Improve your Quality

QUBUS and IFO at PaintExpo 2026

The QUBUS and IFO group of companies will be presenting its combined potential in engineering services and laboratory expertise at PaintExpo 2026.

Visit our booth, number 1421 in Hall 1.

For more information about PaintExpo, please visit: www.paintexpo.de/en/

Thank you for a special anniversary year!

2025 was a particularly eventful year for us: countless exciting discussions, customer contacts, and joint projects made our anniversary year something very special. Our highlights included the big anniversary celebration in July, the reaccreditation of our laboratory in Dubai, and the opening of our new location in Lublin, Poland. 

We would like to express our sincere thanks to all our customers and contacts for their trust, cooperation, and valuable exchange. 

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 

We will be closed for the holidays from December 19 through January 4. We will be back to business as usual on January 5. 

New challenges and exciting tasks await us again in 2026 – we look forward to shaping the future together with you. 

Innovative Strength Recognized: IFO GmbH Receives BSFZ Seal

We are delighted to have been officially awarded the BSFZ seal for research-active companies. The BSFZ thus confirms that IFO GmbH implements eligible development projects, thereby strengthening its research and development expertise. 

As the central testing agency in Germany for research allowances, the BSFZ audits companies within the framework of the Research Allowance Act. The award underscores our commitment to progress and quality in Germany, to actively promoting technological innovations, and to developing forward-looking solutions. 

Since June 2023, the BSFZ seal has been open to companies and offers partner and customers transparent guidance on a company's innovative strength and research activities.

 

IFO Inspection & Testing Middle East successfully completes scope extension

We are pleased to announce the successful completion of our IAS certification renewal. 

Along with the renewal, we were able to extend our scope with the following nine new test methods for our laboratory in Dubai: 

  1. ASTM E112 – Standard Test Method for Determination of Average Grain Size 
  2. ASTM G69 – Standard Method for Measurement of Corrosion Potentials of Aluminium Alloys
  3. ISO 2178 – Non-Magnetic Coatings on Magnetic Substrates 
  4. ISO 6270-1 – Part 1: Single Side Condensation
  5. ISO 12944-6 – Part 6: Corrosion Protection of Steel Structures by Protective Paint Systems 
  6. ISO 12944-9 – Part 9: Protective Paint Systems for Offshore and Related Structures 
  7. ISO 16474-3 – Accelerated Weathering of Paints 
  8. ISO 2808 Method 6A – Determination of Film Thickness 
  9. Wet Adhesion Test – As per QCT 

In addition to our ISO 17025 accreditation, the IAS (International Accreditation Service) accreditation confirms our laboratory as an independent and internationally recognized testing laboratory. 

30 Years of IFO and QUBUS – We Celebrate Our Anniversary!

Last Friday, we celebrated out 30th anniversary with a summer party at our company headquarters in Schwäbisch Gmünd. Around 250 invited guests – including employees, customers, partners, and long-time companions – accepted our invitation and experienced a day full of connection, insight, and good atmosphere. 

We opened the afternoon with an in-house exhibition: Guests were given the opportunity to get to know our diverse areas of work and tale guided tours through our laboratory facilities for a behind-the-scenes look. 

After a festive champagne reception, we moved on to the festively decorated tent. With fresh ice cream, cool drinks and barbecued food, there was not only culinary enjoyment - the focus was also on personal interaction. 

A varied program rounded off the day: An interview with our four company founders offered exciting insights into the history of the company's origins. Swabian cabaret artist Ernst Mantel provided the best entertainment. Musical entertainment was provided by The Wow. Finally, our DJ got the guests dancing. 

We would like to express our sincere thanks for the numerous congratulations, beautiful gifts - and above all for the personal encounters. 

New General Manager at IFO Inspection & Testing Middle East

Mr. Azeem Khan, a highly valued member of our company, has been appointed as the General Manager of our Dubai branch. Over the years, Mr. Khan has consistently demonstrated exceptional expertise, leadership, and dedication, significantly contributing to the growth and success of our organization. "I am confident that he will continue to drive the success of our Dubai branch and take it to new heights in this exciting new role." said Marc Holz Management Director of IFO Germany at the appointment in Dubai. We look forward to achieving great things together on this journey ahead.

IFO Inspection & Testing Middle East receives IAS certification

The testing laboratory of the IFO Institut für Oberflächentechnik in Dubai/UAE successfully passed the audit procedure of the International Accreditation Service (IAS) in November this year and is now officially IAS-certified.

In addition to the ISO 17025 accreditation, this certification confirms our laboratory as an independent and internationally recognized testing laboratory.

IAS certification ensures the accuracy and reliability of measurement and test results and promotes the development of new measurement technologies and methods as well as the standardization of measurement and test procedures.

Please find further information in the press release.

Season's Greetings and a Happy New Year

We wish you and your families a Merry Christmas, joyful holidays, and a wonderful start to the New Year 2025!

One special highlight this season was our Christmas celebration. At QUBUS and IFO, the gift-giving spirit had already arrived: as an extra token of appreciation for their dedication, all employees received thoughtfully curated gifts filled with delicious treats.

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who accompanied us throughout the year! Let’s step into the new year together with confidence. Here’s to a successful and healthy 2025!

Your QUBIFO Team

New Frosio-Inspectors at IFO

Highway bridge closed! - The closure of a highway bridge can have far-reaching consequences: longer travel times and considerable economic damage. Numerous steel structures are system-relevant and require regular inspections in order to detect damage at an early stage and prevent total failure.

These inspections are carried out by certified specialists who have been tested in accordance with FROSIO, NACE and DINCertco standards. The requirements for professional suitability are also regulated by the emerging ISO 24959.

We are delighted that our colleagues, Oliver Bögler and Stefan Merger, have successfully completed their training as FROSIO inspectors at SLV Duisburg and, thanks to their professional experience, have directly achieved Expert Level III. Congratulations! Both now complete our international team of qualified inspectors according to NACE, FROSIO and DINCertco.

IFO china receives CMA certification

Our IFO laboratory in Hangzhou/China successfully passed the audit procedure in May of this year and received the coveted CMA certification. In addition to the ISO 17025 accreditation, this certification confirms our laboratory as an independent and nationally recognized testing laboratory.

In China, the China Metrology Accreditation (CMA) is required for inspection and testing institutes to provide data and results with evidential value. CMA certification ensures the accuracy and reliability of measurement and test results and promotes the development of new measurement technologies and methods as well as the standardization of measurement and test procedures.

Within the scope of this important quality test, the focus was on the test methods for coating thickness, gloss, mechanical properties and corrosion behavior.

We are delighted with this recognition, which underlines our standards and our commitment to quality and reliability.