The procedure known as forge rolling is known from the prior art. In this longitudinal rolling method, the cross-sectional area of components is changed in that the latter are passed through two rolls (rotating in opposite directions). The rolls have in this case a circumferential forge rolling contour. In this case, the individual regions of this contour are designed such that the profile cross section of the blank changes in the circumferential direction. By means of forge rolling, blanks or preforms are generally produced with a favorable mass distribution for downstream processes—for example drop forging processes. The targeted mass distribution is advantageous in order both to reduce the material input and the process forces in downstream forming processes (for example drop forging) and to increase the surface quality of the components.