Automotive Maker Increases Order from Three to Nine Test Platforms for Fuel Cell Plates


Automotive Maker Increases Order from Three to Nine Test Platforms for Fuel Cell
Plates

In September this year Morphic Impact's test center in Tokyo announced that it
had received an order for three test and verification platforms from one of the
world's five largest automotive manufacturers. This order has now been increased
to comprise nine test platforms. The purpose of the test platforms is to
optimize the effect of a flow plate formed using Morphic's patented production
technology. The platforms will be used to test and optimize nine types of flow
plates, which, if the tests are successful, will be used in the fuel cell
systems of different end products.

Morphic's patented forming technology enables more efficient forming of metals
than with conventional production methods and can, fully implemented, increase
the efficiency of the fuel cell without increasing its external measurements. 

In February 2008 Morphic Impact opened a technology center in Shin-Yokohama
outside Tokyo in Japan. At the same time the company announced that one of the
world's five largest car makers had booked the facility to produce test series
of fuel plates for cars. The partnership follows a structured plan comprising a
number of different stages in the form of test and verification platforms. The
first two platforms, produced in the spring, have now successfully passed the
critical quality tests specified in the project plan. 

“We are conducting nine parallel development projects aimed at delivering nine
test platforms, i.e. nine special cells for testing and evaluation of flow
plates in a laboratory environment. In these test platforms nine of Morphic
Impact's flow plates will be tested, evaluated and modified to optimize the
performance of each type of flow cell. Then, if these optimization projects are
successful, the intention is that the nine flow cell types will be used in the
fuel cell systems in different end products,” Martin Valfridsson, Morphic
Impact's Managing Director, explains.

The platforms will be manufactured and delivered in fall and will then be
evaluated by the customer in the first quarter of 2009.

Morphic's Technology for High-impact Forming 
Morphic's patented high-impact forming technology offers significant benefits in
terms of forming characteristics, since the processing of metallic materials
uses only a fraction of the energy required in milling and other conventional
processing methods. The machinery is compact and weighs considerably less than
conventional pressing machines, removing the need for reinforcements to the
floor of the production site. The use of advanced technology to achieve a high
forming energy in the form of kinetic energy means that little energy is
required in the forming process, thus ensuring resource-efficient production.
This creates economic benefits for the customer and is good for the environment.
The flow plates are currently produced at two company owned production plants in
Karlskoga, Sweden. As part of its strategy, Morphic also intends to build
production facilities close to its customers once the customer base has reached
a critical mass. Establishing a new facility takes 6-8 months and costs SEK
15-20m. 

The Market for Fuel Cell Components
Morphic's activities in the segment comprise production of flow plates (also
known as “bipolar plates”), the key component of a fuel cell.
A fuel cell system can consist of hundreds of plates, whose task is to conduct
the injected fuel in an efficient manner. Morphic's market in the area of fuel
cells consists partly of businesses operating in the automotive, standby power
and consumer electronics industries and partly of dedicated fuel cell
manufacturers. In the automotive industry, for example, the world's first
series-produced fuel cell-powered car has now been rolled out from an
established vehicle manufacturer's specialized production plant. The
manufacturer has stated that it intends to build about ten units of the car in
2008, which will be leased to customers in Japan and the United States. Next
year production will be increased to a few hundred cars. Another established
vehicle manufacturer has announced that its fuel cell cars will be launched
directly to the consumer market in 2010-2012. The rollout is proceeding entirely
in line with the company's expectations for growth rates in the segment. In the
area of consumer electronics a global Asian company has announced plans to offer
fuel cell-powered mp3 players in 2008. The key advantage of fuel cells in
consumer electronics area is the significantly longer run time.

For more information, please contact:
Johannes Falk, Executive Vice President, Investor Relations
Phone: +46 (0)70-676 73 93
E-mail: johannes.falk@morphic.se

This document is an English translation. In the event of any discrepancies
between the original Press release in Swedish and this translation, the former
shall have precedence.

This is Morphic
Morphic is a Swedish engineering group operating in the areas of Fuels Cells,
Wind Power, Energy Systems based on Fuel Cells and engineering technology. The
Group has about 230 employees and conducts operations in six countries - Sweden,
Norway, Japan, Greece, Italy and Switzerland. Morphic is currently building up
in-house sales organizations in China and in the USA. Morphic Technologies' B
shares have been listed on the OMX Nordic Exchange since March 4, 2008, and the
number of shareholders is about 25,400.

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