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SIBORA: New Universal Hot-Forming Steel for Automotive Lightweight Design

The use of press-hardened steels has become a cornerstone of modern automotive lightweight design. Since 2003, the METAKUS Automotive team has been supporting OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, and plant manufacturers worldwide in developing innovative solution strategies within this specialized field of metal forming technology. Many of the key advancements that are commonplace in automotive production today have their origins at METAKUS.

A notable example of recent innovation is the new steel developed and tested in close collaboration with Volkswagen AG. The underlying advanced alloy concept offers a remarkable range of properties, with tensile strengths ranging from 1000 MPa to 2000 MPa and corresponding ductility during press hardening. This versatile hot-forming steel is now being prepared for series production under the name SIBORA®.

The associated thermal processing routes, including the so called BQP process, were developed and fine-tuned on METAKUS’s unique pilot plants, ensuring their readiness for reliable, large-scale production.

The imminent series application of this technology is the culmination of a highly productive and long-term R&D partnership between Volkswagen AG and METAKUS Automotive, which has been ongoing since 2016. This collaboration, spanning from the development of initial demonstrators and prototypes to the production of multi-strength graded structural components with complex geometries for pre-series use, has established a solid foundation of knowledge and methodologies, now primed for serial production at Volkswagen.

A significant milestone was achieved in 2024 when, in cooperation with Volkswagen AG, Gestamp, and METAKUS Automotive, a geometrically complex door ring with overlap patch technology and multifunctional property gradation was successfully produced under near-series process conditions based on the new SIBORA concept.

We extend our heartfelt thanks to Volkswagen AG and the Gestamp R&D team for their excellent and trusted collaboration!



Winner of the Swedish Steel Prize 2025!

The Swedish Steel Prize 2025 (www.steelprize.com) has been awarded to the SIBORA® development consortium, initiated by Volkswagen AG – with METAKUS Automotive as a contributing partner. Together, we have set new benchmarks in the hot forming of body components. We are proud to be part of this visionary project and are truly delighted by this international recognition of our shared achievement.



METAKUS Furnace Inspect Systems: Mobile Camera Box- and Endoscopy Systems for High Temperature Applications in Industrial Press Hardening Lines!

Detects the smallest process changes at highest temperatures!

The product portfolio of furnace inspection systems with integrated temperature sensors, which has been on the market since 2020, is now firmly established and proven as an integral part of real-time process monitoring at almost all leading technology players in the field of press hardening – both OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers. The advantages of these new systems lie not only in their compatibility with all heat treatment systems currently used in series production for press hardening, but above all in their compact design and ease of use. None of the existing users would want to do without the high-resolution images, which provide valuable assistance with the following problems:

  • Roller build-up / roller breakage / roller deflection
  • Blank displacements
  • Cracks in the radiant tube
  • Recuperation function problems / burner defects
  • Process disturbances
  • Thermal distortion of the blanks (Patch, TWB, TRB)
  • Reduction of material waste
  • Condition of the heat treatment system and furnace insulation
  • Amount of furnace scrap / maintenance and servicing tasks
  • Integrated temperature sensors
  • Identification of critical heat treatment zones.

Due to the high system quality, excellent handling and significant process advantages, it is not for nothing that schwartz GmbH, market leader for the manufacture of industrial heat treatment systems in the field of press hardening, among others, advocates the integration of MFI models in industrial roller hearth furnaces.