How brake pads are made

A brake pad's steel plate gets a texture pressed into its back so the friction block has something to grip.

stations: 7
things upstream: 76
raw sources: 23
steps from the ground: 10

The short version

Steel coil is punched into backing plates, textured and sprayed with adhesive. Weighed friction ingredients are mixed and pressed into a mold, then heat bonds the block to the plate. The pads cure in an oven, are ground to final height and grooved down the middle, and a coating goes on last.

Stamp the backing plate

A punch press cuts plates from a large coil of steel. Each one will carry the friction material and fit into the brake caliper.

Goes in
Sheet steel
Texture and glue the plate

A die presses a texture into the back of the plate, and a quick coat of adhesive is sprayed over it. Both help the friction material hold on.

Goes in
Adhesive
Mix the friction blend

Fibers, metal particles, fillers and a binding resin are weighed out and blended. The ratios decide how the pad resists heat and how long it lasts.

Goes in
Phenol Copper Phenolic resin Kevlar
Hot-press onto the plate

The mix is pressed into a mold matching the vehicle's pad shape. A machine then joins it to the plate with heat, melting the resin into a bond.
Bake it hard

The pads leave the mold and travel through an oven until the binder has cured throughout.
Grind and groove

Wheels grind the friction face to final height, and a groove is cut down the middle.
Coat and label

A colored coating goes on, the pads are baked and cooled again, and a final braking layer helps them bed in against the rotor.

Goes in
Paint