General Motors Co. in Detroit and Honda have started production of hydrogen fuel cell systems at their 50-50 joint venture production facility, FCSM, in Brownstown Township.
The FCSM plant is the first large-scale production joint venture to build fuel cells and was established in January 2017 with a mutual investment of $85 million. The 70,000 square foot site has already created 80 jobs. The hydrogen-powered electric systems built at FCSM will be used across corporations in product programs and advertising companies.
“This is a historic day for the industry as GM and Honda are the first mobile fuel systems manufacturing joint venture to begin volume production of mobile fuel systems for transportation and more,” said Suheb Haq, president of FCSM. “We have started the procedure. ” with the raw fabrics for the diaphragm and electrode until the finished systems are complete.
“The continued investment and commitment of both corporations is the foundation of our good fortune at FCSM. This commitment aligns with our project to manufacture high-quality, durable, mobile hydrogen fuel systems for a wide diversity of programs and customers.
Honda and GM engineers began work in 2013 on the joint development of the next-generation mobile fuel system. In addition to improving the functionality of the mobile fuel system, GM and Honda have worked together to double the durability compared to the mobile fuel system. The 2019 Honda Clarity powers mobile fuel thanks to corrosion-resistant fabrics and improved low-temperature operation.
“We have incorporated the strengths of Honda and GM to create the most effective production formula in this joint venture,” said Tetsuo Suzuki, vice president of FCSM. “We have followed a mass production mentality, detail-oriented and oriented to the highest quality, and we are now in a position to meet visitors’ wishes for long-term mobile fuel generation programs and the start of the hydrogen era. »
The new mobile fuel formulas are expected to be one-third less expensive to manufacture than the 2019 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell’s mobile fuel formula filling.
Efforts have also been made at FCSM to ensure high levels of quality while improving manufacturing productivity by incorporating new methods for automating membrane-electrode-assembly production and fuel cell stack assembly.
GM and Honda engineering groups, along with the companies’ intellectual assets and applicable experience, have been brought into the FCSM to create commercially viable mobile hydrogen fuel systems for use in a variety of power and control applications. emission-free propulsion.