Lamera develops, makes and sells metal materials that have a sandwich structure. By reducing the quantity of material used it is possible to construct laminates that are just as strong but lighter than those they will replace. The sandwich structure can also replace materials that contain complicated or difficultly produced alloys with more easily recycled materials. The first product is a steel sandwich, its light construction makes it suitable for both the aircraft and vehicle industries and in the long-term it can prove to be useful for more general purposes and thereby benefit sustainable development.
New material makes steel lighter
Lamera develops, makes and sells materials and components in metal using a unique and patented micro-sandwich technique. By using these materials in their constructions Lamera’s customers can reduce weight and thereby fuel costs.
Technically Hybrix™ is a sandwich material but it looks and behaves like normal steel plate. In simple terms Hybrix™ is hollow sheet-metal.
The sandwich technique is not new but what is new and unique is that Hybrix™ can be worked and processed as standard thin sheet plate; this means that the Hybrix™ system can be sold to markets that conventional sandwich constructions cannot reach. Hybrix™ cuts weight by half and maintains rigidity without the need for installing new tools and machinery.
Since its start-up, Lamera has developed and built a Swedish production plant to produce prototype material – it was ready in 2007. On completion the company began to market and sell the first sandwich material using stainless steel to aircraft construction companies for aircraft interiors. The biggest challenge has been to motivate the higher prices vis-à-vis homogenous metal plate – the obvious choice was the aircraft industry where weight is a key factor.
In 2010, Lamera made a big technical and process development breakthrough and managed to cut manufacturing costs by 50%. This opened up the market for many new potential users as the product’s performance and price make it very competitive.
Hybrix’s™ vision is to revolutionise the metal industry much as chipboard revolutionised the timber industry.
Bengt Nilsson CEO
Lamera
New material makes steel lighter
