Miba buttons are produced using a patented “sprinkling technique”, and compacted powder metallurgy. Metal powder is first sprinkled and compacted directly on the steel backing plate using precision tools and high pressure. This procedure helps to assure a 100% sintered bond. The sintering is then carried out in furnaces at temperatures up to 2400°F degrees. The powders fuse together (sinter) into a solid material, matching the desired load. A final “coining” operation, which includes color-coding and testing, ensures exact material density, thickness consistency, and precise centering on the backing plate. Unlike other manufacturers that rely on large amounts of low-cost iron as a “filler” material, Miba relies on a bronze-based material while adding only small amounts of iron to act as a hardening agent. Buttons that use a higher content of bronze, versus iron, are more expensive to produce. However, higher levels of wear resulting from the use of iron buttons prematurely destroys cores and cost substantially more in the long run, resulting in the need to purchase replacement plates and carriers more often.