Touring coach operator Tanner KG gives each of its Setra touring coaches a very personal touch – the eye‑catching design is guaranteed by design consultants and decal experts at Daimler Buses.

Marc Jech at Daimler Buses IndividualDesign recalls what initially came to his mind when Omnibus Tanner enquired about the exterior design of a new Setra S 531 DT: "Great, we can fully unleash our creativity and will have so much fun completing this project to a high standard." The designer has known touring coach operator Tanner and its style for many years – because the company regularly commissions extravagant designs at the centre in Neu‑Ulm.

Thunder god Thor was a motif first developed during the close collaboration between Daimler Buses design expert Marc Jech and Robert Tanner, Managing Director at Tanner KG in Dormitz, and it matches the previous motifs featuring deities and mythical creatures, including Poseidon and Pegasus, that make Tanner's vehicles stand out from the crowd. Because every Setra touring coach in the Omnibus Tanner fleet is distinguished by its individual design. "Every vehicle features a different motif and is designed in a different colour. We started with zodiac signs and then switched to mythical creatures," Robert Tanner explains.

Technical feasibility and creativity go hand in hand in the design process. In the S 531 DT, for example, the double decker's special features have to be taken into account, as the generous glass panels do not leave much space for the exterior design. All considerations are also always about ensuring that each design can be practically implemented on the vehicle. “Only the end of the vehicle actually offers plenty of space,” Jech comments. “We tried several designs and tested which position would be ideal for the hammer.”

Once the motif has been selected, work on the details begins. Thor was initially refined further and further before details were added: stars, shading, lightning bolts. It almost seems like the thunder god is surrounded by energy and about to throw a lightning bolt. The customer is happy with the motif and technical feasibility has also been confirmed – this concludes Marc Jech's work, who developed the electrifying motif.

The Daimler Buses Decal Competence Centre in Neu‑Ulm then acts as the interface between design, technology and production. Here, staff members analyse data to print the decal, adjust and prepare it in accordance with production specifications. The raw data is used to create a printable template that also requires state‑of‑the‑art technology available in Neu‑Ulm. “This can take our equipment a good quarter of an hour to compute,” Julian Ruiz‑Castellanos reveals.

The decals are like giant stickers that are applied to the vehicle. For this purpose, experts at the Decal Competence Centre apply so-called placement points to the vehicle to indicate where the decals must be attached. “This is genuine precision work,” Julian Ruiz‑Castellanos says. This is why it takes two to four staff members to apply each individual decal. The decal is pressed on with a roller and applied by experienced staff so that the motif is accurately positioned at the end.

Robert Tanner attaches great importance to the mythological appearance of the motif, which, apart from the design on the sides, rear and front end, continues on the mirrors, hub caps and ski box. A challenge that designer Marc Jech and the Julian Ruiz‑Castellanos' team mastered with flying colours. For Robert Tanner, one thing is certain: “We always have the best looking vehicle in the parking lot.”