inno-spec Celebrates 20 Years of Technological Leadership in Industrial Hyperspectral Imaging

July 29, 2025 - This year, inno-spec GmbH celebrates 20 years of innovation in industrial hyperspectral imaging (HSI). Originating from RSK Elektronik–today Assemblify–the company was founded in 2005 with the vision to combine mechatronic engineering with future-ready optical sensing technologies.
 
After initial projects in conventional spectroscopy, it became clear that the field lacked a strong unique selling proposition. inno-spec therefore pivoted early towards hyperspectral imaging–at a time when industrial HSI solutions were almost non- existent.

Collaboration with EVK DI Kerschhaggl & Headwall

From the beginning, inno-spec maintained a close working relationship with the Austrian company EVK DI Kerschhaggl GmbH. Over the past two decades, the two companies have jointly developed numerous applications and implemented projects ranging from automated sorting and process monitoring to inline material analysis.
 
A major step in inno-spec’s strategic development was the 2024 integration into the Headwall Group. The goal: to accelerate growth, improve access to the US market, and consolidate the group’s leadership in industrial hyperspectral applications. Today, the Headwall Group offers a globally unique combination of core technology, industrial focus and customer-specific integration expertise.

Technological pioneer from the start

“We now see that we were about 15 years ahead of the market,” said Oliver Grass, founder and managing director of inno-spec. “Only now is the surrounding ecosystem–software, machine control, process integration–fully in place to make HSI widely usable as an industrial standard.”
 
Together with its sister companies, inno-spec offers systems that cover the full usable industrial light spectrum from UV to infrared. This enables market-leading solutions in quality control, sorting and process analysis.

Outlook

Over the coming years, inno-spec aims to expand its reach into new industries and user groups–not by explaining what HSI is, but by showing how their technology performs better. The company will focus on further hardware development, intuitive software and deeper industrial integration.

As part of the Headwall Group, inno-spec continues to position itself as a pioneer in application-ready industrial HSI–committed to making the invisible not just visible, but actionable.

About inno-spec

inno-spec GmbH, based in Fürth, Germany, develops and manufactures high- performance hyperspectral imaging systems for industrial applications. Founded in 2005, the company stands for technological innovation, application-oriented engineering and customized solutions.

inno-spec systems are used in quality control, sorting, process monitoring and material inspection, serving industries such as recycling, food processing, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals. Since 2024, inno-spec has been part of the global Headwall Group, which includes EVK DI Kerschhaggl GmbH (AT) and Headwall Photonics (USA).