HOUSTON, Texas, March 22, 2023 (Honeywell release) — Honeywell has announced that KORE Power, a leading U.S.-based developer of lithium-ion battery cells and modules for the e-mobility and energy storage sectors, will deploy Honeywell’s end-to-end, integrated Battery Manufacturing Excellence Platform (MXP) at the KOREPlex gigafactory in Arizona.
According to a National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) report, the traditional approach to lithium-ion cell manufacturing comprises many inefficient manual operations, leading facilities to commonly operate at a 70% production yield at steady-state. As a principal manufacturer of battery cells and modules for the energy storage and e-mobility sectors, it is essential for KORE to implement highly efficient and therefore sustainable production practices.
With continuous closed-loop control, Honeywell’s Battery MXP will enable KORE Power to visualize and control their entire lithium-ion battery (LIB) production process in real-time, from mixing, coating, assembly to formation-finishing area. This centralized approach will allow KORE to reach target capacity faster while improving production yields and improving safety.
The digital Honeywell MXP platform lets users scale up their enterprise and achieve steady-state operations with superior yields starting from the first day of operations. Coupled with production optimization and improved efficiencies, Honeywell’s solution reduces energy consumption, enabling companies to reduce their carbon footprint. Additionally, the platform provides online quality management with complete production traceability/genealogy of the cells produced.
KOREPlex will be the first fully digitized and integrated lithium-ion cell manufacturing facility using Honeywell’s MXP platform. By employing Honeywell’s proven expertise across related industries such as life sciences and sheet manufacturing, this solution builds upon existing technologies to fit the requirements for lithium-ion cell production.
“The KOREPlex will be one of the first gigafactories utilizing increased automation to integrate end-to-end production verification and quality management for battery cell and module production, helping us increase our capacity through environmentally sustainable production practices,” said Lindsay Gorrill, CEO of KORE Power.
The KOREPlex is expected to be operational in early 2025 and will be among the first U.S. gigafactories built independently of an automotive OEM, enabling the facility to supply cells to a wide range of customers, from innovative e-mobility start-ups to utility customers seeking to improve reliability with energy storage. The KOREPlex is expected to have an annual production capacity of 12 GWh of high-density lithium-ion cells, with lines committed to both NMC and LFP chemistries.
“Honeywell’s MXP builds on our unmatched industry expertise and engineering capabilities, and we are excited to support KORE Power and launch the lithium battery industry’s first integrated end-to-end automation solution,” said Chad Briggs, Vice President and General Manager of Projects and Automation Solutions, Honeywell Process Solutions. “Honeywell’s MXP is the gold standard in the industry, enabling LIB producers to visualize issues and act quickly increasing operational efficiencies.”
Honeywell Ventures is a co-investor in KORE Power and participated in a funding round in November 2022.
For more information about Honeywell’s integrated manufacturing systems for the lithium-ion battery industry, please visit this site.
