South
Korea’s LG Chem, Japan’s Honda Motor and US firm battery manufacturer A123
Systems are set to establish a US joint venture to produce electric vehicle
battery packs.
The
joint venture, announced jointly by LG, Honda and A123, will be based in
Michigan and could mark a substantial investment in both the auto and battery
sectors, with A123 spending up to $1 billion and LG Chem committing up to $250
million.
In
North America, however, the company is developing its EV plans while in the
process of recovering from a quality control scandal that has cost HMC millions
of dollars. Honda’s previously announced commitment to launch its first
production electric vehicle in 2015 is already endangered by the loss of
thousands of workers at its Japanese battery division, which faces an uncertain
path to more fruitful work.
Honda’s
commitment to EVs has been under fire due to their failure to live up to
initial hype initially. In a truly ironic twist, the EV controversy has been
caused by poor quality control and poor time to market on a vehicle that will
use floor-mounted batteries, the most challenging assembly of all.
It
is a significant challenge for any automaker to overcome, but none has yet done
so. Key executives at GM and Nissan have stepped down, and Toyota has withdrawn
from the race. Honda should have a more compelling story to tell and that means
it needs to double-down on integrity, transparency and quality.
This
post was written by guest author Brian Luck. Brian has over 20 years experience
in product marketing and is a current automotive enthusiast. You can view more
of his writing at http://www.inside-automation.com. View full post on Inside
Automation
