Sustaining its place as a top battery provider isn’t the only sustainability plan Johnson Controls has in place.
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The company also has made sustainability one of its strategic objectives. One of those objectives is through the batteries the company produces.
Brian Kesseler, vice president and general manager, Americas, Power Solutions, says the company has challenged itself to have a 20 percent improvement in both cost and power in its existing standard lead acid battery, including reducing the amount of lead in the battery – on average 21.2 pounds – with other material like tin, silver or other alloys they are looking at.
And while it is focused on that core type of battery, the company also is looking at batteries for hybrids and lithium ion batteries, which it is producing for Mercedes-Benz.
Hybrid batteries they are manufacturing now are designed to have a 10-year life, Kesseler states. And the move toward more hybrid batteries will depend on a lot of things, as he reports about 6 percent of vehicles by 2020 will be full or part-hybrid.
“A lot of things have to happen in hybridization,” Kesseler says. That includes if hybrids are legislated, the course gas prices take and what industry standards are created.
Johnson Controls reports it is looking into more of what consumers want when it comes to being green. It did a survey this year of consumers, and results show that 66 percent report they would pay $10 more for a “green” battery, while 84 percent would pay $5 more. Overall, 81 percent say they are more likely to buy a battery they perceive to be green.
And in keeping the company green, Kesseler says the company has implemented a BBP idea – Best Business Practices.
“And what happens is everyone gets better,” he says of the program that makes sure the most efficient practices at each of Johnson Controls’ facilities is implemented across the board.
That is timely, as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in October lowered the national ambient air quality standard from 1.5 micro grams per cubic meter to .15 micro grams per cubic meter. States have five years to meet the standards, and Johnson Controls says it is not too far off from meeting them already.
“We’re going to have to make some adjustments in the next year or so,” Kesseler says. “We want to get well under that. We don’t want to risk bumping into that.”
About the Author
Tschanen Brandyberry
Tschanen Brandyberry is Special Projects Editor for the UBM Americas – Automotive Group, moving into the position following roles as managing editor of Motor Age and associate editor of Aftermarket Business World. She joined the Automotive Group in 2006 after working in editing and writing positions at The Morning Journal in Lorain, Ohio, and The Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio, in addition to public relations agency experience. Tschanen is a graduate of the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio.