April 2008

around the industry

Battery Maker to Open New Plant

Oakland, New Jersey-based International Battery will be opening a plant in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley with plans to hire 250 workers over the next three years. It will manufacture lithium-based, rechargeable battery systems for military and industrial use.

Kevin Ortiz, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Economic and Community Development, said the company received state help as part of a $20 million investment to locate here. Incentives include $500,000 in job creation tax credits, $500,000 in grants plus a $3 million loan for equipment and machinery.

"We were glad to be able to land these folks," Ortiz said. "Obviously, they were considering staying in New Jersey or going down to Florida."

International Battery's headquarters remain in Oakland.

AMETEK Names McGeehan V.P., Specialty Metals

AMETEK Inc. of Paoli, Pennsylvania, has named Patrick J. McGeehan as vice president and general manager, specialty metal products. McGeehan joins AMETEK from Hoeganaes Corp., where he was senior vice president of operations and technology.

"We are very pleased to welcome Patrick to AMETEK," said Frank Hermance, company chairman and CEO. "He brings extensive operating and general management experience to his new position."

McGeehan also has a strong background in metallurgy and specialty metals and significant manufacturing management experience. He spent 24 years with Hoeganaes after working for Phoenix Steel and Westinghouse Electric Corp. He holds BS and MS degrees in materials engineering from Drexel University.

Argonne Licenses New Li-ion Battery Technology

The U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory (DOE) and Toda Kogyo Corp. (Toda) of Japan have reached a worldwide licensing agreement for the commercial production and sales of Argonne's patented composite cathode materials for Li-ion batteries.

The family of structurally integrated composite cathode materials being licensed uses a new combination of lithium/manganese mixed metal oxides in a revolutionary materials-design approach to extend the time between charges, increase calendar life and improve Li-ion cell safety.

Kenji Ogisu, president of Toda Kogyo's internal Energy Solutions Co., said, "We believe the high-capacity lithiated nickel-manganese-cobalt oxide technology we are commercializing are the materials of the future, that will solve many of the performance issues we see today in lithium-ion batteries."

mPhase/Always Ready to Demo Battery Technology

On April 3, mPhase/Always Ready, Inc. was to demonstrate for the first time to the public its breakthrough battery technology.

The company's battery is based on a patented electro-wetting phenomenon which allows for a potentially infinite shelf life by mixing "Power on Command." The battery has recently been successfully field tested by the U.S. Army.

Advantages of the battery include that it's environmentally friendly, has potentially infinite shelf life, lower manufacturing cost, power management functionality, faster ramp to power, flexible arrayed configurations, and versatile packaging.

Altair Nanotechnologies CEO Alan Gotcher Resigns

Altair Nanotechnologies Inc., of Reno, Nevada, a leading provider of advanced nanomaterials technology, reports that Alan Gotcher, Ph.D., has resigned as an officer of the company and that the board of directors has begun a search for a new CEO. Terry Copeland will serve as interim president.

Copeland joined Altair Nanotechnologies in 2007 as vice president of operations for its Power & Energy Group. Dr. Copeland's duties have included leading global operations and supply chain management for Altairnano's lithium titanate battery products.

Prior to joining Altair Nanotechnologies, Copeland worked as a general manufacturing and technical consultant from 2004 through the end of 2007. He holds a BChE in chemical engineering from the University of Delaware and a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Axion Power Gets the Lead Out

Axion Power, a 23-person company located in New Castle, Pennsylvania, is ramping up production of a new kind of battery based on lead-carbon (PbC) technology.

"It's really a hybrid battery/supercapacitor," Axion Power CEO Thomas Granville said. "Even though it looks like a lead-acid battery and can be manufactured on a lead- acid battery line, its characteristics are different."

Axion claims its new patented lead-carbon approach represents a major advance in lead-acid battery technology, yielding batteries that require less lead yet deliver higher power rates, faster recharges and longer life cycles than conventional lead-acid batteries. At the same time, the company claims their batteries are less expensive than nickel metal hydride or lithium-ion batteries.

Building batteries with longer lifespans should translate into lower total lifecycle costs, which is how the company rationalizes the 1.7- to 1.8-times premium it plans to charge over similar batteries.

PowerGenix Non-toxic Batteries Coming to Market

San Diego, California-based PowerGenix reports its non-toxic, rechargeable nickel-zinc batteries have met the European Union's requirements for the Reduction of Hazardous Substances and the 2006 Battery Directive.

The batteries, which contain no lead, cadmium or mercury, will soon go to market. "The first customers of ours are coming from the power tool and lawn and garden segment, and that's about a $600 million market," said Dan Squiller, CEO of PowerGenix. "We're within 30 to 45 days of high-volume shipment."

PowerGenix said its line of rechargeables serve as replacements for existing technologies, including nickel-cadmium which it said is being phased out by manufacturers and retailers in North America, the European Union and Asia due to toxicity concerns.

The general RoHS directive became mandatory in the EU in 2006, and is being adopted in California and is under consideration in parts of Asia.

Saft to Power Miner Tracking System

Saft has been selected to power MineTracer™, a wireless miner tracking and communication system developed by Venture Design Services Inc. Using Saft's intrinsically safe (IS) MP 174865 IS battery, MineTracer is the first underground miner tracking system approved by the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration.

During an emergency, power to coal mines is shut off to reduce the danger to the miners underground. In this situation, MineTracer is completely reliant on power from Saft's single cell MP 174865 IS batteries, installed in the system's Wireless Access Point. The extended-life Li-ion batteries operate under extreme conditions and transmit information on the location of trapped miners for at least 48 hours after an accident.

Sharp to Make Solar Power Storage Batteries

Japan's Sharp Corp. will team up with Daiwa House Industry Co. Ltd. and Dai Nippon Printing Co. Ltd. to develop large lithium-ion batteries that can store solar energy for houses, the Nikkei Business Daily reports.

The deal will help Sharp, the world's largest producer of solar cells, expand its solar power system business while enabling Japanese homebuilder Daiwa House to add value to its homes with energy-saving technologies.

Sharp was to to invest around ¥600 million in large Li-ion battery developer Eliiy Power Co. Ltd. in March. Currently, Daiwa House and Dai Nippon Printing, provider of electrode materials used in Li-ion batteries, each hold stakes worth about ¥600 million in Eliiy Power.

Eliiy Power plans to build a factory to produce large Li-ion batteries in the business year 2009/10.

EaglePicher Names Joe Marotta V.P.

EaglePicher Medical Power, a leading supplier of batteries to manufacturers of implantable medical devices, has named Joseph (Joe) Marotta vice president of sales and marketing. He will be responsible for the sales and marketing activities of EaglePicher Medical Power, including customer development initiatives

"I am pleased to welcome Joe to the EaglePicher Medical Power team," said David Treadwell, president and CEO, EaglePicher Corp. "His industry knowledge and leadership expertise will help us grow our medical business and better serve our customers."

Marotta has more than 20 years of sales and marketing experience. Most recently, he spent six years as V. P. of worldwide sales and marketing at National Manufacturing Co., Inc. He holds a bachelor's degree in marketing and business management from the University of Arizona.

Asahi Kasei to Build 2nd Li-ion Battery Plant

Asahi Kasei Corp. will spend roughly ¥6 billion to construct a plant for Li-ion rechargeable battery separators in Hyuga, Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan. The plant is expected to start operating in early 2010, with an annual output capacity of 20 million square meters.

The addition of the plant is expected to raise the firm's separator production capacity by 13% from the 150 million square meters that it aims to achieve by the end of fiscal 2009. The new plant's capacity is to be bolstered further as the demand increases.

The Li-ion rechargeable battery separator business has been handled by the Asahi Kasei unit of Asahi Kasei Chemicals Corp. It now relies solely on a plant in Moriyama, Shiga Prefecture. The new plant is to also serve as an export base for South Korea and China.

With half the global market, Asahi Kasei is the world's top producer of Li-ion rechargeable battery separators.

Daimler to Manufacture New Battery

Daimler says it will be the first in the world to mass-produce a hybrid-powered car using a Li-ion battery.

Thomas Weber, chief development officer at Mercedes Group, called the combination of technologies a "technical breakthrough" that would spread through the motor industry.

German components group Continental developed the electronics and French battery system manufacturer Johnson Controls-Saft had engineered the Li-ion cell.

The world's best-known hybrid car, the Toyota Prius, uses a nickel metal hydride battery. Hybrids, praised for their low emissions, usually have gas engines as their primary energy source.

The key to a Li-ion cell's long life was to keep its temperature optimal using the car air-conditioning system. The electronics will ensure the battery stays between 15C and 35C.

Agassi Mulls Japanese Electric Car Venture

Electric car entrepreneur Shai Agassi is in talks to set up an operating company in Japan for Project Better Place. Agassi was in the entourage accompanying Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on his recent visit to Japan.

Agassi has met with Japanese business leaders to reach an agreement on setting up a company, which would operate similar to the model in Israel. Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. will probably manufacture the electric car, as well as its batteries.

Agassi said, "The visit to Japan is part of the process of finding local partners who can participate in the project. There are talks with Japanese conglomerates on agreements."

Agassi added that although there a feasibility study to duplicate the model in several countries, there is a greater chance of success in Japan because, like Israel, Japan is a transportation island in terms of geography.

Exide Goes Ahead with Price Hike

Despite a cut in excise duty, Exide Industries of India increased its product prices by 5% on an average in March to reduce the impact of spiralling lead prices. Responding to queries on the Union Budget, P.K. Kataky, director (automotive), told The Hindu Business Line that the company originally planned a 7% increase in prices. "However, we have revised the price increase to 5% following the excise duty cut from 16 to 14%," he said.

The increase will come on a 7.5% hike in prices in October. Exide is also benefitted due to1% reduction in CST beginning next fiscal. "Reduction in CST will reduce the price of our products beginning next fiscal year," said A.K. Mukherjee, director of finance. Reduction in prices was also expected due to a revision of CST. "The relief to the battery sector coupled with duty cut on automobiles will result in a demand growth for automotive batteries."