LightOre Group

What LightOre Group does

LightOre GmbH is a privately held German technology company headquartered in Gera that operates three distinct product lines under a single corporate umbrella. The original business is the manufacture of expanded glass materials — OreGrain, spherical closed-cell glass beads sold as a premium lightweight filler for construction materials (lightweight concrete, dry mortar, panels, automotive, mineral casting), and OrePowder, a natural mineral-based powder used for chemical-free grain protection in storage and conveyance. Both products rely on a self-developed thermo-mechanical treatment process applied to sedimentary rocks, with OrePowder positioned as a non-toxic alternative to diatomaceous earth pest control.

The company's growth focus has been its water treatment portfolio, which spans turnkey filtration systems, a newly launched OreFilter depth-filtration media line, and a full stack of membranes (RO, NF, UF), EDI modules, cartridge/bag/band filters, ion exchange resins, and activated carbon grades. Specialized offerings include PFAS removal, direct lithium extraction (OreSorb DLE), heavy metal reduction, oil removal, demineralization, mobile/containerized treatment units, pilot projects, water analysis, and process consulting. The company claims reach across 45+ countries with a multinational team of around 20 professionals from 12 countries (firmographic data also lists 6 employees, indicating an internal reporting inconsistency).

Commercial model is sales-led and predominantly direct: quote-based pricing for custom-engineered systems, consumables sold on a replenishment basis, and new mobile/rental options. Channels are primarily the company website and regional representatives, with no disclosed distribution partnerships, no publicly named customers, no funding history, and no revenue disclosure. The company is managed by Matthias Schumann as the listed GmbH Manager, with no broader leadership team, board, or investor information on record.

Name

LightOre Group

Legal name

LightOre GmbH

Website

https://lightore.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

LightOre GmbH is a German materials and water treatment company selling OreGrain expanded glass fillers, OrePowder natural grain protection, and a broad portfolio of filtration systems, membranes, and consumables to industrial, municipal, and agricultural customers across 45+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Water Treatment Systems

NAICS

Other Pressed and Blown Glass and Glassware Manufacturing (327212)

SIC

Glass & Glassware, Pressed Or Blown (3220), Miscellaneous Chemical Products (2890)

akta.pro primary industry

Softening & Demineralization (Lime Softening, Ion Exchange) (EUANABAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Membranes, Consumables & Chemicals (Elements, Antiscalants, Cleaning) (EUANAFAJ), Water Treatment Plant Construction (Drinking Water) (IMAFAGAA)

Keywords

• Water treatment systems
• Expanded glass fillers
• Grain protection powder
• Filtration membranes
• Industrial water filtration

Headquarters

HQ city

Gera

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Water Treatment Systems & Equipment: Turnkey filtration systems, pilot units, mobile treatment solutions, and equipment sales including membranes, filters, and vessels
2. Consumables & Media: Ongoing sales of filters, membranes, activated carbon, ion exchange resins, and other consumables for water treatment installations
3. OreGrain Expanded Glass: Premium spherical glass bead filler sold for construction and industrial applications including lightweight concrete, dry mortar, and automotive
4. OrePowder Grain Protection: Natural grain protection substance sold for agricultural storage applications
5. Engineering & Consulting Services: Process consulting, water analysis, pilot projects, and project services for custom water treatment solutions

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

LightOre manufactures and sells OreGrain expanded glass beads (spherical closed-cell filler for construction and industrial applications) and OrePowder (a 100% natural non-chemical grain protection substance), and provides comprehensive industrial and municipal water treatment solutions including turnkey filtration systems, membranes, consumables, and engineering services across 45+ countries.

Product overview

LightOre Group is a multi-industry technology company offering three core product lines: (1) Construction Materials including OreGrain expanded glass beads for lightweight concrete and industrial fillers, and OrePowder 100% natural grain protection; (2) Water Treatment Solutions encompassing turnkey filtration systems, consumables (membranes, filters, carbon media, resins), and services (pilot testing, mobile units, water analysis, process consulting); and (3) Specialized treatment modules including RO/NF/UF/EDI membranes, ion exchange resins, activated carbon, disinfection systems, and specialty applications for PFAS removal, lithium extraction, heavy metals, oil removal, and demineralization. The portfolio spans from materials science products to comprehensive water treatment engineering services across 45+ countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• OreGrain: Premium expanded glass filler with spherical glass beads used in construction materials including lightweight concrete, dry mortar, lightweight panels, automotive, and mineral casting applications.
• OrePowder
• OreFilter

Products and services

• OreGrain Expanded Glass Beads

Quantifiable outcome

• Complete pest die-off within 1-8 days depending on species (Acarina: 1 day, L. ferrugineus/O. surinamensis/S. oryzae: 2 days, Rh. dominica/S. granarius: 3 days, T. confusum: 8 days) at 1 kg/t application rate
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights10 records

Broad incumbents

• Xylem Inc. Global water technology company providing pumps, filtration, treatment, and metering solutions across industrial, commercial, and municipal markets. Adjacent competitor in water filtration and treatment equipment with significantly larger scale.
• Ecolab Inc. Global provider of water treatment chemicals, equipment, and digital monitoring services for industrial applications. Comparable in water treatment chemistry and consumables supply but serves much larger enterprise customers across broader verticals.
• SUEZ Water Technologies & Solutions: Major water treatment technology provider offering membranes, ion exchange, filtration chemicals, and digital solutions to industrial customers. Comparable to LightOre's water treatment portfolio but with established global service network and much larger installed base.
• Veolia Water Technologies: Global leader in water treatment systems, services, and process technologies for industrial and municipal customers. Overlaps with LightOre across membranes, ion exchange, filtration, and turnkey system delivery, but at vastly larger scale and broader portfolio scope.

Direct peers

• Absortech Group: Swedish company specializing in diatomaceous earth-based grain storage protection products. Directly comparable to LightOre's OrePowder business in addressing stored grain pest control without chemical pesticides.
• Laterlite S.p.A. Italian manufacturer of expanded clay and lightweight aggregate products for construction. Comparable as a producer of premium lightweight fillers and aggregates for concrete, mortar, and specialty construction applications.
• Liaver GmbH & Co. KG: German producer of expanded glass aggregate (Liaver granules) used in lightweight construction materials, horticulture, and industrial applications. Closely comparable to OreGrain in both product form (expanded glass beads) and target construction segments.
• Dennert Poraver GmbH: German manufacturer of expanded glass granules for construction, lightweight concrete, and industrial filler applications. Direct competitor to LightOre's OreGrain product line, offering spherical glass beads for similar end uses including lightweight concrete, dry mortar, and automotive fillers.

Emerging players

• Standard Lithium Ltd. Public company developing Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) technology from brine resources, particularly in the Smackover formation. Comparable to LightOre's OreSorb DLE offering as a peer pursuing selective lithium extraction using proprietary sorption approaches.
• Lilac Solutions: Private company developing ion-exchange-based Direct Lithium Extraction technology for brine sources. Comparable to LightOre's OreSorb technology in using sorption/ion-exchange media for selective lithium uptake with downstream concentration processing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lightore

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 LightOre Group