xcel
09-07-2006, 08:20 AM
Johnson Controls, French firm will supply automaker. (http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=492906)
Thomas Content - Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal - Sept. 6, 2006
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/Peugeot_307_Hybrid.jpg
Could the Europen Peugeot 307 HDI be the recipient of the new JCI/Saft Li-Ion’s?
The hybrid battery unit of Johnson Controls-Saft Advanced Power Solutions will begin making lithium-ion batteries in Europe for hybrid-electric vehicles, the company said Wednesday.
Johnson Controls-Saft has signed a letter of intent with a major global vehicle manufacturer, said Alan Mumby, vice president and general manager of Johnson Controls' hybrid battery business. The company didn't identify the customer, or the country in which the factory will be located.
Johnson Controls also didn't specify when the vehicle would be produced, but a statement released in France by the joint venture indicated that the batteries would be equipped "on a late 2008 model year vehicle."
The company plans to invest $15 million to $20 million for production of lithium batteries in Europe, an investment that Mumby said "will enable capacity to be easily augmented, with minimal additional expenditures, as demand increases."
"This program positions the JCS joint venture as the leading manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries for the next generation of alternative powertrain vehicles," Mumby said.
Johnson Controls-Saft is a joint venture formed in January between Johnson Controls and Saft, a French company that specializes in high-tech batteries used in transportation, space and military applications. The joint venture is working to develop a lighter, more efficient battery for use in future hybrid-electric cars and light trucks.
A year later - and nine months after the Saft joint venture was formed - Mumby said the battery lab in Glendale is "becoming fully functional."
"We've got it ramped up. We're producing some product and going through the de-bug process. We're actually a little bit ahead of schedule," he said.
The development means that Johnson Controls has two contracts in hand to build hybrid batteries. Late last year, the company said it had won a contract to build a nickel-metal- hydride battery for a hybrid vehicle that will go on sale by a European automaker in 2009.
The latter technology is the one used in hybrid vehicles on the market today, including the Toyota Prius, Honda Civic and Ford Escape sport utility vehicle.
Hybrid-car experts reached Wednesday said they hadn't heard of any firm announcements by carmakers to build hybrid-electric vehicles using the more powerful but still-being-developed, lithium-ion batteries.
"Virtually every automaker is examining the hybrid technology," said Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of Green Car Journal since 2003 and a green-car auto industry newsletter since the early 1990s. "Either they have concept cars already out, they have products announced that are in the pipeline, they have a limited number out there already or they're examining the technology behind the scenes and are largely not talking about it."
Several automakers have unveiled concept cars featuring lithium-ion batteries, including Audi, Volkswagen and Volvo.
"Everybody has been focused on nickel-metal- hydride for the most part, but I don't doubt that there are companies that are looking seriously at lithium-ion because it packs more energy on board the vehicle than you can pack with other technologies," Cogan said.
In the United States, Johnson Controls-Saft is working with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy and Ford Motor Co., General Motors and DaimlerChrysler under a recently announced two-year contract.
Working with the U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium, Johnson Controls-Saft is looking to improve the performance battery technology and set up a "road map" for bringing down the cost of producing the batteries during the manufacturing process, Mumby said.
In the joint venture, Saft has a 49% stake and Johnson Controls has 51%. Saft disclosed in its annual report that Johnson Controls contributed $40 million in cash and assets to the joint venture and its technology licenses. Saft contributed its technology licenses, contracts and manufacturing capabilities.
Thomas Content - Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal - Sept. 6, 2006
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/Peugeot_307_Hybrid.jpg
Could the Europen Peugeot 307 HDI be the recipient of the new JCI/Saft Li-Ion’s?
The hybrid battery unit of Johnson Controls-Saft Advanced Power Solutions will begin making lithium-ion batteries in Europe for hybrid-electric vehicles, the company said Wednesday.
Johnson Controls-Saft has signed a letter of intent with a major global vehicle manufacturer, said Alan Mumby, vice president and general manager of Johnson Controls' hybrid battery business. The company didn't identify the customer, or the country in which the factory will be located.
Johnson Controls also didn't specify when the vehicle would be produced, but a statement released in France by the joint venture indicated that the batteries would be equipped "on a late 2008 model year vehicle."
The company plans to invest $15 million to $20 million for production of lithium batteries in Europe, an investment that Mumby said "will enable capacity to be easily augmented, with minimal additional expenditures, as demand increases."
"This program positions the JCS joint venture as the leading manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries for the next generation of alternative powertrain vehicles," Mumby said.
Johnson Controls-Saft is a joint venture formed in January between Johnson Controls and Saft, a French company that specializes in high-tech batteries used in transportation, space and military applications. The joint venture is working to develop a lighter, more efficient battery for use in future hybrid-electric cars and light trucks.
A year later - and nine months after the Saft joint venture was formed - Mumby said the battery lab in Glendale is "becoming fully functional."
"We've got it ramped up. We're producing some product and going through the de-bug process. We're actually a little bit ahead of schedule," he said.
The development means that Johnson Controls has two contracts in hand to build hybrid batteries. Late last year, the company said it had won a contract to build a nickel-metal- hydride battery for a hybrid vehicle that will go on sale by a European automaker in 2009.
The latter technology is the one used in hybrid vehicles on the market today, including the Toyota Prius, Honda Civic and Ford Escape sport utility vehicle.
Hybrid-car experts reached Wednesday said they hadn't heard of any firm announcements by carmakers to build hybrid-electric vehicles using the more powerful but still-being-developed, lithium-ion batteries.
"Virtually every automaker is examining the hybrid technology," said Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of Green Car Journal since 2003 and a green-car auto industry newsletter since the early 1990s. "Either they have concept cars already out, they have products announced that are in the pipeline, they have a limited number out there already or they're examining the technology behind the scenes and are largely not talking about it."
Several automakers have unveiled concept cars featuring lithium-ion batteries, including Audi, Volkswagen and Volvo.
"Everybody has been focused on nickel-metal- hydride for the most part, but I don't doubt that there are companies that are looking seriously at lithium-ion because it packs more energy on board the vehicle than you can pack with other technologies," Cogan said.
In the United States, Johnson Controls-Saft is working with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy and Ford Motor Co., General Motors and DaimlerChrysler under a recently announced two-year contract.
Working with the U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium, Johnson Controls-Saft is looking to improve the performance battery technology and set up a "road map" for bringing down the cost of producing the batteries during the manufacturing process, Mumby said.
In the joint venture, Saft has a 49% stake and Johnson Controls has 51%. Saft disclosed in its annual report that Johnson Controls contributed $40 million in cash and assets to the joint venture and its technology licenses. Saft contributed its technology licenses, contracts and manufacturing capabilities.