The focus is on the fundamentals of moulding materials and binders and the most important mould and core production processes for lost moulds and cores as well as the most important aspects of the metallurgy of ferrous and non-ferrous casting materials, melting furnaces and melt treatment and analysis processes. In addition, students are given an overview of modern production processes in foundries, the design of foundry surfaces, the post-treatment of castings and quality management.

This specialisation deals with the production technology of semi-finished metal products (such as sheets, strips, wires, tubes, etc.) using forming technologies (such as rolling, forging, drawing, etc.). The lectures cover all technological stages along the production path from the solidified preliminary product to the semi-finished product, their special features and their influence on the final properties of the product to be manufactured. The fundamentals of forming technology as well as technological process chains and their numerical simulation, including their interaction with material behaviour, are presented in detail.

The specialisation provides students with a fundamental and applied understanding of the primary production of base non-ferrous metals such as copper, nickel, aluminium, tin, lead and zinc from primary and secondary resources, with valuable metals (such as silver, gold, ruthenium, rhodium, palladium) also covered. High-temperature, hydrometallurgical and electrochemical processes are analysed in terms of application, modelling and experimentation. Special emphasis is placed on recycling processes, e.g. for batteries, electrical and electronic waste, metallurgical dusts, residues and slags.

The specialisation focuses on fundamental concepts and new trends in the technology and production of ferrous materials. It includes the investigation of iron and steel production, primary and secondary metallurgy, casting, the cleaning of crude steel, the optimisation of manufacturing processes, material properties and structures and the evaluation of end products. Global trends such as decarbonisation, increasing energy efficiency and the circular economy are key topics in the lectures of this specialisation.