Röchling Automotive Scales Cost-Competitive Cross-Car Beam Solutions Globally
- Up to 37% weight reduction and up to 66% lower material-related greenhouse gas emissions: metal-plastic hybrid technologies enable weight reduction and enhanced functional integration compared with conventional steel and aluminum solutions
- Röchling Automotive expands its structural lightweighting capabilities in a key growth segment
Mannheim, November 10, 2026 | Röchling Automotive is advancing the development of a new generation of cross-car beams. With a growing number of projects in Europe, North America, and Asia, the component is becoming an important pillar of the company’s global lightweighting strategy.
Cross-car beams are key structural components in the vehicle interior. Serving as instrument panel carriers, they perform important functions in terms of structural stability, safety, and the integration of numerous cockpit components. While today’s market is still predominantly characterized by steel and aluminum solutions, Röchling Automotive is developing the next generation of innovative metal-plastic hybrid technologies, offering significant advantages in terms of weight, functional integration, product costs.
According to an internal comparative calculation based on different material concepts, the hybrid cross-car beam achieves up to 37% lower component weight and up to 66% lower material-related greenhouse gas emissions compared with a calculated aluminum concept.¹
Growing Demand and International Projects
“Demand for these solutions is increasing. In recent years, Röchling Automotive has secured several major series-production and development projects in Europe, North America, and Asia, while significantly expanding its global development activities”, says Martin Schüler, CEO of Röchling Automotive.
Global Development Expertise – From Concept to Series Production
The development centers and production sites collaborate across locations to bring new lightweight solutions into series production faster and with greater agility. The company covers the entire product lifecycle, from initial product idea, component development, simulation, and industrialization to high-volume series production.
By expanding its international activities, Röchling Automotive is reinforcing its position as a development partner for advanced lightweight structural solutions and consistently pursuing its growth strategy in a market segment with significant future potential.
¹ Basis of calculation: Internal comparative calculation of technically comparable cross-car beam concepts based on concept-specific bills of materials, material compositions and component weights. Greenhouse gas emissions are reported as material-related Global Warming Potential (GWP) in CO₂ equivalents. Manufacturing processes and transportation are not included in the calculation. The values therefore represent a material-related comparison and not a full life cycle assessment (LCA). Primary aluminum was assumed for the theoretically derived aluminum concept.
