Institut für Elektrische Maschinen (IEM)

What Institut für Elektrische Maschinen (IEM) does

The Institut für Elektrische Maschinen (IEM) is a public university research institute within RWTH Aachen University's Faculty 6 (Electrical Engineering and Information Technology), led since October 2024 by Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing. Simon Steentjes as Director and Chair holder of Electrical Machines and Drives. The institute conducts research across the entire scientific value chain of electrical machines and drive systems—from magnetic, electrical, thermal, and mechanical material characterization, through proprietary in-house electromagnetic finite element (FEM) tool development (iMOOSE), multiphysics and system-level simulation, machine topology design, and machine-oriented control, to model-based condition assessment and intelligent operation of electric drives. It maintains specialized laboratory infrastructure including an Insulation Laboratory (IsoLab), Soft Magnetic Materials Laboratory (MagLab), Acoustics Laboratory (up to 350 kW peak power, 20,000 RPM), Mechanical Workshop, and Electronics Laboratory, supporting both internal research and external measurement/testing services.

IEM's business model is structured around publicly funded research and bilateral industry collaboration. Public revenue comes from six primary German/European funding sources: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), Federal Ministry of Transport (BMVi), Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi), European Regional Development Fund (EFRE), Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), and Forschungsvereinigung Antriebstechnik (FVA). Industry revenue is generated through flexible collaboration formats—feasibility studies, bilateral industry projects, contract research, measurement projects, joint research proposals, and strategic partnerships—with partners in automotive (electric traction drives, wheel-hub motors, hairpin winding, wide bandgap inverters), wind energy (DynaWEA gearless turbines, Cert Bench validation, FVA Gondel), industrial (synchronous-reluctance machines, electric drives and steel sheets), and railway (X-EMU fuel cell hybrid drive) sectors. Academic outputs include ~15 research assistants, 30+ supervised dissertations historically, 1021+ publications (1994–present), and a granted German patent on electrical machine modeling. The institute does not sell commercial software or hardware products; its deliverables are research findings, validated models, trained graduates, and technology transfer through collaborative projects.

Name

Institut für Elektrische Maschinen (IEM)

Legal name

RWTH Aachen University

Website

https://iem.rwth-aachen.de

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Electric Drive Systems Research

NAICS

Engineering Services (541330), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology) (541715), Testing Laboratories and Services (54138), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (541690)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAHAIAI

Systems Engineering & Technical Program Management

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Engineering & Technical Consulting

SECONDARYBPAHAIAK

Reliability, Safety & Risk Engineering (RAMS/PSM) Consulting

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Engineering & Technical Consulting

Keywords

• Electrical machines research
• Drive systems engineering
• Electromagnetic simulation
• Finite element modeling
• Machine design

Headquarters

HQ city

Aachen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Operations

Revenue model

1. Public Research Funding: Government-funded research through Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), Federal Ministry of Transport (BMVi), Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi), European Regional Development Fund (EFRE), Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), and Forschungsvereinigung Antriebstechnik (FVA).
2. Industry Collaboration Projects: Bilateral industry projects, contract research, and feasibility studies conducted with industrial partners. Revenue comes from project-based collaborations where companies fund specific research.
3. University Core Funding: Base funding from RWTH Aachen University as part of the public university system.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The IEM conducts research on electrical machines and drive systems across the entire scientific value chain—from material behavior characterization and in-house electromagnetic finite element (FEM) tool development (iMOOSE) to multiphysics and system-level simulation, machine design and control, and model-based condition assessment as well as the intelligent operation of electric drives. It delivers collaborative research services (feasibility studies, bilateral industry projects, contract research, measurement projects, joint proposals) to industrial partners, supported by dedicated laboratories (Insulation, Soft Magnetic Materials, Acoustics, Electronics, Mechanical Workshop) and multiple test benches. The institute also delivers academic education through lectures, exercises, practical trainings, and supervision of bachelor, master, and doctoral theses.

Product overview

The Institute of Electrical Machines (IEM) at RWTH Aachen University operates as a comprehensive research and academic institution rather than a commercial product company. Its offerings consist of research services spanning the entire scientific value chain of electrical machines and drive systems—including material characterization, in-house FEM tools (iMOOSE), multiphysics simulation, machine design and control, and intelligent drive operation. The institute provides specialized laboratory facilities (Insulation Laboratory, Soft Magnetic Materials Laboratory, Acoustics Laboratory, Mechanical Workshop, Electronics Laboratory) and test benches for characterization and validation. On the academic side, IEM offers lectures, exercises, practical trainings, student projects, seminars, and research thesis opportunities. For industry partners, IEM provides collaboration services including feasibility studies, bilateral projects, contract research, measurement services, and joint research proposals. The institute does not offer commercial software products but rather research expertise, laboratory services, and academic education.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Industry Collaboration Services Flexible research collaboration services offered to industrial partners covering feasibility studies, bilateral industry projects, contract research, measurement projects, joint research proposals, collaborative projects, and strategic partnerships on electrical machines and drive systems.
• Academic Lectures and Courses Comprehensive academic courses on electrical machines and drive systems including lectures, exercises, and practical trainings covering electromagnetic principles, machine design, operation, control, simulation, and experimental validation (e.g., GEM, BNCA, AFM, ERS, DECM, DCT, FES, MMA).
• Research Papers and Theses Supervision Supervision of student projects, Bachelor's theses, and Master's theses exploring scientific and application-oriented challenges in electrical machines and drive systems, spanning material characterization, machine design, testing, control, simulation, digital twins, and condition monitoring.
• Test Benches and Measurement Equipment Services Test benches and measurement equipment for characterization of electrical machines and drive systems across various power classes, enabling performance map measurements, efficiency evaluations, operating limit analyses, and model validation for industry partners.
• Electrical Machines Research and Development Services Research and development services covering the entire scientific value chain of electrical machines and drive systems, from material behavior characterization and in-house electromagnetic FEM tool development to multiphysics simulation, machine design and control, and intelligent operation of electric drives.

Quantifiable outcome

• 1021+ peer-reviewed publications documenting scientific contributions
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 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

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• RWTH Aachen University (Internal Collaboration)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe IEM collaborates extensively with other institutes and chairs within RWTH Aachen University on various research projects, particularly within Faculty 6 (Electrical Engineering and Information Technology). Notable collaborations include work with CMP (Centre for Mobile Propulsion) and CWD (Center for Wind Power Drives).
• Siemens AGcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSiemens AG is represented through Honorarprofessor Dr.-Ing. Lars Löwenstein, who delivers lectures on Electric Railway Systems (ERS) at the institute. This represents an ongoing academic-industry collaboration for knowledge exchange and professional education.
• Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)coreOthersDFG is the primary German research funding organization supporting fundamental research projects at the institute. Current DFG projects include electromagnetic evaluation of welding processes, numerical analysis using Proper Generalized Decomposition, uncertainty transfer in electromagnetic models, low-loss electrical steel sheets, and vector hysteresis modeling.
• Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVi)majorOthersBMVi-funded projects include InductInfra (inductive dynamic power supply for vehicles via road infrastructure) and X-EMU (development and validation of high-performance fuel cell drive for hybrid rail vehicles).
• Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi)majorOthersBMWi-funded projects include Concept ELV² (innovative e-axle concepts for heavy distribution transport), DynaWEA (dynamics to acoustics of gearless wind turbines), E-SATstart (aviation research), Cert Bench (wind turbine validation), KinelectricDrive (high-speed drive system), and AWD2020 (all-wheel drive system development).
• European Regional Development Fund (EFRE)majorOthersEFRE-funded projects in North Rhine-Westphalia include eSAT and DUETT, focusing on sustainable mobility and transport solutions.
• Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)majorOthersBMBF-funded projects include Flexicoil (flexible coil technologies) and Forschungscampus Flexible Elektrische Netze (flexible electrical networks research campus).
• Forschungsvereinigung Antriebstechnik (FVA)majorOthersFVA-funded projects include modeling of iron losses using micromagnetic investigations, electrical steel processing via chemical cutting, NVH simulation of vehicle drivetrains, and testing of wind turbine asynchronous generators.
• Various Industry Partners (Automotive, Industrial, Energy)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOver 20 named industry collaboration projects covering partial discharge resistance, e-fluids for rotating machines, rotor development, loss simulation, lifetime prediction, synchronous-reluctance machines, wheel-hub motors, NVH behavior, hairpin windings, and wide bandgap inverters. Specific company names not publicly disclosed.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• WEMPEC (University of Wisconsin-Madison): WEMPEC is the world's leading university consortium for electrical machines and power electronics research. Like IEM, it operates test benches, supervises large doctoral cohorts, and partners with OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers on advanced drive research — making it the closest international peer.
• University of Sheffield — Electrical Machines and Drives Group: A leading UK university group focused on electrical machines, thermal management, and NVH — directly overlapping with IEM's NVH, lifetime prediction, and hairpin-winding research areas, and a frequent co-author at IEMDC and ICEM conferences.
• Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials (IFAM): Fraunhofer IFAM operates applied research in drive-related materials and manufacturing adjacent to IEM's soft-magnetic materials lab, with similar industry-funded contract research and a comparable German public-funding mix.
• TU München — Institute for Electrical Drive Systems and Power Electronics (EAL): EAL conducts parallel research on electrical machines, drive control, and power electronics at another top-tier German technical university, with similar industrial partnership models (BMW, Siemens, et al.) and comparable test-bench infrastructure.
• Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) — Institute of Electrical Machines (IEM/ETI): KIT's electrical machines institute conducts adjacent research on machine design, materials, and drive systems and is a recurring co-bidder with RWTH IEM on federal programs and FVA-funded projects.
• University of Nottingham — Power Electronics, Machines and Control (PEMC) Group: PEMC is a globally recognized research group on electrical machines and drive control, with overlapping industrial use cases (automotive, aerospace, energy) and similar bilateral industry collaboration formats.
• Aalborg University — Department of Energy Technology: Aalborg's energy department is internationally renowned for power electronics and electrical machine research, particularly in wind-energy applications that overlap with IEM's DynaWEA and Cert Bench programs.
• TU Darmstadt — Institute for Electrical Energy Conversion (TSE): TSE researches electrical drives, power electronics, and energy conversion at TU Darmstadt, competing with IEM for DFG funding, doctoral students, and German automotive/wind industry projects.

Broad incumbents

• ABB — Corporate Research Center Germany: ABB operates industrial-scale research in electrical machines and drives and competes with IEM for the same industry-sponsored programs in motors, generators, and power electronics.
• Siemens AG — Corporate Technology / Motion Control Research: Siemens is both an IEM industry partner (via honorary professor Löwenstein) and a much larger in-house research operator; it competes for the same industry research mandates in large drives, traction, and industrial motors.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/institut-f%C3%BCr-elektrische-maschinen-iem-

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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