ARCM

What ARCM does

ARCM (Association de Recherche Communautaire des moyens de production Microtechnique) is a Swiss non-profit association founded in March 2017 and headquartered in Saint-Imier, Canton of Bern. It operates as a neutral, community-driven intermediary that identifies the R&D needs of industrial SMEs in the Jura Arc, matches them with peers facing similar challenges and academic experts, and manages the execution of collaborative projects that pool investment risk without compromising each member's proprietary know-how. Its portfolio spans Industry 4.0, smart manufacturing, energy efficiency, and microtechnology production, with named community projects including COMAC 4.0 (predictive maintenance), ECOPROD (energy/thermal optimisation, with reported energy savings up to 66%), ACIMO (acoustic-sensor + Machine Learning for tool-wear prediction), CLM5 (closed-loop manufacturing), INOXYDAGE (nickel-free stainless-steel machining with 11 industrial partners), BMG (bulk metallic glass pre-project), LAVANET (industrial networking) and a cybersecurity project tied to 2027 CE-marking requirements.

ARCM's business model combines annual membership dues from 80+ industrial and institutional members with per-project co-financing contributions (CHF 5,000 per large company and CHF 2,000 per SME per pre-project) and a CHF ~300,000/year Innosuisse grant awarded for 2021–2024 as Leading House of the NTN Innovation Booster Microtech program, executed via a five-partner consortium (Microcity, i-Moutier, Switzerland Innovation West EPFL, aiti, Inos). Distribution is regional and direct: events (forums, round tables, General Assemblies), a trilingual website, an eight-newsletter-per-year cadence, and applied-research partnerships with HE-Arc, HEIG-VD, BFH, and inspire AG. The organisation is governed by a member-elected committee chaired by François Roquier with Catherine Jeanneret as Director and Olivier Marchand as Technical Director, employing approximately eight staff.

Name

ARCM

Legal name

ARCM - Association de Recherche Communautaire des moyens de production Microtechnique

Website

https://arcm.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ARCM is a Saint-Imier-based non-profit association that runs collaborative R&D projects for 80+ microtechnology SMEs in the Swiss Jura Arc, funded by membership fees, per-project co-financing, and an Innosuisse Leading House mandate for the NTN Innovation Booster Microtech program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Collaborative Industrial Research (Microtechnology)

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Engineering Services (541330)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAHAEAI

ERP, CRM & Enterprise Applications Consulting

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Technology & Digital Consulting

SECONDARYEUAIANAH

Circularity Consulting & Program Management (EPR, Design-for-Circularity, LCA)

Energy, Utilities & Environment/Environmental Services (Waste Management, Recycling & Remediation)/Resource Recovery & Circular Economy Services (Reuse, Take-back, Refurbishment)

Keywords

• Collaborative research projects
• Microtechnology production
• Industry 4.0 adoption
• Predictive maintenance research
• Energy efficiency manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint-Imier

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership fees charged to industrial companies, SMEs, and institutions in the microtechnology sector. Members gain access to collaborative projects, networking events, and the community platform.
2. Project Co-financing: Consortium-based project funding where participating members co-finance collaborative development projects. Each project requires minimum participation thresholds (e.g., 20,000 CHF minimum for pre-projects).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

ARCM is a Swiss non-profit association that runs a neutral, community-driven collaborative research platform for manufacturers, subcontractors, and users of microtechnical production equipment in the Jura Arc region. It identifies shared development needs among member SMEs, connects them with regional research experts, and executes applied R&D projects in microtechnology, Industry 4.0, energy efficiency, predictive maintenance, and industrial cybersecurity. It also acts as Leading House for the Innosuisse-funded NTN Innovation Booster Microtech program, providing participatory co-financing for selected innovation ideas.

Product overview

ARCM (Association de Recherche Communautaire des moyens de production Microtechnique) is a collaborative innovation platform serving as the Leading House for the NTN Innovation Booster Microtech program funded by Innosuisse (2021-2024). Rather than a single product, ARCM offers a portfolio of collaborative community research projects focused on microtechnics, Industry 4.0, and automation for SMEs in the Jura Arc region. Key offerings include: the Innovation Booster platform for participatory funding of microtechnology ideas; ECOPROD for energy optimization; ACIMO combining acoustic analysis with Machine Learning for predictive maintenance; INOXYDAGE for machining nickel-free stainless steel; CLM5 for closed-loop manufacturing; COMAC 4.0 for predictive maintenance; and cybersecurity projects addressing VDI/European standards. Projects are developed collaboratively with member companies, research institutions (HE-Arc, BFH, HEIG-VD, inspire), and consortium partners.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NTN Innovation Booster Microtech Innosuisse-funded collaborative platform managed by ARCM as Leading House, providing participatory co-financing for microtechnology innovation ideas (minimum 5,000 CHF collaborative funding; up to 20,000 CHF for feasibility studies) across a consortium of microtechnology actors.
• ECOPROD - Energy Consumption Optimization Community R&D project on energy consumption optimization for microtechnical production means, including thermal balance calculations for workshops and cooling system optimization. Delivered energy savings of up to 66% per installation.
• ACIMO - Intelligent Acoustic Analysis of Machine Tool Community R&D project combining acoustic sensors with Machine Learning to predict tool wear and enable predictive maintenance in precision micro-machining.
• INOXYDAGE - Nickel-Free Stainless Steel Machinability Community research project studying machinability of nickel-free austenitic stainless steel for watchmaking and medical applications, involving 11 industrial partners and conducted with research partner inspire AG.
• CLM5 - Closed-Loop Manufacturing Community R&D project exploring closed-loop manufacturing capabilities on the Micro5 demonstrator for digital tool-material contact qualification in micro-milling, with 12 participating companies.
• COMAC 4.0 - Predictive Maintenance Industry 4.0 community project on predictive maintenance for machine manufacturers and end users.
• BMG - Bulk Metallic Glass Pre-Project Pre-project conducting a state-of-the-art study on bulk metallic glass materials and forming methods compatible with precision parts, exploring innovative amorphous alloy applications.
• LAVANET - Industrial Networking Pre-Project

Quantifiable outcome

• Energy savings up to 66% per installation achieved through ECOPROD project improvements
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• MicrocitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Key partner in the NTN Innovation Booster Microtech consortium. Microcity is a technology park and innovation hub in Neuchâtel that hosts ARCM events and provides infrastructure for collaborative projects.
• i-MoutiercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Regional innovation support organization in Moutier, collaborating with ARCM on the NTN Innovation Booster Microtech program for microtechnology innovation.
• Switzerland Innovation West EPFLsupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Part of the Switzerland Innovation network, West EPFL branch contributes research capabilities and EPFL affiliation to the NTN Innovation Booster consortium.
• Associazione Industrie Ticinesi (aiti)supportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Ticino industrial association partner in the NTN Innovation Booster Microtech consortium, extending ARCM's reach to Italian-speaking Switzerland.
• Innovations Netzwerk Ostschweiz (Inos)supportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Eastern Switzerland innovation network partner in the NTN Innovation Booster Microtech consortium, connecting ARCM to the German-speaking Swiss innovation ecosystem.
• HE-ArccoreTechnology or IntegrationHautes écoles arc jurassien providing technical expertise and research capabilities for ARCM collaborative projects including ACIMO (acoustic analysis) and CLM5 (closed-loop manufacturing).
• HEIG-VDcoreTechnology or IntegrationEngineering school in Yverdon-les-Bains contributing to ARCM projects including ECOPROD (energy optimization) and ECOMU (micro-machining behavior study).
• BFH (Berner Fachhochschule)coreTechnology or IntegrationBern University of Applied Sciences providing expertise in innovation management, robotics, and digital transformation for ARCM member companies.
• inspire AGcoreTechnology or IntegrationResearch partner conducting state-of-the-art studies for ARCM projects including the Inoxydage project on nickel-free stainless steel machining.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• CSEM (Centre Suisse d'Electronique et de Microtechnique): Larger, publicly-funded Swiss R&D center for microtechnology, systems, and industrial digitization. Operates at significantly greater scale than ARCM but addresses overlapping Industry 4.0 and micro-manufacturing themes for Swiss industry.
• Swissmem: Swiss trade association for the mechanical, electrical, and metal industries. A broader industry body serving many of the same SME segments (machinery, medtech, watchmaking suppliers) that ARCM's members operate in, providing association-style services at national scale.
• Switzerland Innovation West EPFL: Supporting consortium partner connecting ARCM to the EPFL research network. Operates at much larger scale but shares the mission of bridging academic capability with Swiss industrial innovation.

Direct peers

• Innovationsnetzwerk Ostschweiz (INOS): Eastern Switzerland innovation network and supporting partner in ARCM's NTN Innovation Booster Microtech consortium. Comparable as a regional industry-innovation intermediary orchestrating cross-company R&D projects for SMEs.
• Inspire AG: Swiss research partner of ETH Zurich conducting industry-oriented R&D for manufacturing and precision engineering. Already an ARCM research partner (Inoxydage project); comparable as a contracted applied-research intermediary serving Swiss industrial SMEs.
• FSRM (Swiss Foundation for Research in Microtechnics): Swiss foundation also dedicated to microtechnology research and training, headquartered in the same Jura/Neuchâtel region. Directly comparable as a non-profit R&D platform serving Swiss microtech SMEs with collaborative projects and industry-academia programs.
• Microcity SA: Neuchâtel-based technology park and innovation hub explicitly named as ARCM's NTN Innovation Booster consortium partner. Comparable as a regional microtech cluster organizer that hosts member companies and provides project infrastructure.
• i-Moutier: Regional innovation support organization in Moutier explicitly identified as an ARCM consortium partner in the NTN Innovation Booster program. Comparable as a regional cluster orchestrator for microtech innovation.
• Bern University of Applied Sciences (BFH): Core ARCM research partner providing expertise in innovation management, robotics, and digital transformation. Comparable as a publicly-funded applied-research institution that partners with SMEs on collaborative R&D projects in the same industry domains.

Regional players

• Pôle des MicroTechniques (PMT): French microtechnology industry cluster based in Franche-Comté, on the other side of the Jura border from ARCM. Highly comparable regional cluster model for microtech SMEs, though serving a different national innovation system.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/arcm.ch

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about ARCM