Battery Cell Production Facility

SSOE provided architectural and engineering design services for this confidential battery client’s greenfield battery cell production facility. The U.S.-based developer of battery cell technology for the energy storage and electric transportation industries, collaborated with Yates Construction and SSOE as the Design / Build team. SSOE advanced the design package to 60% completion at which point the client halted further design and construction.

The design included automated cell assembly lines, automated material movement and handling, an automated packaging line, and a pandemic-ready design to allow for safe workspaces.

The facility’s many cleanrooms were designed to maintain very low humidity requirements throughout the space, some targeting a temperature / humidity set point within the -45°C dew point range. The design used dedicated desiccant chilled water dehumidification units to dry the air, while providing space-level cooling. The rooms also utilized recirculating air handling units to allow for HEPA-level filtration and overall cleanroom pressurization requirements.

The SSOE team drew upon our unique expertise in the battery manufacturing sector to develop the designs—combining our understanding of large-scale manufacturing facilities with a technical mastery of controlled environments and process engineering.

The facility was designed to support up to 14 gigawatt hours (GWh) of battery cell production, producing nearly 60 million battery cells annually. The new facility would have production capacity to provide power for 3.2 million homes per year.