Ingenieurgemeinschaft IgH GmbH

What Ingenieurgemeinschaft IgH GmbH does

Ingenieurgemeinschaft IgH GmbH ("IgH") is an Essen, Germany-based engineering services firm founded in July 1995 by Dr.-Ing. Siegfried Rotthäuser and Dr.-Ing. Torsten Finke. The company designs and delivers custom test rigs for hydraulic, mechanical, and mechatronic components, serving safety- and performance-critical R&D and production-validation use cases. Its publicly named customers span aerospace (Airbus), mining and infrastructure (Epiroc), process engineering (GEA Westfalia), heavy lifting (Mammoet), and polar research (AWI), indicating an enterprise B2B model with long project cycles and high-value deliverables rather than volume licensing.

The firm's core technology stack centers on mechatronic system design combined with in-house automation software, most notably EtherLab, a real-time EtherCAT master toolkit distributed under the GPL open-source license. IgH deliberately forgoes traditional IP protection on this layer, treating the open-source footprint as an adoption and ecosystem lever rather than a licensing revenue stream. Revenue mechanics are project-based engineering services: bespoke rig specification, hardware integration, control software, commissioning, and ongoing support, with each engagement embedding IgH hardware, software, and know-how into the customer's validation workflow. As of October 1, 2024, IgH has been acquired by AXXERON Technologies GmbH, which positions the firm within a broader automation platform group's distribution and cross-selling channels while preserving its specialist engineering mandate.

Name

Ingenieurgemeinschaft IgH GmbH

Legal name

Ingenieurgemeinschaft IgH Gesellschaft für Ingenieurleistungen mbH

Website

https://igh.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Ingenieurgemeinschaft IgH GmbH is an Essen-based engineering firm that designs custom test rigs for hydraulic, mechanical, and mechatronic components for enterprise customers in aerospace, mining, process engineering, heavy lifting, and research, and develops the open-source EtherLab EtherCAT automation toolkit.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Essen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Custom Test Rig Design, Construction & Manufacturing: IgH designs, develops, constructs, and manufactures tailor-made test rigs as custom projects. This encompasses the full lifecycle from analysis of the test task, conception, development, construction, manufacturing, and operational support. Revenue is generated through project-based engineering and manufacturing contracts, typically as a general contractor for complete test fields or individual test rigs.
2. Engineering Services & Development Projects: IgH provides engineering services including test field planning and realization, special projects, and mechatronic prototype development. Services span joint task definition, conception and validation, implementation and integration, as well as expert opinions and studies on specialized mechanical engineering questions.
3. Components & Subsystems: IgH offers components and subsystems developed over years of development work as independent products. This includes 4Q drives, hydraulic jacks, shear pins, custom-designed sensors, and service/maintenance test kits. These are sold as standalone products, often in modified form.
4. EtherLab Training & Support: IgH offers training courses for the use of EtherLab, oriented individually to the knowledge level and needs of training participants.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Ingenieurgemeinschaft IgH (IgH) designs, develops, builds and commissions tailor-made test rigs for hydraulic, mechanical and mechatronic components, and provides related engineering services, automation technology and mechatronic subsystem manufacturing. Each test rig is delivered as a customized project covering analysis of the test task, conception, development, design, construction, manufacturing and operational support. The company also develops and maintains the EtherLab open-source automation toolkit for real-time code generation under Linux with EtherCAT integration.

Product overview

Ingenieurgemeinschaft IgH develops and builds customized test rigs, automation systems, and mechatronic components. Their product portfolio includes: (1) Test Rigs for Hydraulic Components (servo valve, valve functional, valve dynamic, direction valve, camshaft timer, gas-pressure relief valve, and pressure fatigue test rigs); (2) Load Test Rigs (slat flap, coupling, breaker, screw connection, end of line-function, swivel, and sealing test rigs); (3) Force-Direction-Test Rigs (force-direction-measurement system, car jack, and spring strut test rigs); (4) Service & Maintenance Tools (test kits for EtherCAT-servo valves, thermal management modules, and high-lift systems); and (5) Components & Subsystems (4-quadrant drives, shear pins, custom designed sensors, and hydraulic jacks). The company follows an open-source philosophy, providing complete software in source code with GPL licensing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• EtherLab: Open Source Toolkit for real-time code generation under Linux with optional integration of MATLAB/Simulink and EtherCAT technology. Developed by IgH and published under GPL license.
• EtherCAT

Products and services

• Servo Valve Test Rig

Quantifiable outcome

• Neumayer III station — lifting 2,300 tons of Antarctic research station with position accuracy > ±1 mm using 16 lifting cylinders controlled by EtherLab automation
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• AXXERON Technologies GmbHcoreOthers · 1 October 2024IgH has been part of AXXERON Technologies GmbH since October 1, 2024. AXXERON is listed as the proprietor/shareholder of IgH. This represents a significant ownership change, with IgH becoming a subsidiary of the larger technology group.
• Lingk und SturzebecherminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIgH cooperated with the company Lingk und Sturzebecher in developing the hydraulic lifting system and associated control for the Neumayer III research station in Antarctica. This was a joint engineering collaboration for a specialized polar research application.
• MammoetminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Dutch salvage company Mammoet commissioned IgH for the Kursk submarine recovery project in June 2000. IgH developed the control/software concept for the wave compensation system and created a complete simulation model of the lifting process. Specialists from Dutch company Raster also participated in the implementation.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• HORIBA: Global test and measurement equipment group with strong presence in automotive and industrial test systems. Overlaps with IgH in functional component test rigs and end-of-line testing for automotive and industrial customers.
• Instron (Illinois Tool Works): Major manufacturer of materials and components testing equipment used across aerospace, automotive and industrial sectors. Comparable as a peer in the component-level mechanical and durability test rig category that IgH addresses.
• ZwickRoell: Established German and global supplier of materials and components testing systems. Overlaps with IgH in the high-precision mechanical/durability test rig category, with a much broader installed base and product line.
• MTS Systems (Amphenol): Global incumbent in mechanical and hydraulic test & simulation systems serving aerospace, automotive and industrial markets. Directly comparable to IgH in the mechatronic/hydraulic component testing space, but at vastly larger scale and with a broader product portfolio.
• Festo: Global automation and mechatronics company with deep expertise in pneumatic and electric drive technology. Adjacent comparable to IgH through its automation and mechatronic test/validation offerings for industrial customers.

Others

• Beckhoff Automation: Developer of EtherCAT fieldbus technology, the foundational protocol that IgH's EtherLab open-source toolkit integrates with. Ecosystem relationship: Beckhoff's commercial stack and IgH's open-source EtherLab both serve EtherCAT-based automation customers, making them technology peers rather than direct competitors.

Direct peers

• dSPACE: German-based provider of real-time development and test systems for embedded controller and mechatronic applications. Closely comparable to IgH in real-time automation testing, control-loop development, and mechatronic validation tooling.
• IMA Automatisierung Dresden GmbH: Specialized German engineering firm building customized test rigs and automation systems for industrial and automotive customers. Direct comparable as a same-size, same-craft peer in custom hydraulic/mechatronic test rig engineering.
• Hegewald & Peschke Meß- und Prüftechnik: German manufacturer of universal materials and component testing machines, including hydraulic and mechatronic test rigs. Comparable as a direct competitor in the customized component test rig niche that IgH serves.
• STAHLE GmbH: German manufacturer of hydraulic and pneumatic test rigs for industrial components. Direct peer in the niche of specialized fluidic component and valve test systems that IgH builds.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• GitHubgitlab.com/etherlab.org
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/igh-gmbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

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 Ingenieurgemeinschaft IgH GmbH