DGAP-News: paragon AG / Key word(s): Alliance
Breakthrough in Electric Vehicles
04.06.2013 / 14:43
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Delbrück, June 4, 2013 - paragon AG's young electric-vehicle division has
achieved a breakthrough. A publicly listed technology enterprise, paragon
is equipping a fleet of trolley busses with its own powerful battery packs
- a first. paragon is pursuing the project as part of a long-term
partnership with Vossloh Kiepe GmbH, the world leader in electric busses.
paragon's electrical vehicle division has been concentrating on
manufacturing battery packs, creating a dedicated production facility at
its corporate headquarters in Delbrück in 2012. The highly integrated
lithium-ion battery packs store energy fed in by the vehicle's charging
system and then distributes that energy to the drive-train components.
The battery-pack facility has already reached full capacity after just a
few months of operation and is now undergoing expansion to more than 500
square meters in view of the current influx of orders. Plans are underway
to set up a second shift.'Electric vehicles are increasingly driving growth
for our business. We are promoting energy efficiency and protecting the
environment at the same time. The fact that we are doing our own
manufacturing provides a boost for Delbrück, and we are adding jobs',
stresses CEO Klaus Dieter Frers.
Vossloh Kiepe of Dusseldorf belongs to the Vossloh Group headquartered in
Werdohl, Germany. The Group has annual sales of 1.2 billion euros and
employs 5,000 people. Established on July 11, 1888, the Group is divided
into a Rail Infrastructure Division and a Transportation Division. Vossloh
Kiepe (annual sales of approx. 170 million euros, approx 800 employees) is
the Group's specialist for electrical systems and components.
The initial joint projects involve 42 battery packs with a total capacity
of 32 kilowatt hours at a nominal voltage rating of 320 volts. The battery
packs, destined for trolley busses in Geneva and Lucerne, weigh
approximately 500 kilograms. The order is worth more than 1.6 million euros
initially. Delivery of the initial battery packs will commence in the
autumn of 2013.
Additional joint projects to outfit trolley busses and electrical busses
are in the planning stage. 'Together with Vossloh Kiepe, we anticipate
sales in the high single-digit millions in fiscal 2014 alone', explains
paragon AG CEO Klaus Dieter Frers.
Advantages of the paragon battery packs
Numerous advantages set paragon battery packs apart. They are based on a
system that is unique for its form, consisting of 64 lithium-iron-phosphate
cell modules and an independent battery management system. This paragon
principle allows for an especially simple and inexpensive modular design
which permits paragon to attain the desired battery capacity and nominal
voltages without the usual high development costs.
The modules come in a special housing that provides thermal management and
controls, allowing paragon to meet the stringent demands of even DIN 26262
for system safety. The lithium-iron-phosphate cells employed remain stable
in case of an accident, overcharging, or an internal short circuit so that
the dreaded battery meltdown will not occur.
Statements by the project partners
'We are looking forward to our cooperation with Vossloh Kiepe GmbH, one of
the main providers of electric vehicles the world over. These initial
projects will lay the cornerstone for long-term collaboration', emphasizes
paragon CEO Frers.
'paragon AG has been a first-class direct supplier to the automobile
industry for years and their procedures have been certified. Both of our
companies are mid-sized and we both exhibit a hands-on culture. We are
already planning other joint projects', say the general managers of Vossloh
Kiepe GmbH, Andreas Bunse and Oliver Völlinger.
Portrait
Listed in the Prime Standard segment of the German Stock Exchange in
Frankfurt, paragon AG develops, produces and markets innovative solutions
in the field of automotive electronics. The portfolio of the direct
supplier to the automotive industry includes products in the business
segments sensors, acoustics, cockpit, electromobility and body works
kinematics. An outstanding product is the air quality sensor AQS which is
by far the world market leader. In addition to its headquarters in Delbrück
(North Rhine-Westfalia), paragon maintains branches in Suhl (Thuringia),
Nuremberg (Bavaria) and St. Georgen (Baden-Württemberg) and a sales office
in Shanghai (China).
Contact
paragon AG
Schwalbenweg 29
33129 Delbrück
Tel.: +49 (0) 52 50 - 97 62-0
Fax: +49 (0) 52 50 - 97 62-60
Internet: www.paragon.ag
E-Mail: info@paragon.ag
Contact for local press
Matthias Hack
Tel.: +49 (0) 52 50 - 97 62-141
Mobile: +49 (0) 162 1010724
Fax: +49 (0) 52 50 - 97 62-60
E-Mail: matthias.hack@paragon.ag
Contact for financial press / investor relations
Stockheim Media GmbH
Michael Knecht
Tel.: +49 (0) 89 - 200 315 73
Fax: +49 (0) 89 - 813 030 23
E-Mail: mk@stockheim-media.com
End of Corporate News
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04.06.2013 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a
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Language: English
Company: paragon AG
Schwalbenweg 29
33129 Delbrück
Germany
Phone: +49 (0)5250 97 62 - 0
Fax: +49 (0)5250 97 62 - 60
E-mail: investor@paragon.ag
Internet: www.paragon.ag
ISIN: DE0005558696
WKN: 555869
Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard);
Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, München,
Stuttgart
End of News DGAP News-Service
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214748 04.06.2013
DGAP-News: Breakthrough in Electric Vehicles
| Source: EQS Group AG