Abstract: Elements to be joined to one another are clamped such that parts thereof which face one another and are to be joined are immovable with respect to one another. A mandrel is brought into contact with the parts in the region of a joint to be produced. The mandrel is cyclically moved with respect to the elements such that frictional heat is generated and the parts are brought into a plastic state. The distribution of frictional heat is influenced in at least one of the elements such that the frictional heat is essentially concentrated in the parts of the at least one element which have been brought into the plastic state. The parts brought into the plastic stat are allowed to cool in order to form the joint.