmaceutical, food, cosmetic, and plastic packaging sectors.
• Palettiseur (Palletizer) Range of manual, semi-automatic, and automatic palletizers and depalletizers for handling trays. Low-cost range covers manual and semi-automatic tray management; high-performance range offers modular, flexible automatic palletizers with high throughput, quick campaign changeover, and standard numeric control.
• Cellules robotisées (Robotic Cells) Turnkey robotic cells powered by IFSYS technology for machine feeding, deburring, loading/unloading, palletizing, transfer between machines, universal camera-guided feeding, and 3D offline programming. Serves automotive, pharmaceutical, food, chemical, machining, and plastics industries.
• Système de dosage de graisse (WALTHER Automatic Grease Dosing System) Automatic and semi-automatic grease and oil application systems from WALTHER, covering food-grade and industrial greases, oils, paints, preservatives, silicones, release agents, acids, and alkaline products. Enables ultra-fine application with low pressure, simple structure, and clean working environment.
• Sertisseuses KMT (KMT Crimping Machines) Crimping machines from KMT marketed as the fastest on the market, with orbital and rotary riveting options. Spindle speeds of 1,360 or 2,800 rpm, modular mechanical and electrical construction, continuous force adjustment, up to 150 indexing cycles per minute, and force-stroke monitoring for quality control.
• Basculeur électrique (Electric Tippler) Electric container tippler for progressive unloading of pieces from crates or pallets into a belt hopper. Supports tippling heights up to 1,000 mm at angles up to 140 degrees, with a maximum payload of 2,000 kg, suitable for high-capacity loading from limited-height positions.
• Trémie pour élévateur (Hopper for Blade Elevator) Belt or chain-driven hopper with three-sided rims for loading bulk pieces into the blade elevator. Features reversible feed, quick-drain rear hatch, autonomous level-sensing cell, and reduced friction for fragile or tangled parts, extending machine autonomy.
• Séparateur (Separator) Drawer-based separator that individualizes and positions pieces at the blade elevator rail outlet for robotic gripping. Supports single or multiple positions with optional removable fixtures for rapid series changeover. Blow-out separation technique is also available as a standard option.
• Transfert et liaisons machines (Machine Transfer and Linking) Robotic transfer and machine-linking solutions for the mechanical and metalworking industries handling brass, cast iron, steel, and aluminum. Achieves cycle times as short as 2.5 seconds (up to 1,500 pieces/hour) with single or multi-piece picking, compatible with random-vision, long-series palletizing, and rotary magazine feeding.
• Chargement et déchargement machine (Machine Loading & Unloading) Robotic machine loading and unloading with cycle times of 8–10 seconds (up to 360 pieces/hour). Supports random-vision feeding, dedicated palletizers for long runs, and rotary magazines. Optional inline or end-of-line deburring and polishing eliminates intermediate storage.
• Ebavurage robotisé (Robotic Deburring) Robotic deburring for complex mechanical parts in long-run production. Handles pieces up to 120–150 kg with a 4:1 productivity ratio versus manual labor. Supports random-vision, palletized, and rotary magazine feeding. 3D offline programming reduces setup from 8 hours to 15 minutes. Back-illumination patent included.
• Alimentation universelle robotisée (Universal Robotic Feeding) Camera-guided universal feeding system (patented by IFSYS) where the camera pilots the robot to recognize piece form and orientation. Average data transmission time of 0.1 seconds, up to 4 cameras, Windows-based, eliminates human storage errors, enables fast new-reference learning in minutes.
• Palettisation robotisée (Robotic Palletizing) End-of-line robotic palletizing and depalletizing for boxed or bulk products. Uses robots with wide reach on euro-pallets, SCARA robots for compact high-speed applications, roller or belt conveyors, floating gripper jaws, and barcode or vision-based product identification.
• Programmation 3D offline (Offline 3D Programming) Offline 3D robot programming enabling machine configuration without interrupting production. Supports both reverse engineering via a digitizing arm with 3D trajectory generation and CAD import of part mathematics, with virtual island verification and cycle-time validation.
• Bureau d'études et prototypage (Engineering Office & Prototyping) 3D/2D design bureau for special-purpose machines including machining, assembly, robotics, and camera-based inspection. Also offers prototyping via 3D printing and custom tooling and small mechanical sub-assembly manufacturing.
• Etude de faisabilité et assistance technique (Feasibility Study & Technical Assistance) Feasibility studies with specification definition, turnkey engineering and realization, and technical assistance including installation, training, and maintenance. Single point of contact for project delivery.

Quantifiable outcome

• Cycle time of 2.5 seconds handling up to 1500 pieces/hour for transfer operations
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers19 records

Segments6 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

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• IFSYScoreTechnology or IntegrationIFSYS provides universal feeding systems with camera-controlled robots for blindage applications. Their patented universal feeding solution is equipped with a camera that controls a robot. The system is very user-friendly, with learning time for new part references taking only a few minutes. IFSYS also provides robotized cells for transfers, deburring, loading/unloading, and palletizing applications.
• KMT (KMT Montagetechnik)coreTechnology or IntegrationKMT provides crimping machines claimed to be the fastest on the market, with over 35 years of experience. Products include orbital and creeping rivet machines with spindle speeds up to 2800 rpm, modular construction systems, and force-stroke control for quality assurance. Capable of up to 150 indexing per minute.
• WALTHER (Walther-2000)coreTechnology or IntegrationWALTHER provides automatic and semi-automatic grease and oil application systems. Products apply food-grade and industrial greases, oils, paints, preservatives, silicones, release agents, acids, and alkaline products. Systems offer process reliability, cleanliness, consumable savings, and low-pressure application with simple structure.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Asyril: Swiss maker of flexible feeding systems combining vision-guided parts feeding with robotics. Directly comparable to the IFSYS camera-guided universal feeding solution that Helfer integrates, targeting the same small-part flexible production use cases.
• DEPRAG: German manufacturer of assembly automation, screwdriving, and feeding/handling technology. Comparable to Helfer's integration of feeding, robotics, and assembly modules for industrial production lines.
• Afag Holding: Swiss-German manufacturer of feeding technology (vibratory bowls, linear feeders) and assembly/handling automation. Closely comparable to Helfer in combining standardized feeding components with custom integration for production lines.
• Rhein-Nadel-Automation (RNA): German specialist in vibratory bowl feeders, centrifugal feeders, and linear feeding systems for industrial automation. Directly comparable to Helfer's vibrating bowls, centrifuges, and blade elevator product lines, serving the same automotive and industrial OEM customers.

Broad incumbents

• SCHUNK: Global German player in gripping systems, automation components, and clamping technology. Adjacent in robotic handling but broader portfolio; competes for robotic-cell specification slots at the same automotive OEMs.
• Festo: Global automation incumbent offering pneumatics, electric drives, and handling/feeding components. Adjacent competitor in industrial feeding and assembly automation with broader product portfolio and global reach.
• Zimmer Group: German automation technology supplier offering gripping systems, end-of-arm tooling, and handling components. Adjacent overlap with Helfer's robotic cell integration offering and the broader machine-loading market.
• GIMATIC: Italian-headquartered global supplier of automation components including gripping, vacuum, and feeding technology for industrial robots. Wider portfolio than Helfer, but overlapping products in feeding/handling for robotic cells.
• Tünkers: German manufacturer of clamping, gripping, and handling technology with feeding and conveyor products for automotive production lines. Larger scale than Helfer but directly comparable in feeding and material-handling offerings.

Regional players

• Coval: French vacuum and gripping technology supplier focused on France and southern Europe. Comparable as a regional French automation component provider serving similar industrial OEMs, but with different product emphasis.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 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 Helfer Equipements Industriels