As an innovation leader, we have our eyes on the future and are always on the hunt for good ideas, new technologies and solutions. Partnerships and cooperation are an integral part of our corporate philosophy. That is why we support and sponsor start-ups and assist them on their way to practical industrial applications.
Since 2014 we have been working consistently with several promising start-ups that benefit from Festo’s industry expertise. Our collaborations focus particularly on technologies and solutions that can be used in our products and services to create added value for our customers or make our processes more efficient.
We therefore have regular start-up pitches for specific areas of technical research as well as for processes and procedures. The start-ups that are invited to pitch their ideas can then discuss the challenges and possible solutions directly with the departments and explore the options for collaboration.
The Gründermotor initiative is the decentralised innovation platform for Baden-Württemberg, designed to lay the foundations for the digital SMEs of the future. To achieve this, the initiative works closely with several colleges and universities across Baden-Württemberg. Innovative start-ups are given access to a premium network of experienced mentors, well-known investors and partners from science and business.
M.Tech Accelerator is a key platform for technology start-ups in the south of Germany, providing new ideas for the development of the Stuttgart region as a centre of engineering and mobility. The programme is supported by the state capital Stuttgart, bwcon GmbH, TTI GmbH, wizemann space and the Stuttgart Region Economic Development Corporation. After the application phase, 25 start-ups are accepted to the accelerator programme and are supported over a full 12-month period. M.Tech Accelerator supports individuals and start-up teams who are in the pre-founding or founding phase and have innovative products or business models in the areas of mobility, manufacturing and engineering.
We have joined forces with other SMEs to find intelligent solutions with a focus on optimising and digitalising business processes and supporting this through new technologies – for example in the areas of purchasing, HR or for our plants. The companies involved in the "startup2mittelstand" (start-up to SME) initiative are more successful together in identifying and evaluating start-up solutions and are also more appealing to the start-ups.
The TechFounders accelerator is a 20-week programme during which technology start-ups are brought together with strong partners from industry. With the help of various mentors and their networks, the start-ups prepare a business idea with the aim of implementing initial applications in the form of pilot projects. In addition to Festo, other companies including BMW, Bosch, Linde and Miele are also involved in the accelerator programme.