Redditch manufacturer wins its first electric vehicle contract

A Redditch metal contact and precision stampings firm has won a significant contract to support vehicle electrification, a first for the manufacturer.

Samuel Taylor Limited (STL) manufactures precision stamped components and assemblies, specialising in the sophisticated bonding of bi-metals within the development of battery busbar technology.

Developing this technology for electric vehicles represents an area of significant potential growth for the company.

Electric vehicles (EV) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) rely on robust electric motor drives, large-capacity battery packs, power inverters, and efficient distribution of power from charging source to battery and then throughout the vehicle.

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Busbars, which comprise a system of electrical conductors for collecting and distributing current, provide the means to efficiently distribute power to the cells themselves and onto the vehicles’ various subsystems.

Sales Manager Carl Siviter commented: “We are already a manufacturer of high precision busbars and contacts used in Smart Metering applications, and so it was relatively straightforward to leverage this know-how to focus on automotive busbars needed for Electric Vehicles. Several innovative techniques have been used in the final tool design, which will allow for a significant level of flexibility and cost savings to be achieved.”

Following the promotion of its busbar technology developed for smart metering at several trade shows, STL was successful in winning work with a leading automotive technology company, specifically for the development of busbar technology.

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Mr Siviter added: “As well as our stamping operations, STL is also known for our rolled bi-metal strip manufacture and we have several projects targeted at metal composite strips, which in future may also be used in EV busbar designs, both to aid weight reduction and simplify busbar manufacture. We had a very successful year in promoting our know-how and experience in stamping and rolling, and we will continue this activity through 2020”.

Due to a shift to vehicle electrification that is well underway globally, there is a requirement for significant battery manufacturing capacity to support future EV production.

With propulsion systems representing up to 50% of the value of a vehicle, there exists a huge opportunity for the UK, if it can position itself at the forefront of developing the next generation of low carbon, electric powertrains.

Samuel Taylor Limited www.samueltaylor.co.uk