Brose bags its second Materialica award for glass fibre fabric-reinforced thermoplastic rear seat load-through

Automotive supplier Brose received the Materialica Design + Technology Award 2017 for a glass fibre fabric-reinforced thermoplastic (organo sheet) rear seat load-through. The panel of experts presented the family-owned company the ‘Gold Award’ in the ‘Product’ category.

The Materialica Award is one of the most prestigious prizes in the international design scene and, after 2014, this is the second time it has gone to the supplier.

The Materialica Award has been presented since 2003 to honour products and concepts that combine outstanding design and high technological expertise. “We are delighted that the quality level of the award contributions is further increasing, even if it means that some applications by very well-known companies were not nominated,” said Robert Metzger, managing director of MunichExpo Veranstaltungs GmbH and organiser of the award.

Markus Trampusch (centre), Customer Team Director at Brose, received the Materialica award from organizer Robert Metzger (left) and host Jan Stecker.

Weight and cost saver
The folding organo sheet load-through for the rear seat saves 1.5 kilograms of weight – or 40 percent – compared to conventional steel variants. And it eliminates 12 single parts and three welding assemblies, which also cuts costs. Brose manufactures the product at its location in Coburg for use in the Land Rover Discovery. It is the first safety critical structural component made from this lightweight material to enter series production.

“The load-through is proof of our expertise in the high-volume production of organo sheet products. We are very excited about this award and it shows once again that we are on the right track with our strategy: We are already working on other seat components from this material,” stressed Periklis Nassios, executive vice-president – Seat Systems at Brose.

Brose is the world’s fifth-largest family-owned automotive supplier. The company develops and produces mechatronic systems for vehicle doors and seats as well as electric motors, drives and electronics, among others for steering, brakes, transmissions and engine cooling. More than 25,000 employees at 60 locations in 23 countries generate 6.1 billion euros in turnover. The company says every second new vehicle worldwide is equipped with at least one Brose product.