The United States is a leader in technological innovation, with numerous companies and research organizations driving advancements across industries. In particular, composite battery enclosures have become an important area of focus. Notably, XD Thermal specializes in liquid-cooled battery housings and has extensive experience in providing cooling solutions for automotive OEMs and industries using lithium-ion battery packs. With that said, this article looks at 10 US companies that have made significant contributions to the development of composite battery enclosures. I hope you find this article helpful.
Magna begins production of two complete battery enclosure systems designed for all-electric vehicles in North America starting in 2022. In fact, the company has been producing battery enclosures in Europe since 2011, initially for hybrid electric vehicles. In addition, Magna offers comprehensive battery enclosure manufacturing and engineering solutions covering steel, aluminum and composite designs. By utilizing advanced materials and cutting-edge manufacturing techniques, Magna ensures optimal performance, safety and efficiency of battery enclosures for electric vehicle applications. Magna recently organized a charity event in the Netherlands that raised $30,000 to support shelter, healthcare and adoption services for homeless animals.
The company makes the Composite battery enclosure from high-performance composite materials such as carbon fiber and fiberglass. These materials were chosen for their light weight and strength for electric vehicle (EV) battery applications. I forgot to mention that the company is headquartered in France, but has several companies in the United States. Additionally, Valeo was recognized at CES 2024 for its innovations in self-driving technology. The company was honored for its LiDAR sensors and AI-based systems, which are critical to advancing self-driving cars, so delve deeper if you’re interested in that.
Founded in 1965, the company’s vision is “a high-tech materials company that protects the values of people and the environment”. It has local production plants and R&D centers in Korea, the US, Europe and China. As I understand it, Hanwha has been producing composite battery enclosures for LG Electronics since last October, and the company has optimized its sheet molding compounds (SMCs) to better protect battery packs in the event of a crash. In addition, Hanwha is actively engaged in activities to expand its supply of EV battery enclosures to global joint ventures in China (GM and BMW) and to keep up with the growing EV market in China.
As I understand it, while the company is headquartered in Japan, they have subsidiaries in cities such as New York and Los Angeles that handle various business operations in North America.Teijin is primarily a Tier 1 supplier of materials, particularly carbon fiber. The acquisition of Continental Structural Plastics (now Teijin Automotive Technologies) established Teijin as a true Tier 1 supplier. Today, Teijin not only develops materials, but is also involved in everything from vehicle design to prototype and final vehicle mass production, including, of course, the composite battery enclosure.
The company is headquartered in Germany, but has several branches in the United States. The excellent properties of the composite battery cases they make make the battery shell a supporting element of the vehicle structure. And they are able to accompany their customers in all phases of product development, from planning and conceptualization to product completion and vehicle quality and high volume series production, all under one roof. Recently, SGL Carbon became a Climate Partner of the city of Bonn, which you can find out about if you are interested.
As we know, Novelis can be said to be the first choice for automotive aluminum sheet due to its scale of production and its ability to provide consistent quality products on a global scale. They now have over 315 applications for their products. Many of the world’s top brands call on them to help design safe, strong, and durable cars and trucks. Of course, they are now using composites for battery cases in pursuit of more lightweight designs. Recently, they successfully tested the industrial-scale use of hydrogen in recycling ovens, which is certainly an important step in the company’s move towards carbon-neutral production.
As I understand it, Trinseo has innovated the D-LFT process, which directly composites thermoplastic resins with glass fibers to enhance mechanical properties, and then molds them into custom part shapes.Advantages of the D-LFT process include shorter cycle times, which are ideal for high-volume manufacturing, part toughness due to the integration of long reinforcing fibers, and structural flexibility and design freedom to process complex part geometries using thermoplastics. structural flexibility and design freedom in processing complex part geometries using thermoplastics. In addition, let’s celebrate the company’s Triple Zero Award, which is a significant achievement for them.
TRB specializes in manufacturing lightweight composite battery cases for electric vehicles. These cases are made from advanced composite materials that provide the perfect balance of strength, safety and lightweight design. By using composite materials, the cases not only reduce the overall weight of the vehicle, but also provide better thermal management to keep the batteries cool and performing at their best. In addition, the company is pleased to announce the successful manufacture of a replacement balsa and aluminum floor as part of the B-17 Charitable Trust’s refurbishment of Sally B, Europe’s last remaining airworthy B-17 Flying Fortress aircraft.
At Forward Engineering, they specialize in designing and manufacturing battery enclosures to meet the needs of the electric vehicle and automotive industries. Of course, they use advanced materials such as aluminum and composites to create lightweight yet strong structures that help prevent thermal runaway and protect batteries from physical damage in harsh environments. Additionally, the company’s designs focus on sustainability, aiming to reduce weight and increase energy efficiency while maintaining safety and performance.I learned that they recently had a webinar that was an in-depth analysis of the Xiaomi SU7 Battery Pack to provide insights, so check it out if you’re interested.
D2H has grown steadily since its inception and has diversified as client needs have driven them in an ever-changing world. With a heritage at the very top of motorsport, the company’s ability to respond quickly to customer requests, adapt to changing project requirements and be a team player for their clients has always been a cornerstone of their approach. Additionally, they were challenged to create a new design that weighed no more than 110 kilograms, and therefore used lightweight composite materials for the structural design, a process that required the execution of multiple Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulations in order to optimize the proposed design, which was successfully accomplished.
I've worked in battery thermal management for over 5 years, handling lots of international projects. If you're curious about battery liquid cooling products or services, feel free to ask me any questions!
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