Kovis
Kovis is a Slovenian manufacturer of brake discs and cast components for railway vehicles, headquartered in Brežice and supplying vehicle builders and operators across Europe.
Kovis d.o.o. was established in 1990, building on a machining business founded by Anton Pangrčič in 1977. The company is family-owned, with around 150 employees in the parent company.
Kovis is the parent of a group that includes its own foundry (Kovis Livarna, producing grey and ductile cast iron), a machining subsidiary in Bačka Palanka, Serbia (Kovis BP, established 2005), a logistics company, and Kovis IND in India, where brake disc production started in 2022.
Products for braking systems
Kovis develops and manufactures axle-mounted, wheel-mounted, and flange brake discs for high-speed trains, EMUs, DMUs, light rail vehicles, passenger coaches, and locomotives. According to the company’s own figures, more than 500 disc types are in production.
Deutsche Bahn approved the company’s first two brake disc types in 1986, and a disc rated for 320 km/h followed in 1992. Kovis lists approvals and certifications from DB, Nedtrain, RENFE, SNCF, SNCB, SŽ, ČD, Alstom, Siemens, and Stadler.
With the Austrian Miba group, Kovis offers sMart braKe FLEX, a combined brake disc and pad concept.
Market position
Alongside braking components, Kovis produces axle boxes for freight wagons — a segment in which the company describes itself as Europe’s largest manufacturer — as well as gearbox and stator housings. Kovis has more than 160 customers in 43 countries.
In-house capabilities cover casting, machining, dynamometer testing to UIC 541-3, and non-destructive testing. The company holds ISO 9001 (since 1995) and ISO 14001 (since 2009) certifications.
Current activity
Kovis exhibited at InnoTrans 2024 in Berlin, presenting brake discs, bearing housings, and gearbox and stator housings. In September 2024, its XNET brake disc for high-speed trains received a national silver innovation award from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia.
An ongoing development project, funded through the EU’s NextGenerationEU recovery mechanism, covers a wheel-mounted brake disc for rail vehicles operating above 200 km/h.
