SMT, PCB Electronics Industry News

Alcatel and MPower Sign Agreement

Apr 09, 2002

Business Wire

Brussels, Belgium

An agreement has been established between Alcatel (Paris: CGEP.PA and NYSE: ALA) and MPower Batteries Ltd for the design of innovative chips for battery packs to be used in applications such as cell phones, private mobile radios (PMRs), PDAs and digital cameras.

The pooling of the technological skills and experience of Alcatel as a silicon manufacturer and Mpower as a battery pack manufacturer will result in the production of more efficient and economic battery packs for the hand portable equipment markets.

Alcatel has vast experience in the design and manufacture of mixed-signal integrated circuits (ICs) for a wide range of electronic equipment applications while MPower Batteries is an established supplier of battery packs to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

For MPower the partnership is a key component of its strategic development as a leading player in the world portable power market. Managing director John Blinkhorne commented: "This agreement puts MPower in a very strong position to develop innovative and cost-effective solutions to customers in the rapidly-evolving lithium-ion battery pack sector. I am sure that Alcatel's technical expertise in integrated circuits coupled with our proven ability to deliver high-performance custom-designed power-packs will prove a winning combination in the years ahead."

"Joining forces with MPower allows us to develop innovative ICs for the battery pack market. Adding MPower's expertise in custom-designed battery packs to Alcatel's IC design expertise will result in very innovative battery-embedded ICs. Hand portable equipment manufactureres will benefit from cost-effective and smaller battery packs," stated Vincent Mouret, Vice President & General Manager for Alcatel's microelectronics wireless solutions. "As a result, hand portable equipment manufacturers will be able to offer their customers significantly better performing products."

The first joint project of Alcatel & MPower is the development of a range of battery protection mechanisms for Li-ion and Li-polymer batteries. Christophe Pilot, of Avicenne Developpement. "The market for Li-ion and polymer batteries is rapidly growing. In 2001 approximately 330 Million battery packs were shipped. This number is expected to grow to approximately 660 Million packs 2006. The total value of the market of protection circuits in these packs will be about 600 Million US$ in the year 2006."

About Alcatel

Alcatel designs, develops and builds innovative and competitive communications networks, so enabling carriers, service providers and enterprises to deliver any type of content, such as voice, data and multimedia, to any type of consumer, anywhere in the world. Relying on its leading and comprehensive products and solutions portfolio, stretching from end-to-end optical infrastructures, fixed and mobile networks to broadband access, Alcatel's customers can focus on optimizing their service offerings and revenue streams. With sales of EURO 25 billion in 2001 and 99,000 employees, Alcatel operates in more than 130 countries. For more information, visit Alcatel on the Internet at http://www.alcatel.com

Alcatel is a supplier of Li-ion and Li-polymer battery protection mechanisms for battery cell and battery pack manufacturers. Based on years of experience in GSM chipset and high-voltage mixed-signal technology design, Alcatel offers battery and power management ASICs and ASSPs. With its ASIC solutions - to complete a design platform - Alcatel offers a one-stop-shop service from spec definition to manufacturing. Alcatel's standard IC products can be fitted into smart batteries for a wide range of applications, such as GSMs, PDAs, Bluetooth applications,.... Chips are manufactured in Alcatel's own facilities, using our field-proven mixed-signal, high-voltage (HV) semiconductor technology that best supports the application. For more information on Alcatel's battery & power management solutions, visit http://www.alcatel.com/microelectronics.

About Mpower

MPower is a specialist solutions provider in the global market for custom-designed battery packs. The company is focussed on providing a dedicated, creative and innovative service, meeting the portable power needs of Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) & Contract Equipment Manufacturers (CEMs) world-wide. Headquartered in Dundee, Scotland, UK, MPower is an independent company encompassing all aspects of engineering in order to determine the best design solution and the most cost effective battery for production, especially tailored to meet each customer's requirements - no matter the chemistry. Adaptability and ingenuity are the defining qualities of the MPower service, with quality assurance throughout the design and manufacturing process guaranteed by an ISO9000 operating system.

For volume assembly, Mpower's factories in Europe and mainland China operate flexible manufacturing systems designed specifically to respond to customers' needs for fast build up and frequent schedule changes. The company design and manufactures its own unique, cost-effective automation in order to meet its customers' product requirements in all respects. Whether the customer's requirements are for very high volume packs for mobile communications (cellular) or battery packs incorporating additional features such as 'gas gauges' or 'charge control' for sophisticated portable electronic products, MPower can provide the solution. For more information, go to http://www.mpowerbatteries.com

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