is a

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...

-based Japanese company specializing in the development and production of

lead acid Lead is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metals, heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale of mineral hardness#Intermediate ...

and lithium-ion batteries, used in automobiles, motorcycles and other areas including aerospace and defense applications.

History

Yuasa

In 1909, Shichizaemon Yuasa established Yuasa Iron Works to modernize the family business, founded in 1666 as a charcoal trading business. Yuasa Iron Works began producing storage batteries in 1915, and three years later Yuasa Storage Battery Co., Ltd was established. Soon after, Yuasa Storage Battery Co., Ltd began making Japan's first automotive batteries. In 1925, Yuasa began making dry cells, and in 1941 they began making alkaline cells. The dry battery business was later spun off into Yuasa Dry Battery Co., Ltd, which later merged back into Yuasa Storage Battery Co., Ltd to form Yuasa Battery Co, Ltd, later renamed to Yuasa Corporation.

GS

In 1904, Genzo Shimadzu (b. 1869 d. 1951) developed a high-capacity lead-acid battery to supply backup power to his factory during outages of Kyoto's then unreliable power grid. The Japanese navy purchased 400 units of this battery. Shimadzu established Japan Storage Battery Co., Ltd in 1917 and began producing automotive batteries in 1919. In 1938 they began producing alkaline batteries and in 1940 they began making high-pressure mercury lamps. GS was established in 1917 and is an abbreviation comprising the initials of Genzou Shimadzu (the founder's name of Japan Storage Battery). He was also the founder of

Shimadzu Corporation is a Japanese public KK company, manufacturing precision instruments, measuring instruments and medical equipment, based in Kyoto, Japan. It was established in 1875. The American arm of the company, Shimadzu Scientific Instruments, was founde ...

GS Yuasa

In 2004, Yuasa Corporation merged with Japan Storage Battery to form GS Yuasa Corporation. As of 2014, GS Yuasa had 9 plants for manufacturing industrial lead-acid and NiCd batteries and 5 plants for Li-Ion cells. GS Yuasa also sells other products including power supplies, lamps and motorcycle batteries. Now the top power sports battery producer, Yuasa provides nearly 90% of the batteries used in power sport vehicles in North America.

Joint ventures

GS Yuasa was one of the active players in the electric vehicle battery industry during the late 2000s to early 2010s when numerous battery vendors largely from Japan had formed alliances with car manufacturers to enter the novel market of EV.

Lithium Energy Japan

In 2007, GS Yuasa and

Mitsubishi Motors is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan.Mitsubishi i-MiEV The Mitsubishi i-MiEV (MiEV is an acronym for ''Mitsubishi innovative Electric Vehicle'') is a five-door hatchback electric car produced in the 2010s by Mitsubishi Motors, and is the electric version of the Mitsubishi i. Rebadged variants of ...

, the first mass-produced electric car, was equipped with the batteries from LEJ.

Blue Energy Co.

In 2009,

Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a producti ...

partnered with GS Yuasa to set up an EV battery supplier Blue Energy Co. (BEC). The HVs from Honda including Civic Hybrid have been powered by lithium-ion batteries manufactured by BEC which has a production facility in

. However, Honda has been in search for new partners aside from BEC since the late 2010s, teaming up with various companies like Nissan, General Motors, and

CATL Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (), abbreviated as CATL, is a Chinese battery manufacturer and technology company founded in 2011 that specializes in the manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage ...

Lithium Energy & Power GmbH

In 2014, Robert Bosch GmbH and GS Yuasa partnered on next-gen Li-ion EV battery with the ambitious goals to double energy density and make it to mass market by 2020 while lowering the cost by half as well. The venture has ended without an meaningful outcome after Bosch has decided to outsource battery cell manufacturing in 2018.

Overseas operations

United States

Yuasa Battery Inc

Yuasa Battery, Inc (U.S.A.) was established in 1965. In 1979, Yuasa began producing motorcycle batteries in a joint venture established with General Battery Corporation in Laureldale, PA a few years earlier. Today, Yuasa Battery Inc supplies batteries for motorcycles, scooters, personal watercraft, all-terrain vehicles (ATV), and side by sides ( UTV).

Yuasa-Exide Inc

In 1987 Fruit of the Loom sold its General Battery Corporation to

Exide Exide was originally a brand name for batteries produced by The Electric Storage Battery Company and later became Exide Corporation doing business as Exide Technologies, an American multinational lead-acid batteries manufacturing company. It ...

Corporation. In 1991, Yuasa Battery Co. Ltd (Japan) bought Exide's industrial battery division, forming Yuasa-Exide Inc, later renamed to Yuasa Inc. In 2000, a management buyout of Yuasa Inc's industrial battery business formed

Enersys EnerSys is a stored energy systems and technology provider for industrial applications. manufactures and distributes reserve power and motive power batteries, battery chargers, power equipment, battery accessories and outdoor equipment enclosu ...

. Today, Enersys sells a wide variety of batteries.

Europe

In 1981, Yuasa established one company in the UK to manufacture VRLA batteries and another for sales and distribution. They later established companies in Germany, France and Italy for sales and distribution. Yuasa Corporation bought a 50% share in Lucas Batteries Ltd in 1988, forming Lucas-Yuasa Batteries Ltd. Yuasa bought the remaining 50% of Lucas Batteries in 1997, forming Yuasa Automotive Batteries Europe Ltd which marketed automotive batteries under Lucas and other names until 2006, when Yuasa began marketing automotive batteries in Europe under their own name. In 2002, Yuasa Battery Europe Ltd was formed as a parent company for Yuasa's various European sales companies. Today, Yuasa Battery Europe Ltd sells a variety of batteries.

Australia

Century Batteries Australia is a division of Century Yuasa Batteries Pty Ltd and an affiliate of the GS Yuasa Corporation.

Vietnam

GS Battery VietNam Co., Ltd is a company 100% foreign owned capital, joint venture between GS-Yuasa Corporation and Mitsubishi Corporation.

Miscellaneous

Boeing 787

The parent company in Japan was linked to faulty electrics used in Boeing's 787 Dreamliner plane. The electrical battery control system was made by

Thales Group Thales Group () is a French multinational company that designs, develops and manufactures electrical systems as well as devices and equipment for the aerospace, defence, transportation and security sectors. The company is headquartered in Paris' ...

which also selected GS Yuasa.

All Nippon Airways , also known as ANA (''Ē-enu-ē'') or is an airline in Japan. Its headquarters are located in Shiodome City Center in the Shiodome area of Minato ward of Tokyo. It operates services to both domestic and international destinations and had m ...

(ANA) had replaced 10 batteries (of 17 planes) while

Japan Airlines , also known as JAL (''Jaru'') or , is an international airline and Japan's flag carrier and largest airline as of 2021 and 2022, headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its main hubs are Tokyo's Narita International Airport and Haneda Airport, as w ...

(JAL) had replaced "several" on its 7 planes, before recent mishaps. As of January 29, 2013, the

Japan Transport Safety Board The is Japan's authority for establishing transportation safety. It is a division of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT). It is housed in the in Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan. The agency formed on Octob ...

has approved the Yuasa factory quality control and continues to investigate the damaged battery of the ANA 787. Meanwhile, the American National Transportation Safety Board continues to look for defects in the Boston JAL 787 battery.

Gallery

References

External links

Yuasa Europe

GS Yuasa Corporation

GS Yuasa Lithium Power (USA)

Yuasa Corporation (Japan)

Yuasa Batteries, Inc. (United States)

GS Yuasa to provide batteries for Hybrid Cars

Mitsubishi forms JV with GS Yuasa to build lithium ion batteries

* Wiki collection of bibliographic works on GS Yuasa {{Nikkei 225 Manufacturing companies based in Kyoto Auto parts suppliers of Japan Electronics companies of Japan Defense companies of Japan Motor vehicle battery manufacturers Electrical equipment manufacturers Electric vehicle battery manufacturers Companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Japanese companies established in 2004 Japanese brands Mitsui 1666 establishments in Japan