Exide Technologies on Thursday announced it has invested more than $35 million in a 180,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art punched grid manufacturing site in Kansas City, Mo.
The grids produced in this new site will significantly enhance the production, quality and durability of Exide batteries in North America and will add up to 50 new jobs to the Kansas City economy, the company says.
“We are winning new business and growing market share necessitating strategic investments like this one that bring value to our customers and meet their need for high-performance batteries,” says Vic Koelsch, president and CEO of Exide Technologies. “With this new facility, we are bringing improved quality and operational efficiency improvements that serve to increase our capacity significantly which, in turn, positions Exide for continued growth in the automotive and industrial battery markets.”
The Kansas City site, the most advanced of its kind, Exide says, will use a high precision punching process to ensure grid quality and eliminates grid variability. Exide’s enhanced punched grid manufacturing technology and unique grid design increases battery performance and reliability, meeting the unique and evolving battery needs of today’s most technologically advanced vehicles, the company says.
“Kansas City is the ideal location for our punched grid manufacturing center of excellence given its proximity to key Exide customers and our existing manufacturing facilities as well as access to an experienced local workforce,” Koelsch says. “We look forward to developing a strong relationship with the community as we expand our operational footprint in the area.”
The site will have the capacity to produce more than 3 billion grids per year and will supply grids for use in Exide’s transportation products manufactured in Salina, Kan., Manchester, Iowa, and Columbus, Ga. These existing manufacturing facilities serve all Exide transportation customers in North America, the company says.
