Investors need to determine whether technology-driven acquisition targets are competitive, scalable, and capable of delivering the investment thesis. FEV Consulting supports private equity firms, principal investors, strategic investors, and corporate venture capital teams through target screening, technical due diligence, commercial due diligence, and operational assessments that reveal risks and value-creation opportunities beyond financial performance.
INDUSTRies
Private Equity &
Principal Investors
Why are M&A decisions in technology-driven businesses difficult?
Many acquisitions fail to deliver expected value because critical risks are not visible in financial performance alone. Revenue growth and profitability provide important insights, but they rarely reveal whether a company’s technology is competitive, whether its products can scale, whether manufacturing operations can support future demand, or whether its organization can execute future roadmaps.
For investors evaluating technology-driven businesses, acquisition decisions often depend on factors that extend beyond traditional financial due diligence. Product maturity, technology roadmaps, engineering capabilities, manufacturing scalability, supply-chain resilience, innovation capacity, and market dynamics can have a significant impact on long-term value creation.
This challenge is particularly relevant in industries such as mobility, energy, industrial technology, aerospace, robotics, and advanced manufacturing, where product competitiveness and operational excellence frequently determine future performance.
How does FEV Consulting support investors throughout the M&A lifecycle?
FEV Consulting supports investors across the full M&A lifecycle, from identifying acquisition opportunities and evaluating targets to assessing execution risks and preparing value-creation initiatives. By combining transaction experience with engineering, manufacturing, and sector expertise, we help investors make more informed investment decisions and accelerate value realization after closing. Across technical due diligence, target screening, operational assessments, carve-out situations, and value-creation programs, FEV Consulting has supported investors and industrial companies in evaluating risks, validating investment assumptions, and preparing post-transaction growth initiatives.
Technical due diligence
FEV Consulting assesses products, technologies, software, intellectual property, engineering, manufacturing, supply chains, and competitive positioning to identify risks, strengths, and scalability constraints. Our work covers technology roadmaps, innovation capabilities, manufacturing, cost positions, and competitor benchmarking.
Target screening
FEV Consulting combines market intelligence, industry expertise, and technology knowledge to identify acquisition targets aligned with investor objectives. Screening typically includes market mapping, strategic and technology-fit assessments, company profiling, and candidate prioritization.
Commercial due diligence
FEV Consulting evaluates market attractiveness, growth potential, competitive dynamics, customer adoption, business models, and strategic positioning. The analysis helps investors validate growth assumptions and assess a target’s potential for future value creation.
Operational due diligence
FEV Consulting assesses manufacturing, production scalability, procurement, supply-chain resilience, quality systems, industrialization readiness, and organizational capabilities. This helps investors identify operational constraints, investment requirements, and risks that could affect future performance.
Value creation and integration readiness
FEV Consulting identifies value-creation opportunities and integration priorities before closing. This includes synergy assessments, operational improvements, organizational measures, and manufacturing optimization to reduce risk and accelerate value realization.
What evidence demonstrates FEV Consulting’s M&A experience?
FEV Consulting has supported investors and industrial companies across target screening, technical due diligence, commercial due diligence, and operational assessments in technology-driven industries. The following examples illustrate the breadth of supported engagements.
- 0+years of M&A support
- 0+technical due diligence projects completed since 2011
- 0B$largest transaction supported
Case samples
How does FEV Consulting support investors in real M&A situations?
Technical due diligence of a battery management system supplier
A private equity investor was evaluating the acquisition of a battery management system supplier and required an independent assessment of the company’s technology competitiveness, scalability, and long-term growth potential.FEV Consulting assessed product competitiveness, software capabilities, technology roadmaps, manufacturing operations, supply chains, intellectual property, and innovation capabilities. The diligence identified critical opportunities and risk areas relevant to the investment thesis and future value creation potential. The resulting assessment provided a fact-based foundation for investment decision-making and helped clarify the target’s ability to support future growth objectives.
Target screening in the technical ceramics industry
An industrial company sought acquisition opportunities to strengthen its position in the technical ceramics market and required a structured approach to identify suitable targets. FEV Consulting screened approximately 150 companies, conducted strategic-fit and technology-fit assessments, and evaluated their relevance against growth objectives and acquisition criteria. The engagement reduced a large target universe to a focused shortlist of strategically attractive acquisition candidates, creating a clear basis for further due diligence activities and capital allocation decisions.
Acquisition screening in the testing and measurement industry
An industrial technology company pursued inorganic growth and needed to identify acquisition targets that could strengthen its testing and measurement portfolio. FEV Consulting screened 85 companies, performed detailed assessments of 20 shortlisted candidates, and prioritized three high-potential acquisition targets based on technology fit, strategic relevance, market positioning, and growth potential. The resulting shortlist enabled management to focus resources on the most promising opportunities and accelerate acquisition decision-making.
Due diligence of a global powertrain supplier
An investor evaluated a major industrial technology business and required an independent assessment of its competitiveness, operational capabilities, and long-term growth potential. FEV Consulting reviewed technology portfolios, engineering organizations, manufacturing footprints, commercial outlooks, and operational capabilities. Multiple site visits and stakeholder interviews were conducted to identify strengths, weaknesses, scalability constraints, and execution risks. The engagement provided transparency on critical investment risks and opportunities, helping the investor evaluate whether the target could deliver the underlying investment thesis.
M&A target screening in the automotive battery component Industry
An investor sought acquisition opportunities across the rapidly evolving battery value chain and required a structured assessment of potential targets. FEV Consulting evaluated more than 120 companies based on technology fit, portfolio alignment, strategic relevance, and enterprise value considerations. The assessment focused on identifying targets with strong long-term positioning within emerging battery ecosystems. The project enabled the investor to prioritize acquisition opportunities, compare strategic options, and focus further diligence efforts on the most relevant candidates.
Corporate Carve-out and separation management
A multinational industrial company decided to divest one of its business units and required support to prepare and execute the separation process while maintaining operational continuity. FEV Consulting supported transaction negotiations, identified and engaged more than 20 potential buyers, coordinated the development of multiple transition agreements, and supported separation planning across organizational, commercial, and operational workstreams. Following transaction signing, FEV Consulting established governance structures, coordinated 8 workstreams, managed 450+ action items, and supported separation activities across functions including sales, IT, HR, operations, and finance. The engagement accelerated separation readiness, reduced execution risk, and created a structured foundation for post-closing value realization and business continuity.
Effective technical due diligence extends beyond products and technologies. It requires an integrated assessment of engineering organizations, manufacturing operations, supply chains, innovation capabilities, and competitive positioning to support informed investment decisions.
Frequently asked questions
Technical due diligence evaluates the products, technologies, engineering capabilities, manufacturing setup, innovation potential, and scalability of a target company. Our objective is always to identify opportunities, risks, and competitive positioning that may influence investment decisions.
Financial due diligence focuses on historical financial performance and accounting risks. Technical due diligence evaluates the future viability of technologies, products, engineering organizations, and operational capabilities.
FEV Consulting evaluates technology risks through assessments of product competitiveness, technology maturity, intellectual property, R&D capabilities, manufacturing readiness, and competitive positioning.
We typically assess product portfolios, technology roadmaps, software platforms, intellectual property, R&D organizations, innovation processes, manufacturing capabilities, supply chains, quality systems, and competitor benchmarks.
Target-screening programs typically combine market mapping, longlisting, strategic-fit assessments, technology-fit evaluations, company profiling, candidate validation, and prioritization. In many of our engagements we reduced populations of more than one hundred companies into focused shortlists of acquisition candidates.
We at FEV Consulting assess scalability by reviewing production capabilities, industrialization readiness, supply-chain structures, quality systems, operational processes, and planned capacity expansion.
We experience common areas of concerns that include weak product competitiveness, immature technologies, limited innovation capacity, engineering capability gaps, manufacturing constraints, supply-chain vulnerabilities, and execution risks.
We identify value-creation opportunities by assessing operational improvements, growth opportunities, technology strengths, scalability barriers, organizational structures, and business synergies during the transaction process.
Get in contact
with our team
Hagen
Wegner
Wegner
Director and Expert in Private Equity & Principal Investors
Kai
Krüger
Krüger
Director and Expert in Private Equity & Principal Investors
