Italian automation company Comau has announced that it is working with global partners to automate the production of hydrogen fuel-cells and electrolysers.
The company has made a commitment to lower the price point of fuel-cell and electrolyser manufacturing, with this research forming part of that goal.
The company is looking to develop reliable and sustainable power using automation in key processes, including cell preparation and stacking, leak testing and more.
In China, Comau is collaborating with Shanghai Hydrogen Propulsion Technology (SHPT), a hydrogen fuel-cell company, to integrate automation into its production of hydrogen fuel-cell stacks.
SHPT is a subsidiary of SAIC Motor, whose hydrogen fuel-cell products are used in passenger cars, buses, light-,l medium- and heavy-duty trucks, forklifts, trailers and more.
As part of the collaboration with SHPT, Comau will develop and deploy its multi-axis stacking technology to perform a series of pole piece stacking operations.
With delivery scheduled for the end of this year, the solution can reportedly manage pick-up, code scanning, secondary positioning and shell loading, all within four seconds.
Comau hopes to help SHPT reach some of its manufacturing goals, including improving its annual stack production capacity, through use of automated solutions.
“In partnering with industry-leading hydrogen fuel cell companies such as SHPT, we are providing both design for manufacturing services and innovative solutions that help them enjoy a greater market advantage,” said Nicole Clement, chief marketing officer at Comau.
“These collaborations also reconfirm Comau’s continued investment and further expansion in the field of electrification, thus helping create more sustainable mobility in the future.”
The company is also following opportunities to design, manufacture and sell hydrogen solutions for light- and heavy-duty vehicles, as well as an electrolyser manufacturing pilot project, in the EMEA region.
It also claims to be pursuing similar programmes in Oceania.
These projects were established to support the automation of mostly manual manufacturing environments, scale-up production volumes and improve the quality and efficiency of the process.
According to internal estimates, automation could potentially cut operating costs by up to 20%, due to increased precision and the lessened burden of cleanroom security measures.
Comau predicts hydrogen use will double over the next decade, largely driven by new applications such as mobility and energy storage.
Green hydrogen generation may also increase demand for electrolysers, from an estimated 120MW installed in 2020 to more than 20GW expected in 2030.
In terms of fuel-cells, Comau estimates the market will increase rapidly, from a few thousand fuel-cell units deployed in 2020 to 1.2 million units by 2030, equivalent to more than 100GW of hydrogen energy.
