Eileen Mozinski Schmidt The Great Battery Technology Race Lithium or Lead?
Battery technology is expanding, bringing with it a wealth of new choices for consumers.
Perhaps most recognized among recent changes for forklift users has been the introduction of lithium-ion batteries into the market, a technology providing a new option in an industry long dominated by lead acid.
But lithium’s foothold remains a small percentage of the marketplace, as experts say it is cost-prohibitive for many material handling companies and presents other challenges like how to best dispose of the batteries.
How is the race between lithium and lead changing the material handling battery market? What other technologies are making an impact and what predictions do those in the industry have for how battery use will continue to develop?
Material Handling Wholesaler asked some industry leaders for feedback.
Lithium and Lead
“The latest and greatest thing on the market is the lithium-ion addition to the field,” said Doug Taylor, a customer service representative with Shoppa’s Material Handling. Championed as being maintenance-free and long lasting, the lithium-ion option has garnered plenty of interest.
Taylor has seen the industry “from both sides of the fence, forklift sales side and also battery sales side” in a variety of positions throughout his career, and he sees the development of lithium-ion as similar to that of electric cars. They offer significant technological improvement and potential for advancement into the market but currently still being too costly for most consumers to make up a significant market share.
Taylor stressed that lithium-ion batteries have aspects that are both advantageous and challenging. The 8-8-8 schedule has been standard practice for many lead acid batteries, with times for use, cool down and charging equally divided, Taylor said. “If you had three shifts in a facility, you had to have three batteries for each forklift,” he said. “From that perspective, lithium-ion has brought a whole new world to the forklift industry,” he said, noting how the technology can eliminate the need for multiple batteries to cover all shifts.
A major advantage to the technology is the batteries can be plugged in and charged whenever needed. Lithium-ion batteries are quite small, so much so that most who use them require a counterweight in forklifts, as some can require as much as an 1,800-pound counterweight.
Lithium maintains voltage better than lead acid and the voltage is constant until it is fully used, according to Mark Jesko, senior director of sale, marketing and service of network power at GNB Industrial Power, a division of Exide Technologies. “There’s less wear and tear on the truck,” he said.
Bret Aker agreed. “It’s able to handle those instant energy peaks so much better,” said Aker, vice president of software solutions at Exide. The lithium-ion battery technology also significantly cuts down on maintenance costs, eliminating the risk of user error, and outlasts lead acid batteries, cutting out needs for battery storage.
But when the battery life is over it can occur with little warning, according to Taylor. “I love my lithium power tools. But when it’s done, it’s done. The tool doesn’t wind down or start to drag, it simply stops,” he said. An advantage to lead acid batteries, by comparison, is their history, Taylor said. “These batteries have been produced for 100 years, (the technology) has a long history of viability,” he said.
At Exide Technologies, Aker said the company now offers both lead acid and lithium-ion. “We’re kind of technology agnostic,” he said.
Battery evolutions
Many of the current technological developments shaping the market began about a decade ago in Europe, according to Taylor. One of the first big changes was opportunity chargers, which Taylor said allowed each battery to operate the with equivalent of another half a battery.
He compared the advancements to cell phones and noting how previously the chargers were restricted to corresponding with the battery size. With the new charger technology, however, it doesn’t matter if the battery is 24 or 36 volts; the chargers will work.
“You’ve got a technology advance that requires half the size of something that does the same thing,” Taylor said. “Now the trick is to make them smaller and less expensive.”
Battery manufacturer EnerSys does not currently have a lithium-ion battery, according to Taylor, but does have a thin plate pure lead product like lithium-ion, it does not require maintenance in the form of watering.
“With thin plate pure lead, it is more like a flooded battery but it is not flooded. It has the same capacity to charge it, use it, charge it, use it,” said Taylor, who said this technology and lithium ion in many cases can eliminate the need for battery rooms.
“The maintenance is down to a minimum. The technology is great, but it’s expensive,” he said.
Lower maintenance needs for both thin plate pure lead and lithium-ion are advantageous in warehouses, where Taylor noted managers tend to be “kind of migratory.”
Lead acid batteries require a certain amount of maintenance while with lithium-ion there is very little room for user error, according to Taylor.
Sticker shock
At Exide, the company reports widespread interest among its customers in lithium-ion batteries, and also some sticker shock. With the cost being four to five times that of lead, the product price is often out of reach for many smaller operations, Aker said. “Until lithium comes down (in price) it’s still going to be a niche product,” he said.
Taylor agreed. “But because the technology is new, the costs may go down later,” he said.
At current price points, the number of companies that can utilize lithium-ion is still fairly low, probably around five percent, according to Taylor. “You still have a predominately flooded lead acid marketplace,” he said.
In addition, the relative infancy of lithium-ion compared to lead means some risks. Taylor described how one kick off for lithium-ion batteries he attended included discussion around the phrases “rapid disassembly” and “thermal events.”
While those who Material Handling Wholesaler spoke with did not know of any instances of a forklift lithium-ion battery malfunction, there have been instances in other product lines, like computers and phones.
In March of last year, a woman’s noise-canceling exploded while on an airplane flight, according to the Washington Post. There have been a series of headlines involving exploding electronic cigarettes, and the Food and Drug Administration published a list of tips to help avoid explosions.
While a potential lead acid battery explosion is also dangerous, “If flooded lead acid blows up, it’s dangerous if someone is standing near it, the boom is loud, but will it burn the facility to the ground? No,” Taylor said. But Jesko said Exide has been selling lithium-ion globally for about five years “without any instance of any issues.”
And at Hyster-Yale Group, which offers lead acid, lithium-ion, and hydrogen fuel batteries, Kevin Paramore said the company has its products extensively vetted, and run through “every engineering test possible.” “In lithium, there are lot of different chemistries. Some will carry heat more so than others. Iron phosphate is one of the most stable,” said Paramore, motive power and telematics, sales and marketing manager.
Disposal of lithium
A lack of means for recycling lithium-ion batteries also remains an area in need of development. “When a flooded lead acid battery reaches its life expanse, that battery is completely turned into a new battery,” said Taylor, who noted that with many companies now focused on sustainability, such considerations continue to grow in importance.
“Styrofoam was great until we found it in all our landfills and we’re going to live with it for the next thousand years. Until they find a way to dispose of (lithium-ion), if you purchase lithium the only company that will take it back is the lithium company you bought it from,” he said. “It’s something that’s evolving for sure,” said Aker, of the disposal process, noting that in the motor vehicle industry Nissan is taking back lithium batteries.
At Hyster-Yale, Paramore noted that manufacturers are working on the disposal issue. But he pointed out that the length of lithium battery lift is even longer than advertised, buying some time. They will run at full strength for five or six years, but there is still “plenty of life left” after that, not unlike cell phones that continue to operate after a battery’s max potential has waned, Paramore said.
Customization and changes
Still, Aker sees the growth potential for lithium-ion. “I see lithium growing pretty fast,” he said, estimating market growth in the 10 to 20 percent range.
Jesko said he sees companies like pharmaceutical, grocery and food processing businesses as being particularly interested in lithium ion. He noted that for some customers saving on space in a battery room may be a big consideration, for others perhaps not having as much maintenance.
Paramore agreed. “I don’t think lithium fits all customers. Neither does hydrogen fuel,” he said. “I think there’s still space for lead acid in the marketplace.” Aker echoed the thinking that when it comes to batteries, the question of which product is best is often a highly specific one, and said Excide’s simulation software is helpful in making those determinations. He noted a carpeting company in Georgia where forklifts have a particularly heavy load. “They’re one of the heaviest duty users in the country. Could they use lithium as an option? Their energy use is so high it could definitely be a benefit for them,” Aker said.
And there are other industry developments are also filling a niche in the market. Taylor noted some of the new battery monitoring options, which can provide assistance by noting when a lead acid battery needs to be watered or equalized. “If you think that lead acid batteries have been a hassle to run and maintain, maybe you haven’t had the right tools,” he said. “Lead acid with the right data package could go a long way.”
Meanwhile, the changes new options like lithium-ion are bringing to the market are manifesting themselves in other ways as well.
With many businesses leasing their forklifts, there is an expectation that lease timing may change as lithium-ion takes on a larger foothold. Companies will likely not want to purchase batteries that far outlast the life of their truck lease, Taylor said.
Already, Paramore said some of Hyster-Yale’s customers are extending leases when purchasing lithium to match the lease time to the life of the battery. And Aker also noted that a Chinese manufacturer is looking to develop a full package of forklift and lithium-ion batteries that may test the standard industry business model of battery and forklift companies functioning as separate but coordinating entities.
In the end, Taylor believes the most important test for lithium will be the passage of time. “The only thing that makes any sense or any impact is track record,” he said. “The technology is ever-evolving.”
Paramore agreed. “I think we’re at the beginning of this paradigm shift in the way customers power their lift trucks,” he said. “Historically they had one or two options. Now customers have more options available to them.”
Eileen Schmidt is a freelance writer and journalist based in the Greater Milwaukee area. She has written for print and online publications for the past 13 years. Email [email protected] or visit eileenmozinskischmidt.wordpress.com to contact Eileen.
