DeVoe PBG Blog

Sometimes bigger is better, which GM will inevitably demonstrate with their $8 million dollar investment to double the size of what is already the worlds largest automotive battery lab. The Global Battery Systems Lab, located at the GM Tech Center Campus in Warren, Michigan, will be increased from 30,000 square feet to 63,000 square feet, with construction scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2010. Such an investment gives GM greater in-house capabilities including battery design and engineering, manufacturing, and the testing and safety of batteries. By condensing the design, development, and testing of batteries into one area, GM anticipates reduced costs and expedited production.

Naples GMC Acadia dealers, who will too see cost reduction and increased production, also look forward to what the increased testing proficiency and charging improvements mean for their customers. After the expansion, a large portion of the lab’s space will be dedicated to analyzing, evaluating, and testing battery packs. Additionally, the American Associates for Laboratory Accreditation, a group that specializes in the review and accreditation of testing laboratories, recently accredited GM’s lab as an ISO-certified lab. GM’s investment assures Naples GMC Acadia and Envoy dealers alike that the testing advancements will provide customers with increased vehicle reliability.

The expansion will not only benefit GM, Naples GMC Envoy and Acadia dealers, and consumers, but also the environment. The investment in the lab seems to be a representation of GM’s investment to a greener future. Everything from how the lab will be built to what it will be capable of producing will have an environmentally conscious effort supporting it. The lab will serve GM’s commitment to advance electric mobility and will target a variety consumer’s needs. GM will strive to utilize the lab to produce electrically assisted and electrically driven vehicles powered by battery technology while reducing the use of petroleum products and the damage that they do to the environment. GM’s sustainable expansion and consolidated, in-house capabilities will provide Naples GMC dealers with more fuel-efficient and eco-friendly vehicles, like the Chevrolet Volt, at a faster and more affordable rate.

Sustainable features of the lab are another reflection of GM’s commitment to the future of the environment. The lab, endowed with energy-saving LED lighting and a floor composed of recycled tires, has the capability to convert nearly all of the electricity used for testing batteries to an energy grid enhancing sustainable energy use for the local community.

The lab expansion gives a competitive edge to GM as they progress from a technology buyer to technology innovator. While the emphasis on sustainable and cost-effective practices continues, GM’s transition contributes to a green economy and a green environment and couldn’t have come at a better time.