Automotive industry news: TRUMPF laser technology reduces manufacturing costs in hot forming

Ditzingen, Germany, May 5, 2026 – A new laser technology solution from high-tech company TRUMPF is reducing component costs by up to 20 per cent when cutting hot-formed components. TRUMPF’s new X-Blast 2.0 cutting nozzle and process solution boosts the efficient laser cutting of hot-formed parts for safety-critical body structure

“Energy costs, expensive cutting gas, and unplanned downtime are driving up component prices in hot forming,” says Ralf Kohllöffel, responsible for product management of 3D laser systems at TRUMPF in Germany. “TRUMPF now offers a solution that addresses this issue. By combining a new cutting nozzle, new generation of fiber lasers, and proven beam shaping technology, we enable efficient laser cutting of hot-formed parts to make our customers even more competitive.”

Fewer machine downtimes and higher productivity

Users benefit from reduced machine downtime and fewer service interventions as a result of the new solution. The heart of the new solution is a new cutting nozzle, the X-Blast 2.0. The new nozzle design allows the nozzle-to-sheet distance to be increased to several millimeters. This significantly reduces the risk of collisions between the nozzle and the sheet during the cutting process.

“Nozzle collisions were previously a frequent source of disruption, particularly when users laser cut with compressed air as the cutting gas. The collisions sometimes led to damaged nozzles, fluctuating cut quality, and unplanned machine downtime,” says Kohllöffel. "In tests, the new nozzles were in use for more than three months without needing to be replaced. The typical service life of the already improved X-Blast standard nozzles was previously just a few days. Now, even with less-than-ideal programming or fluctuating production conditions, the cutting process remains stable, regardless of whether compressed air is used as the cutting gas.”

Cutting gas costs reduced by 75 percent

For process reliability reasons, operators frequently used expensive nitrogen as a laser cutting gas. The new X-Blast 2.0 nozzle, in combination with the BrightLine Speed beam shaping technology, enables the industrial use of compressed air even in 24/7 operation of high-productivity 3D laser cutting machines when cutting hot-formed components in the automotive industry. By using compressed air instead of nitrogen, users can reduce cutting costs by 75 percent.

"Although compressed air is significantly cheaper than nitrogen as a cutting gas, it was previously considered to be less robust, particularly in continuous operation of with high-productivity system,” explains Kohllöffel. “This is precisely where TRUMPF’s new process combination comes in.”

BrightLine Speed is a beam shaping technology that enables higher cutting speeds to be achieved with lower laser power. The technology allows users to cut faster, for example with 3 kilowatts of laser power, than competitors using 4 kilowatts. Additionally, thanks to the laser’s high brilliance, users benefit from significantly lower cutting gas consumption compared to a standard process without BrightLine Speed.

The new generation of TRUMPF fiber lasers complements this effect. TRUMPF fiber lasers operate much more energy-efficiently and reduce the power consumption of the beam source. At the same time, the lower laser power required reduces the total energy consumption per component.

About TRUMPF

TRUMPF is a high-tech company offering manufacturing solutions in the fields of machine tools and laser technology. It drives digital connectivity in manufacturing through consulting, platform products and software. TRUMPF is one of the technology and market leaders in highly versatile machine tools for sheet metal processing and in the field of industrial lasers.  In 2024/25, TRUMPF employed 18,303 people and generated sales of 4.3 billion euros. With about 90 companies, the TRUMPF Group is represented in nearly every European country as well as in North America, South America and Asia. The company has production facilities in Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, the Czech Republic, the United States, Mexico and China.

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