At the beginning of the month, Miele presented its first wireless hand vacuum cleaner “Triflex HX1” at the IFA in Berlin. Having selected VARTA to specify, design and assemble the battery and charger for this new product the battery manufacturer is now supplying both in mass production for the Triflex HX1. A user replaceable lithium-ion battery (25.2 volts) with seven high-performance cells ensures the powerful suction power of the new vacuum cleaner and a run time of up to 120 minutes. These lithium-ion batteries are manufactured in VARTA’s Eastern European Manufacturing Facility in Romania. As part of an extensive investment program, the VARTA plant was recently expanded with new state-of-the-art, automated production lines each designed for around 8-10 million cells per year. As a result, a total of 100 million cells per year can now be assembled in VARTA’s Eastern European Manufacturing Facility. “This enables us to offer such customized battery packs in the highest quality standards, in a short time and at optimized costs”, says Gordon Clements, General Manager for VARTA Power & Energy. “By combining our well established Design-in Power in Germany and our electrochemistry know-how with the automated assembly in Eastern Europe enables VARTA to provide a viable cost effective solution both for European customers and for US customers looking for an alternative to the Asian production sites.”

^{Powered by VARTA – the Miele Triflex HX1
Source: Miele/VARTA}

With this order from Miele, the first of several new high volume projects coming online over the next 3-6 months, VARTA is establishing its Eastern European Manufacturing Facility as the premium assembly centre for a wide range of customer-specific battery applications. Together with the Design and Development Centre in Nördlingen, Bavaria, VARTA in Eastern Europe serves a wide range of customers in battery assembly up to large-format batteries for forklift trucks, driverless transport systems and robotics, all facets of the existing and new markets for lithium-ion batteries can now be served from one location in the heart of Europe. Customers thus benefit from short distances and reliable processes.

^{A look into production: VARTA’s Lithium-Ion-Power Pack for the new Miele “Triflex HX1” hand vacuum cleaner.
Source: VARTA}

In addition to microbatteries for hearing aids and wearables, the VARTA AG Group also manufactures energy storage systems for green electricity and lithium-ion battery packs for industrial applications. Which are increasingly in demand for tools and devices from the “Home & Garden”. “Our energy systems make everyday life easier. Cordless household appliances, for which we supply innovative complete battery solutions, are a major trend. Our batteries are the key strategic component, because the battery often determines the most important performance factors”, continues Gordon Clements. In addition to customized battery solutions, VARTA Power & Energy also offers standardized ready-to-use lithium-ion battery packs for use in the “Industrial/Robotics” sector, whether electrically operated forklift trucks, sweepers or humanoid robots and in the growing sector of Agri-Robotics.

About VARTA AG
VARTA AG, as the parent company of the Group, is active in the Microbatteries and Power&Energy business segments through its subsidiaries VARTA Microbattery GmbH and VARTA Storage GmbH. Today, VARTA Microbattery GmbH is already an innovation leader in the field of microbatteries, one of the market leaders for hearing aid batteries and is also striving for market leadership for lithium-ion batteries in the wearables sector, especially for hearables. Power&Energy focuses on intelligent energy solutions for tailor-made battery storage systems for OEM customers as well as on the design, system integration and assembly of stationary lithium-ion energy storage systems. With five production and manufacturing facilities in Europe and Asia as well as sales centers in Asia, Europe and the USA, the operating subsidiaries of the VARTA AG Group are currently active in over 75 countries worldwide.