In conventional forming processes, quasi-static conditions are a good approximation and numerical process optimization is the state of the art in industrial practice. Nevertheless, there is still a substantial need for research in the field of identification of material parameters. In production technologies with high forming velocities, it is no longer acceptable to neglect the dependency of the hardening on the forming speed. Therefore, a method for determining material characteristics in processes with high forming speeds was developed by designing and implementing a test setup and an inverse parameter identification. Two acceleration concepts were realized: a pneumatically driven one and an electromagnetically driven one. The method was verified for a mild steel and an aluminum alloy proving that the identified material parameters allow numerical modeling of high-speed processes with good accuracy. The determined material parameters for steel show significant differences for different stress states. For specimen geometries with predominantly uniaxial tensile strain at forming speeds in the order of 10 4 -10 5 /s the determined yield stress was nearly twice as high compared to shear samples; an effect which does not occur under quasi-static loading. This trend suggests a triaxiality-dependent rate dependence, which might be attributed to shear band induced strain localization and adiabatic heating.Despite these advantages, the corresponding technologies, which are often referred to as high-speed forming, impulse forming or high-energy-rate-forming (HERF) [2] have not yet achieved a great industrial breakthrough. Reasons for this are lacking process knowledge and reliable process design strategies. When considering conventional forming processes, it is possible to assume a close approximation of quasi-static conditions, and numerical process design and optimization as state of the art. By contrast, the analysis and design of manufacturing processes with high forming speeds has hitherto been strongly experimental. Numerical considerations are helpful to investigate fundamental relationships, but often only qualitative interpretation is possible. One reason for this is that material parameters are hardly available at the process-specific high strain rates in the range of 10 s −1 up to 10 5 s −1 or even more. The identification of these parameters is complicated, because in addition to the influencing factors known from quasi-static conditions such as temperature and strain, the plastic flow and failure behavior of many materials strongly depends on the strain rate. Therefore, neglecting forming heat, as well as a strain rate-dependent hardening is no longer acceptable. Providing a method for determining reliable material and failure characteristics for the simulation of high-velocity forming, cutting, and joining processes will therefore contribute to making technological, economic, and ecological advantages of these processes exploitable in industrial production.