4 ways equipment OEMs help meet the growing demand for battery power

Battery manufacturers play a critical role in meeting the worldwide demand for battery power as do the equipment OEMs that ensure these manufacturers can meet their customer commitments. Here are four ways these OEMs contribute to the battery manufacturers’ operations. 

When one thinks of the “energy transition” it’s tempting to focus on the displacement of fossil fuel sources by renewables such as wind, solar, and hydropower. However, to understand the full scope of the transformation in the electrical energy industry, one must include smart homes and devices, electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrids, artificial intelligence (AI), battery energy storage, and more. The rapid rise in these technologies is leading to the “electrification of everything.” In turn, many of these technologies are dramatically increasing the demand for battery power. 

Globally, the battery market is expected to experience an annual growth of more than 30% year over year until 2030.¹ In the U.S., demand for EV batteries in 2023 increased by more than 40% from the previous year.² This increased demand is fostering advancements in battery technology, including higher energy densities, safety, and sustainability. 

Electric vehicles and hybrids surpass 16% of total 2023 U.S. light-duty vehicle sales

Battery manufacturers play a critical role in meeting the worldwide demand for battery power as do the equipment OEMs that ensure these manufacturers can meet their customer commitments. Here are four ways these OEMs contribute to the battery manufacturers’ operations. 

Reliability is critical to meeting demand. Fostering safety can help prevent unplanned downtime due to an accident or critical equipment malfunction. Other must-haves in manufacturing equipment include components like circuit breakers, surge protective devices (SPDs), and residual current devices that can disrupt an overcurrent event. These components can quickly identify a problem and break the circuit or send an alert when components are overheating and creating a possible fire hazard. 

Power fluctuations can impact these process results and lead to product defects, equipment damage, and safety concerns. Many of today’s more advanced components, such as contactors, have smart modules that can detect voltage instabilities, enhancing system reliability and power quality to keep rollers and slitters operating properly.  

Circuit breakers with advanced trip units can detect voltage instabilities and shut down processes to prevent damage to equipment, materials, and personnel. Manual Motor Starters (MMS) provide additional protection in hazardous areas by protecting equipment from short-circuits, overloads and phase failures while also controlling the current flow through a simple ON / OFF switch. 

Another important contributor to factory uptime is prolonging the life of your equipment. Choosing electrical components built to withstand the stresses placed on them by the battery manufacturing processes is a good start. Softstarters can further extend the life of electrical equipment by providing a controlled ramp-up of power, which helps to reduce mechanical stress and electrical peaks during the start-up phase of electric motors.  

Efficiency. Promoting energy efficiency helps battery manufacturers reach carbon footprint reduction targets and improve their cost structure. Some processes are more energy intensive than others. For example, the electrode preparation process alone consumes nearly half the energy required to produce a battery.  

AF coil technology is a unique ABB innovation that allows AF contactors to consume less energy. Traditional coils need continuous voltage at a high level to remain operational, whereas AF coils limit power consumption to only what is necessary for holding the contactor in an operational state. This significantly reduces the energy used during the hold-in phase. 

As noted already, many new components come with built-in intelligence that allows the battery manufacturer to gather information on energy usage. This data provides insights, such as which line and equipment is the costliest to use, that can help manufacturers make informed operating decisions.  

Energy efficiency is an important part of reaching broader sustainability goals. For more on sustainability in battery manufacturing, we invite you to read: Battery manufacturing: An ecological assessment of sustainability in innovation. 

Maintenance is another key consideration for battery manufacturers. Whether planned or unplanned, maintenance can contribute to factory downtime. It can also increase costs. In fact, our research shows that 20% of the total cost of ownership of battery manufacturing equipment goes into system maintenance and repairs. Many of the system protections we have discussed already, such as using intelligent devices to monitor equipment health and power irregularities, can help keep those costs under control. This data can be used to prevent problems before they happen by focusing maintenance resources where they are needed most. 

While downtime due to maintenance isn’t completely avoidable, compact components, such as molded-case circuit breakers (MCCBs), miniature circuit breakers, and contactors, make replacement simpler and faster. Equipment manufacturers can also simplify installation using starter connection kits, push-in spring terminals, and plug-in solutions for compact, efficient connections. 

Safety is a top priority for manufacturers of all kinds, but due to the nature of the processes and the materials involved, building batteries can be more dangerous than other types of manufacturing. For instance, solvents used in cathode fabrication are highly volatile and flammable. 

Many safety components are standard in today’s manufacturing equipment: safety relays, emergency stops, signaling devices, door sensors, and light curtains for users and service personnel. However, advancements in technology are taking equipment to the next level. For example, intelligent devices can monitor temperature and equipment performance to alert operators to issues, such as overheating and short circuits, that can ignite a fire or explosion. 

Adding stability in a chaotic world 

Like the manufacturing processes involved in producing batteries, the battery supply chain is highly sensitive to disruption. Raw materials are often in limited supply, and many come from geographies prone to broad political and economic swings. As critical as batteries are to the economy, the U.S. is working to increase battery manufacturing capacity to alleviate supply chain disruption. 

Some of these dynamics are within the battery manufacturer’s control, but many more are not. At ABB, we strive to add stability to the often-chaotic battery manufacturing supply chain with innovations that improve operations. To learn more about ABB innovations in battery manufacturing, visit us at new.abb.com/battery or visit our site dedicated to battery manufacturers.

See related blog post “Higher EV charger uptime starts with better components”

ABB Electrification Business

1. McKinsey & Co. (2023, January 16). Battery 2030: Resilient, sustainable, and circular. https://batteriesnews.com/mckinsey-battery-2030-resilient-sustainable-circular  ↩︎
2. Iea.org. Global EV Outlook 2024, Trends in electric vehicle batteries. https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2024/trends-in-electric-vehicle-batteries ↩︎