According to Lion Electric, in the EV space, there’s a big advantage to
producing your own battery, which is the most expensive component in an
electric vehicle.
In a traditional product launch, companies create and perfect a product prototype before implementing or revising the manufacturing system.
However, with minimal time to get up and running, Lion Electric needed the
product design and battery production process to be on point as quickly as
possible to meet customer demands.
The collaborative relationship with JR Automation, a Hitachi Group Company, allowed both teams to work
closely together to achieve their goals quickly. While the Lion team worked
on the development of battery components, the JR team was able to flag and
identify any potential obstacles that could happen in production. This
process allowed JR’s engineers to gain a better understanding of the types
of materials required for the application, along with dispensing and other
techniques related to battery production. The result was a highly effective
and safe automated battery production process.
The system includes a variety of FANUC robots and other automation equipment
that will be an integral part of Lion Electric's new production facility.
The automated system enables Lion to scale production and keep operating
costs at a manageable level.