What maja does

MAJA-Maschinenfabrik Hermann Schill GmbH is a German manufacturer of food processing machinery founded in 1948 and headquartered in Kehl-Goldscheuer, Germany, with approximately 200 employees covering R&D, production, worldwide sales, and after-sales service. The company designs and produces skinning/derinding machines (e.g., BXAplus, ESB 4434, ESM 5550, plus acquired Townsend skinners for the U.S. market), volumetric portion cutters (STC 400, I-Cut 11 with optical laser at up to 480 cuts/minute), and flake ice generators used across meat, poultry, and fish secondary processing. Core technical differentiators include automatic cut-in systems that operate without light barriers or compressed air, spring-loaded tooth rolls, ThinAdjust in-operation thickness adjustment, and the Platino patented pentagonal-roller tenderizing system.

MAJA has been a wholly-owned subsidiary of JBT Marel since August 2018 and is distributed through JBT Marel's global network of 133 locations across 29 countries, supplemented by 7 Customer Technology Centers (Kansas City, Campinas, Boxmeer, Copenhagen, Des Moines, Oberlahr, Shanghai). Revenue is generated through four streams: capital-equipment sales, spare parts and consumables, service and maintenance contracts, and — most recently — a software subscription model for the Innova food-processing platform. The go-to-market combines enterprise field sales for industrial processors with a self-serve online portal (portal.marel.com) for smaller butchery and supermarket customers, supported by industry trade shows and a 7-language website. Named reference customers include Gustav Winterhalter GmbH (Germany) and Vibra Group Brasil.

Name

maja

Legal name

MAJA-Maschinenfabrik Hermann Schill GmbH

Website

https://maja.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1948

Operating status

Operating

Short description

MAJA designs and manufactures skinning machines, meat portioning equipment, and flake ice generators for pork, beef, poultry, and fish processors. Operating since 1948 from Germany, it is a wholly-owned subsidiary of JBT Marel and serves customers worldwide via a 133-location network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Food Processing Equipment

NAICS

Farm Machinery and Equipment Manufacturing (333111)

SIC

Farm Machinery & Equipment (3523)

akta.pro primary industry

Cutting, Peeling & Minimal Processing Equipment (Trimmers, Peelers, Slicers) (AFAAAJAH)

Keywords

• Food processing machinery
• Skinning derinding machines
• Meat portioning equipment
• Flake ice generators
• Poultry fish processing

Headquarters

HQ city

Kehl-Goldscheuer

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Food Processing Equipment Sales: MAJA generates revenue through the sale of skinning machines, portion cutters, and flake ice generators. Products are sold directly through JBT Marel's global sales network and through the Marel online portal. Customers range from small butcheries and supermarkets to large-scale industrial food processors.
2. Spare Parts and Consumables: MAJA and JBT Marel offer spare parts, replacement blades, tooth rolls, and consumable materials for their equipment portfolio. The company maintains service networks to supply parts globally.
3. Service and Maintenance: JBT Marel provides comprehensive service throughout the equipment lifecycle including maintenance services, training, optimization services, connected services, modernization and upgrades, service agreements, and software services.
4. Software Subscriptions: JBT Marel offers purpose-built food processing software including Innova for portioning, poultry, meat, fish, and traceability modules. The company introduced a new software subscription model providing flexible access to food processing software.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

MAJA designs and manufactures skinning/derinding machines, volumetric portion cutters, and flake ice generators for the secondary processing of pork, beef, poultry, and fish. The portfolio includes conveyorized automatic skinners (MAJA BXAplus), band skinners (MAJA ESB series), open-top manual skinners (MAJA ESM series), circular blade strip cutters (STC 400), high-speed portion cutters with optical laser systems (I-Cut 11), kebab/döner slicers (BXAplus K1), meat tenderizers (Platino), and Townsend-branded skinners, complemented by JBT Marel's Innova software for production monitoring and traceability.

Product overview

MAJA, part of JBT Marel since 2018, is a manufacturer of food processing machinery headquartered in Kehl-Goldscheuer, Germany, with approximately 200 employees. MAJA specializes in derinding/skinning machines (manual and conveyorized), portion cutters, and flake ice generators. The product portfolio includes the MAJA BXAplus (automatic band skinner), MAJA ESB 4434 (conveyor skinner), MAJA ESM 5550 (manual skinner), STC 400 (circular blade strip cutter), and Scherbeneiserzeuger (flake ice machines) for applications in meat, poultry, and fish processing. Complementing the hardware, JBT Marel offers Innova software for production monitoring, traceability, and optimization. Townsend brand skinning equipment (acquired) serves the U.S. market.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• MAJA BXAplus: Band-Entschwartungsmaschine (conveyorized derinding skinner) for automatic skinning of pork cuts
• MAJA ESB 4434
• MAJA ESM 5550
• STC 400
• MAJA BXAplus K1

Products and services

• MAJA BXAplus Band-Entschwartungsmaschine Fully automatic conveyorized derinding skinner for pork cuts including bellies, back fat, cheeks, and boneless shoulder. Features automatic cutting start and height-adjustable pressure roller for maximum yield, achieving residual skin below 1%.
• MAJA ESB 4434 Band-Entschwartungsmaschine Universal conveyor derinding skinner designed for small and medium processors. Suitable for automatic operation via infeed belt and manual open-top operation for round cuts, compliant with EU directives.
• MAJA ESM 5550 Entschwartungs- und Entfettungsmaschine Manual open-top derinding and defatting machine for round pork cuts such as ham and shoulder with or without bone. The ESM 5550/1 variant enables simultaneous derinding and defatting in one operation.
• MAJA BXAplus K1 Dönerschneidemaschine Automatic kebab/döner slicing machine for continuous horizontal cutting of large meat plates used in doner, kebab, and gyro production. Features automatic product return system and configurable conveyor solutions.
• STC 400 Rundmesser-Schneidemaschine (StripCutter) Circular blade strip cutter for vertical cutting of boneless meat portions. Produces uniform slices and strips from fresh beef, veal, pork, and poultry with simple operation and quick tool changes.
• I-Cut 11 PortionCutter High-precision portion cutter with optical laser system using 200-Hz camera technology. Achieves up to 480 cuts/minute with minimal loss and touchscreen operation for fixed-weight portioning.
• Platino Schnitzelplätter Compact meat tenderizing and flattening machine using patented pentagonal kneading rollers. Provides gentle processing that stretches muscle fibers without crushing, resulting in minimal re-deformation and uniform appearance.
• MAJA Scherbeneiserzeuger (Flake Ice Machines) Flake ice production machines for food industry applications including fish cooling, sausage production, dough preparation, and vegetable cooling. MAJA has been a world leader in flake ice generation for approximately 70 years.
• Townsend SK 15-340 Derinding Skinner Conveyorized derinding skinner for pork skin removal from bellies, jowls, back fat, plates and trimmings. Available in three skinning widths (14", 20", 26") with ThinAdjust control for adjustable thickness during operation.
• Townsend OTM50 Membrane Skinner High-capacity membrane skinning machine with yield control for meat processing operations.
• Townsend OTD50 Derinding Skinner Efficient derinding skinner with high yield, easy sanitation, and operator-friendly design.
• JBT Marel Innova Software Purpose-built food processing software that integrates machine, process, and business level data. Includes modules for portioning monitoring, traceability, and production optimization. Available via subscription model.

Quantifiable outcome

• Residual skin below 1% — reducing manual rework, labor costs, and increasing product quality
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• JBT MarelcoreOthers · 1 January 2018MAJA-Maschinenfabrik Hermann Schill GmbH has been part of JBT Marel since August 2018. This acquisition extended MAJA's product portfolio and know-how, allowing the company to leverage shared resources to offer customers the best possible technology across all areas. MAJA machines complement the JBT Marel portfolio in the area of secondary processing of pork, beef, poultry, and fish. MAJA flake ice generators support numerous processes in food manufacturing and cooling and are suitable for a wide range of applications.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bettcher Industries: Bettcher Industries manufactures portioning, cutting, and trimming equipment for meat, poultry, and seafood processors. Its Quantum and AirShiraz product lines compete directly with MAJA's portion cutters and skinning/derinding equipment for industrial food processors globally.
• Baader: Baader is a German-headquartered global leader in fish and seafood processing machinery, with expanding presence in poultry and red meat. Like MAJA, Baader focuses on secondary processing equipment and serves large industrial food processors, making it a comparable mid-sized specialty equipment manufacturer.
• Heat and Control: Heat and Control manufactures food processing and packaging equipment for meat, poultry, seafood, snack, and prepared food manufacturers. Its portioning, coating, and cooking systems overlap with MAJA's secondary processing equipment for protein processors.
• Marel: Marel (Iceland) is the most direct peer and effectively MAJA's parent co-owner through the JBT Marel merger. Marel produces portioning, skinning, deboning, and food processing equipment for meat, poultry, and fish — overlapping directly with MAJA's product portfolio and customer base. As the predecessor entity to JBT Marel, Marel shares both product lines and global distribution with MAJA.
• Cabinplant: Cabinplant (Denmark) produces processing equipment for seafood, meat, and ready meals, including weighing, portioning, and sorting systems. It serves overlapping customers with MAJA in European fish and meat processing and competes in portioning applications.
• Grote Company: Grote Company specializes in slicing, cutting, and portioning systems for food manufacturers, including meat and protein processors. Its high-precision portioning equipment directly overlaps with MAJA's I-Cut and V-Cut product lines, particularly for portioned protein products.
• Provisur Technologies: Provisur Technologies is a global manufacturer of industrial food processing equipment for meat, poultry, seafood, and plant-based proteins, including skinning, portioning, forming, coating, and cooking systems. It competes head-to-head with MAJA in skinning/derinding machines and volumetric portion cutters serving similar processors.
• JBT Corporation (now JBT Marel): JBT Corporation merged with Marel in 2024 to form JBT Marel, MAJA's parent. JBT produces food processing equipment (Freezing, Cooking, Coating, Protein Processing) across overlapping meat and protein categories with MAJA. As both parent and peer, JBT Marel competes directly in the same equipment markets where MAJA operates.
• Townsend Engineering (JBT Marel brand): Townsend Engineering, founded 1946, has been part of JBT Marel since the 2018 MAJA acquisition era and produces derinding skinning machines that compete with MAJA's ESB, BXAplus, and ESM product lines, particularly in the U.S. pork processing market. Both Townsend and MAJA are now internal brands within JBT Marel.

Broad incumbents

• Duravant / Key Technology: Duravant is a diversified industrial equipment parent (parent of Key Technology, Foodmate, Laitram-derived brands) serving food processing, material handling, and packaging. Its food processing subsidiaries overlap with MAJA in sorting, inspection, and protein processing, providing comparable equipment to overlapping customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/jbt-marel

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 maja