Institut für Diabetes-Technologie

What Institut für Diabetes-Technologie does

Institut für Diabetes-Technologie Ulm GmbH (IfDT) is a privately held clinical research institute headquartered at Science Park II on the University of Ulm campus in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The institute specializes in clinical research on medical devices for diabetes mellitus, with a core focus on Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) system evaluation under clinically relevant conditions including rapidly changing glucose values, hyperglycemia, and hypoglycemia excursions. Services span the full clinical study lifecycle — from study planning through execution to publication — including verification and validation of CGM systems, data management and statistics, medical writing, and proprietary internal research such as the 2024 IfDT-CGM-Studie comparing Dexcom G7, FreeStyle Libre 3, and Medtronic Simplera in parallel on 24 adults with Type-1 diabetes.

The institute operates a sales-led go-to-market, serving international medical device manufacturers on a quote-based, project-by-project basis (no public pricing). It is accredited by Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle GmbH (DAkkS) as a testing laboratory per DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025 and Directive 98/79/EG for examinations under DIN EN ISO 15197, which is the principal regulatory credential required to validate CGM and blood glucose monitoring devices. IfDT holds leadership of the IFCC Working Group on Continuous Glucose Monitoring (WG-CGM) — Dr. Guido Freckmann chaired it from 2019 to 2024, with Dr. Stefan Pleus succeeding him in 2025 — and uses this position to publish standardization opinion papers in Diabetes Care and the Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology.

The institute is operated independently under managing director Dr. Guido Freckmann, with no parent company, private equity backing, or external institutional investors identified, and an estimated headcount of approximately 11 employees. Its secondary participant-facing audience is adults with Type-1 and Type-2 diabetes who volunteer as study subjects. Distribution is direct via the institute's website contact channels, with marketing executed through peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations (e.g., Diabetes Kongress, EuroMedLab, IFCC-EFLM), and a modest Facebook and Instagram presence.

Name

Institut für Diabetes-Technologie

Legal name

Institut für Diabetes-Technologie Ulm GmbH

Website

https://ifdt-ulm.de

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

IfDT is a DAkkS-accredited German clinical research institute specializing in CGM and diabetes medical device validation. It serves international medical device manufacturers with full-lifecycle clinical study services, while shaping IFCC CGM standardization through leadership of the WG-CGM working group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Clinical Research Services

NAICS

Testing Laboratories and Services (541380), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) Systems (HLAHAHAA)

Keywords

• Clinical research services
• Diabetes medical device testing
• CGM system validation
• Verification and validation services
• Medical writing publications

Headquarters

HQ city

Ulm

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Clinical Research Services: The institute conducts clinical studies for international clients, providing services from study planning through execution to publication of results. Studies are conducted with medical devices for diabetes management.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Institut für Diabetes-Technologie (IfDT) conducts clinical studies on diabetes medical devices for international clients, providing end-to-end services from study planning through execution to publication of results. Its core work focuses on verification and validation of Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) systems (e.g., Dexcom G7, FreeStyle Libre 3, Medtronic Simplera), complemented by data management and statistics, medical writing, and self-initiated research studies such as the IfDT-CGM-Study.

Product overview

The Institut für Diabetes-Technologie (IfDT) is a research institute specializing in clinical research for diabetes mellitus. The institute operates as a testing center offering comprehensive services including clinical studies for medical products, verification and validation of CGM systems, data management and statistics, and medical writing. The institute also conducts its own research initiatives, most notably the IfDT-CGM-Study which performs comparative performance analysis of current CGM systems (Dexcom G7, FreeStyle Libre 3, Medtronic Simplera) under real-life clinical conditions. The institute is globally recognized in the field of diabetes technology research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Klinische Studien für Medizinprodukte (Clinical Studies for Medical Devices) End-to-end conduction of clinical studies with medical devices for diabetes management, providing international clients with expertise from planning through execution to publication of study results.
• Verifizierung und Validierung (Verification and Validation) Verification and validation services for medical devices, particularly Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) systems, including performance evaluation and accuracy testing under clinically relevant conditions.
• Datenmanagement und Statistik (Data Management and Statistics) Data management and statistical analysis services supporting clinical research studies on diabetes medical devices.
• Medical Writing Professional medical writing services for study documentation and publication of research findings in peer-reviewed journals.
• IfDT-CGM-Studie (IfDT CGM Study) A self-financed comparative performance study of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems testing Dexcom G7, FreeStyle Libre 3, and Medtronic Simplera under clinically relevant conditions including rapidly changing glucose values.

Quantifiable outcome

• Time in target range differences of approximately 8% observed between CGM systems in controlled studies

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• IFCC Working Group on Continuous Glucose Monitoring (WG-CGM)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019The institute actively supports the IFCC WG-CGM working group through research, data preparation, content preparation of various topics, and writing of publications. Dr. Stefan Pleus serves as Chair of this working group. The collaboration focuses on developing standards for CGM systems. The institute's research supports standardization goals to enable more comparable measurement values regardless of the explicit CGM system.
• Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle GmbH (DAkkS)coreOthersThe institute is accredited by DAkkS as a testing laboratory per DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025 and Directive 98/79/EG for examinations according to DIN EN ISO 15197. This accreditation demonstrates compliance with rigorous quality standards for laboratory testing.
• Working Group Diabetes & Technology of the German Diabetes Society (AGDT)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on development of a standardized finding form for skin reactions to medical devices for diabetes management. The form helps standardize the assessment of skin reactions that occur in connection with the use of medical devices such as CGM systems or insulin pumps.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• T1D Exchange: Non-profit research organization dedicated to accelerating Type 1 diabetes research via real-world data, biobanking, and clinical studies. Comparable to IfDT in diabetes-specific research mission and sponsor-funded study execution.
• dQ&A - The Diabetes Research Company: Specialized diabetes-focused market research and patient insights firm serving CGM, insulin pump, and pharmaceutical manufacturers. Comparable to IfDT in narrow diabetes-industry focus and device-manufacturer client base, though more skewed to market research than clinical validation.
• Profil Institut für Stoffwechselforschung: Germany-based clinical research institute specializing in diabetes and metabolic disease studies for medical device and pharmaceutical sponsors. Highly comparable to IfDT in scope (early-phase diabetes trials, device validation) and German/European footprint.
• Jaeb Center for Health Research: US non-profit coordinating center that runs large multi-center diabetes studies, including landmark CGM and Type 1 diabetes trials (e.g., DCCT/EDIC, T1D Exchange collaborations). Comparable to IfDT as a sponsor-facing clinical research organization focused on diabetes devices.

Broad incumbents

• ICON plc: Global CRO running clinical trials and device performance studies across multiple therapeutic areas. Comparable to IfDT as a competitor for outsourced diabetes device studies, but with broader portfolio and larger operational footprint.
• IQVIA: One of the world's largest contract research organizations offering end-to-end clinical trial services across therapeutic areas including diabetes. Comparable to IfDT as a clinical research services provider to medical device manufacturers, but at vastly greater scale and breadth.
• Parexel International: Large global CRO providing clinical research, regulatory, and biopharmaceutical services. Relevant peer for outsourced diabetes device studies that IfDT might otherwise compete for or partner with.

Others

• Medtronic Diabetes: Manufacturer of the Simplera CGM system included in IfDT's 2024 comparative study. Included as a client/ecosystem participant representing one of IfDT's principal revenue sources.
• Abbott Diabetes Care: Manufacturer of FreeStyle Libre CGM systems and a known sponsor of IfDT's comparative studies. Included as a key client/ecosystem participant that helps frame the institute's addressable market.
• Dexcom: Leading CGM manufacturer that commissions validation and comparative studies from IfDT. Included as an adjacent client/ecosystem participant rather than a competitor; relevant context for IfDT's customer concentration risk.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• Instagraminstagram.com/ifdt_ulm
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/institut-f%C3%BCr-diabetes-technologie

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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