Graebener Group

What Graebener Group does

Graebener Group (legal entity: Gräbener Maschinentechnik GmbH & Co. KG) is a German industrial machinery company headquartered in Netphen, North Rhine-Westphalia, that specializes in manufacturing equipment for fuel cell and electrolyzer components, with a particular focus on metallic bipolar and monopolar plates. The company serves fuel cell and electrolyzer manufacturers, research institutions, and industrial firms establishing or optimizing in-house production capabilities for hydrogen technology components, and operates under the brand identities Graebener® Bipolar Plate Technologies and Graebener Maschinentechnik.

The company's technology portfolio is organized into three integrated product lines: Graebener® Fertigungsanlagen (individual machines and scalable production lines for forming, cutting, welding, and straightening, from coil to finished plate), Graebener® Engineering (design analysis, CAD modeling, manufacturability assessment, and scalable facility concept development), and Graebener® Produktionslabor (an in-house production laboratory for prototyping and small-series manufacturing whose parameters transfer 1:1 to full-scale production lines). Proprietary stack press technology for technical stack validation complements the offering, and the overall portfolio is structured to deliver a complete pathway from initial engineering through prototyping to serial production. The company is privately held as a GmbH & Co. KG with no public ticker, no disclosed funding rounds, and no disclosed parent or subsidiary relationships.

Graebener operates an enterprise field sales motion with custom quote-based pricing for each solution, distributing directly to customers without intermediaries. Contracts are typically multi-year and project-based, reflecting the complexity of capital equipment sales. Named customers include Zentrum für BrennstoffzellenTechnik GmbH (ZBT), Stack Hydrogen Solutions GmbH, and INOCEL Development SAS. The company maintains active industry engagement through HANNOVER MESSE / Hydrogen & Fuel Cells Europe, board-level representation in the VDMA AG Brennstoffzellen, and participation in publicly funded research projects such as BeHyPSy. The company is operating, with a recent data privacy incident disclosed on its website indicating ongoing compliance and remediation activity.

Name

Graebener Group

Legal name

Gräbener Maschinentechnik GmbH & Co. KG

Website

https://graebener-group.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Graebener Group is a German industrial machinery company that designs and builds custom manufacturing equipment, production lines, and engineering services for metallic bipolar and monopolar plates used in fuel cells and electrolyzers, serving hydrogen technology manufacturers and research institutions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Manufacturing Equipment for Fuel Cells and Electrolyzers

NAICS

All Other Industrial Machinery Manufacturing (333248), Other General Purpose Machinery Manufacturing (3339)

SIC

Machine Tools, Metal Cutting Types (3541)

akta.pro primary industry

Sheet Metal Machinery (Laser/Plasma/Waterjet Cutting, Punching) (IMAHADAD)

Keywords

• Bipolar plate manufacturing
• Fuel cell equipment
• Electrolyzer manufacturing
• Precision metal forming
• Production line engineering

Headquarters

HQ city

Netphen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Manufacturing Equipment Sales: Sale of custom manufacturing equipment including individual machines and complete production lines for forming, cutting, welding, and straightening operations for single and bipolar plates
2. Engineering Services: Engineering consulting services including design analysis, manufacturability assessment, CAD modeling, and production step analysis for developing scalable plant concepts

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Graebener designs, engineers, and manufactures custom production equipment and complete scalable lines for forming, cutting, welding, and straightening of single and bipolar plates used in fuel cells and electrolysis systems. The portfolio spans individual machines, full turnkey production lines, design-to-production engineering services, and a production laboratory for prototyping and small-series manufacturing with stack press testing capability.

Product overview

Graebener Group is a German industrial machinery company offering a unified portfolio of manufacturing solutions for fuel cell and electrolysis component production. The core offering comprises three integrated product lines: (1) Graebener® Fertigungsanlagen – manufacturing equipment for forming, cutting, welding, and straightening operations, available as individual machines or scalable production lines; (2) Graebener® Engineering – design analysis and facility technology services to ensure manufacturability and develop scalable production concepts; and (3) Graebener® Produktionslabor – an in-house production laboratory for prototyping and small series manufacturing with technology transfer capability to customer facilities. A stack press option is also available for technical stack testing. The portfolio provides a complete pathway from design engineering through prototyping to full-scale series production.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Graebener® Fertigungsanlagen (Manufacturing Equipment and Production Lines) Custom individual machines and scalable production lines for forming, cutting, welding, and straightening of single and bipolar plates for fuel cells and electrolysis systems, delivered from coil to finished plate including all necessary tooling. Also includes the Graebener Stack Press for technical stack testing. Targeted at industrial fuel cell and electrolyzer manufacturers.
• Graebener® Engineering Engineering services for plate design manufacturability analysis and facility technology development. Includes design analysis with modifications for successful production, CAD modeling for customers without an existing design, production step analysis from coil to finished plate, and scalable plant concept development under customer infrastructure considerations. Targeted at fuel cell and electrolyzer manufacturers and research institutions.
• Graebener® Produktionslabor (Production Laboratory) In-house production laboratory for prototyping and small-series manufacturing of bipolar plates, providing manufacturability verification using test geometries, design optimization, and continuously optimized Graebener technology for smallest batch sizes with parameters directly transferable to customer production facilities. Targeted at fuel cell and electrolyzer manufacturers and research institutions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Manufacturing parameters transferable 1:1 from laboratory to production line

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• BeHyPSy Research ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 February 2026Publicly funded research project for air-cooled fuel cell systems. Graebener participates as a sub-supplier contributing manufacturing expertise for bipolar plate production technology development.
• VDMA (Verband Deutscher Maschinen- und Anlagenbau)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGerman Engineering Federation Working Group on Fuel Cells. Graebener maintains active engagement through Patrick Müller serving on the board of the VDMA AG Brennstoffzellen, representing the company in industry advocacy and standards development.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Schuler Group: Global market leader in metal forming presses and automation, serving automotive, aerospace, and energy industries. Comparable to Graebener as a manufacturer of large-scale forming equipment that competes for similar bipolar plate and fuel cell component tooling opportunities, but at vastly greater scale and scope.
• AP&T Group: Provider of press hardening, forming, and automation solutions primarily for automotive but increasingly for energy applications. Comparable to Graebener in delivering integrated production lines for high-precision metal components, with overlap in forming and automation competencies relevant to bipolar plate manufacturing.
• Andritz AG: International technology group with metal forming and welding capabilities (including Andritz Soutec) serving diverse industrial sectors. Comparable to Graebener as a supplier of custom manufacturing lines involving welding and forming for specialized industrial components, including emerging hydrogen applications.
• Trumpf: Global leader in laser cutting, welding, and bending machine tools used across metal fabrication industries. Comparable to Graebener as a supplier of cutting and welding equipment that could be deployed into bipolar plate production, though at much broader industrial scope.
• Bystronic: Supplier of sheet metal processing solutions including laser cutting, bending, and automation for industrial fabrication. Comparable to Graebener in delivering cutting and forming equipment for precision sheet metal components that could be applied to fuel cell plate manufacturing.
• Prima Power: Provider of sheet metal fabrication machinery and flexible manufacturing systems combining laser, punching, bending, and automation. Comparable to Graebener in delivering integrated metalworking production lines, though primarily serving general sheet metal fabrication customers.
• SMS group: Global plant engineering company specializing in metallurgical and process technology, including forming and processing equipment. Comparable to Graebener at the intersection of metal processing machinery and process line delivery, with potential overlap in hydrogen-related component manufacturing.

Emerging players

• Manz AG: German supplier of integrated production systems for electronics, energy storage, and battery manufacturing. Comparable to Graebener in offering turnkey production lines for emerging energy technologies and pursuing the energy transition market with similar engineering-led sales motions.
• ThyssenKrupp nucera: Leading supplier of electrolyzer technology for green hydrogen production. Comparable to Graebener as a key participant in the hydrogen value chain, representing the customer-side demand for bipolar plate manufacturing equipment that Graebener supplies.

Regional players

• HACO Group: Manufacturer of press brakes, shears, and plate processing machinery headquartered in Belgium. Comparable to Graebener as a supplier of metal plate forming and cutting equipment, with overlapping capabilities in plate processing relevant to bipolar plate production.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 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 Graebener Group