The new flagship of the DB fleet will be in service for decades to come, reaching top speeds of up to 250 km/h.

This places the highest demands on the outer shell in terms of stability and workmanship. But lightness is also required. Every extra gram of weight travels millions of kilometers, worsens the energy balance, and thus causes higher costs in the long term. A tricky task for the wagon builders at Siemens/Bombardier.

The Photon solution: steel and lasers. Laser-welded wagon components made of sheet steel offer maximum stability even with low material thicknesses—without the need for space-consuming internal reinforcements, as would be necessary when using aluminum, for example.

Photon's XXL laser welding portals can weld even the thinnest steel sheets with the highest quality, precision, and strength—efficiently, quickly, and without visible weld seams on the outer skin. This saves time, costs, and material in the production process, creates space in the interior of the train, and reduces the ecological footprint of the ICE 4.

A solution that convinced Siemens/Bombardier. Over the next few years, Photon will manufacture side walls, roof assemblies, and underframe components for approximately 1,600 ICE 4 railcars. And there is much more than just one Photon part in many other trains as well. For the competition, this means:

“Please stand back!”