The production of lithium-ion battery cells is a complex process. Production involves three main process steps, which in turn consist of a long series of complex individual operations. There are three cell types: Pouch/flat cells, cylindrical and prismatic/hardcase cells. Depending on which cells are manufactured, the respective production steps differ accordingly.

• Electrode production (mixing, coating, drying, calendering, slitting, vacuum drying)
• Cell assembly (separating, stacking and winding, insertion into housing/packaging, electrolyte filling) and
• Formation and aging (degassing, capping and folding).

Battery manufacturing must achieve high throughput as well as excellent quality and tremendous precision.

Our innovative drive and automation technology can reduce manufacturing costs and increase equipment availability. We have solutions for almost every process step in cell manufacturing.

A battery factory is a high-tech plant on a grand scale. The linear production process, which is also usually mirrored (for cathode and anode), requires a lot of space. Long distances have to be covered and precisely timed processes have to be maintained. No easy task for the intralogistics within the production plant!

We have various solutions and modular concepts that can be used flexibly for the special requirements in battery production:

• Drive technology for conveyors and
• hoists as well as
• Mobile transport systems (AGV / FTF / AMR) that specifically meet the requirements of battery cell production, e.g. clean room compliant design.

Formation and aging are essential parts of the battery manufacturing process, but also the most time-consuming: here, the finished cell is charged and discharged for the first time. This takes place through the initiation of an electrochemical reaction (formation): Lithium ions begin to embed themselves in the graphite of the anode and the so-called Solid Electrolyte Interphase (SEI) is formed - only then are the batteries ready for use. This process can take up to 24 hours. The cells are then stored for 10 to 12 days for monitoring and quality assurance.

Here, a lot of storage space and correspondingly many stacker cranes are needed to store sufficient battery cells during the formation and aging process and to be able to process them further later.