Bosch is pooling its mechanical engineering expertise and offering companies factory equipment for battery production from a single source – ranging from individual components and software solutions to complete assembly lines.
One of its pilot customers is Webasto, which is equipping its battery factories with Bosch technology. “We know batteries like the back of our hand, as well as how they have to be manufactured,” says Rolf Najork, the member of the Bosch board of management responsible for industrial technology. In entering this business, Bosch aims to increase vertical integration in mechanical engineering and, by 2025, to generate annual sales of some 250 million euros with equipment for battery production. Bosch also uses its production know-how in its own plants: at its plant in Eisenach, Germany, Bosch is now launching full-scale production of second-generation 48-volt batteries. The company is investing some 70 million euros this year in expanding local manufacturing operations.
„We know batteries like the back of our hand, as well as how they have to be manufactured.“
Rolf Najork, member of the Bosch board of management
Battery market grows up to 25 percent annually
The market is huge: experts predict that demand for lithium-ion batteries will rise from around 200 GWh in 2019 to more than 2,000 GWh by 2030 (source: BMWi, 2021). Currently, more than 60 percent of that demand stems from electromobility (source: VDMA, 2020). Bosch offers a portfolio of solutions ranging from 48-volt mild hybridization to fully electric drives and fuel cells. The company has experience in developing batteries for vehicles as well as for e-bikes, power tools, and kitchen appliances, and has extensive manufacturing expertise. Bosch intends to use this know-how to meet the growing demand. “Our assumption is that the global battery market will grow up to 25 percent each year. Bosch is doing its part to meet this demand,” Najork says.
Company: BOSCH
