Exterior body components give a face to our customers' buses and enwrap the technology of the future. The outer skin should thus not only be striking in its design and styling but also perform a wide variety of functions, especially in the case of city buses with alternative drives. Furthermore, customer requirements regarding individual design, such as, for example, the 'BRT Bus Rapid Transport', with extremely short timelines must be taken into consideration more and more frequently. Prior to development, production quantities, processes and also costs must therefore be selectively analyzed and evaluated. In the light of CO_2 legislation for heavy commercial vehicles and buses alike, which also includes reductions in fuel consumption, the subject of lightweight design plays an increasingly important role even with exterior components. The requirements profile for the exterior components of city buses ranges from straightforwardly functional panels to complex maintenance-friendly covers offering easy access to power units and the like. The range of manufacturing processes, extending from simple hand lay-up lamination to the complex FRP component, is significantly influenced by costs and the time frame. Daimler Buses offers the complete product portfolio with self-developed outer body parts. The interlocking of modules and also a high degree of component variance and multiple possible end applications makes this necessary.
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