Injection mould toolmaking, mechanical engineering, contract manufacturing and particle foam moulding machines from Lichtenfels
Werkzeugbau Siegfried Hofmann GmbH
Lichtenfels (Upper Franconia)New on Amplifa
Toolmaking, mechanical engineering and particle foam from a single source
Werkzeugbau Siegfried Hofmann GmbH (Hofmann – Your Impulse Provider) has been developing and manufacturing injection moulds in Lichtenfels (Upper Franconia) since 1958 – from 32-cavity multi-cavity tools for packaging and medical through back-moulded film inserts (IMSE) to technical visible parts with polyurethane surfaces. In mechanical engineering, the company produces components, assemblies, series and special-purpose machines such as gripper systems, test stations, assembly and milling lines, complemented by automation and turnkey solutions ranging from standalone cells to linked process stations. With the BEAD.MACHINE, the company offers its own particle foam moulding machine for EPP, EPA, ETPU, EPS, EPE and mPPE, which also processes 2k mouldings and inlays and produces in a resource-efficient manner. Tool inserts are partly manufactured additively from steel using the powder bed-based laser melting process (LaserCusing/SLM); foam moulds are produced from aluminium with up to 8000 mini nozzles per cavity. Around 130 employees supply customers from the automotive, medical/medical technology, packaging, consumer goods and sports and lifestyle sectors worldwide.
- Site
- Lichtenfels
- Processes
- Injection mould toolmaking (multi-cavity tools, IMSE, back-moulded film inserts), Injection moulds up to 32-cavity multi-cavity tools for packaging and medical, Visible parts with polyurethane surfaces (in-mold coating, PUR thin layer 0.1 mm instead of 0.5 mm), Particle foam moulding production (BEAD.MACHINE, moulding machine, 2k and inlays), Particle foam processing with 3D-printed tools (additively manufactured tool inserts, up to, Additive manufacturing of mould inserts for injection moulds (powder bed-based, Special-purpose machine building (series and special-purpose machines), Contract manufacturing: component and assembly manufacturing
- Materials
- EPP, EPA, ETPU, EPS, EPE, mPPE, Polyurethane (PUR, in-mold coating), Aluminium (foam moulds)
- Certificates
- TISAX®
- Founded
- 1958
- Employees
- ca. 130
- Industries
- Automotive, Medical/Medical technology, Packaging, Consumer Goods, Sports and Lifestyle
- 01
Design and development
- 02
Additive tool insert (laser melting) or toolmaking
- 03
Sampling on the company's own injection moulding machine fleet
- 04
Optimisation and validation
- 05
Commissioning and acceptance tests
- 06
Service: repair, maintenance, spare parts
Materials and processes
EPP (expanded polypropylene)
Particle foam material for mouldings on the BEAD.MACHINE.
EPA
Particle foam material for mouldings on the BEAD.MACHINE.
ETPU
Elastic particle foam material for mouldings on the BEAD.MACHINE.
EPS
Classic particle foam material for mouldings on the BEAD.MACHINE.
EPE
Particle foam material for mouldings on the BEAD.MACHINE.
mPPE
Modern particle foam material for mouldings on the BEAD.MACHINE.
Polyurethane (PUR)
For in-mold coating of visible parts; a thin layer of 0.1 mm instead of 0.5 mm reduces material use by 80 percent (with KraussMaffei).
Aluminium
Foam moulds for particle foam; only a few days from concept to production.
Steel
Additively manufactured tool inserts with conformal cooling channels and up to 8000 mini nozzles per cavity.
Sites
Lichtenfels
DEMain plant: manufacturing and administration
- Lot size
- Prototypes to series tools
- Materials
- Steel, aluminium, plastic
- Injection moulding machines for sampling
- BEAD.MACHINE (particle foam moulding machine, in-house product)
- Powder bed-based laser melting system (LaserCusing/SLM, Concept Laser)
- Automated milling lines
Components and products
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Injection mould toolmaking (multi-cavity tools, IMSE, back-moulded film inserts)Toolmaking | – | – | – | – | Steel, Aluminium |
| Injection moulds up to 32-cavity multi-cavity tools for packaging and medicalToolmaking | – | – | – | – | Plastic |
| Visible parts with polyurethane surfaces (in-mold coating, PUR thin layer 0.1 mm instead of 0.5 mm)Plastics | – | – | – | – | Polyurethane (PUR) |
| Particle foam moulding production (BEAD.MACHINE, moulding machine, 2k and inlays)Plastics | – | – | – | – | EPP, EPA, ETPU, EPS, EPE, mPPE |
| Particle foam processing with 3D-printed tools (additively manufactured tool inserts, up toPlastics | – | – | – | – | Steel, Aluminium |
| Additive manufacturing of mould inserts for injection moulds (powder bed-basedAdditive | – | – | – | – | Steel |
| Special-purpose machine building (series and special-purpose machines)Mechanical engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Contract manufacturing: component and assembly manufacturingAssembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Automation solutions (standalone solutions through to linked process stations)Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Turnkey solutions, process development and optimisation, optimisation & validationEngineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Repair, maintenance, monitoring, inspection, retrofitting, spare parts, commissioning, acceptanceEngineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Mechanical engineering: gripper systems, test stations, assembly and milling linesMechanical engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
3 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Particle foam moulding machine | Hofmann (in-house product) BEAD.MACHINE | – | Base area approx. 5.8 m² | – | Lichtenfels |
| Injection moulding machines (machine fleet for sampling) | – | – | – | – | Lichtenfels |
| Powder bed-based laser melting system (LaserCusing/SLM for additive mould inserts) | Concept Laser | – | – | – | Lichtenfels |
Additional services
Reference customers
Quality and information security
The company is a TISAX® participant and ensures information security; acceptance tests, sampling and validation are part of its service portfolio. Climate targets are confirmed by the Science Based Target initiative.
| Evidence | Lichtenfels |
|---|---|
| TISAX® |
Company history
- 1958
Year the company was founded ("Empowering industries since 1958")
- 2003
Alliance of the Hofmann Innovation Group (Werkzeugbau Siegfried Hofmann GmbH and Robert Hofmann GmbH under a common roof)
- 2005
Winner of the "Excellence in Production" competition (Toolmaker of the Year)
- 2007
Finalist "Excellence in Production"
- 2009
Finalist "Excellence in Production"
- 2012
Revenue growth of the toolmaking division from EUR 32 million (2012) to EUR 56 million
- 2013
Second win of the "Excellence in Production" competition
- 2017
Dissolution of the Hofmann Innovation Group; independent presence as "Hofmann – Your Impulse Provider"; "Bayerns Best 50" award and apprenticeship lion of the district of Lichtenfels; finalist "Excellence in Production"
- 2019
Founding member of the Marktspiegel Werkzeugbau (toolmaking market survey)
- 2021
Presentation of the BEAD.MACHINE; report in the trade journal Kunststoffe 3/2021
- 2023
Delivery of the first BEAD.MACHINEs to four customers from Consumer Goods, Automotive, Sports and Lifestyle
- 2022
TISAX® participant; climate targets confirmed by the Science Based Target initiative