02-12-10

Primet Enters Into Strategic Partnership With Cameron Manufacturing And Design

February 12, 2010 | Ithaca, NY | Several years ago, Primet launched an effort to become a domestic producer of critical materials used to make advanced lithium ion batteries. Recently, Primet went a step further and began working with local firm Cameron Manufacturing & Design (Horseheads, NY) to design and build the process equipment for the production lines that will manufacture these materials.

Most US manufacturers turn to Asia for production equipment. “State-of the art equipment for making battery materials, such as precision-controlled furnaces and spray-dry units, is all made in Japan,” said Primet CTO Robert Dobbs. “But our research efforts have led us to design process equipment that’s an order-of-magnitude more energy and capital-efficient. That allowed us to partner with Cameron for design and fabrication of that next-generation equipment here in the US.”

Cameron is just 30 miles away from Primet in Horseheads, NY. “We prefer to work with local designers and fabricators wherever possible,” said Mr. Dobbs. “Not only does it help retain and rebuild New York’s industrial base, but it allows us to design process equipment that exactly meets our needs, with superior performance to what we would get from foreign suppliers.”

Said Cameron President Ron Johnson, “We appreciate the opportunities that Primet has offered to us and look forward to building our partnership with them. This shows how American companies working together can compete in the global market.”

Cameron has also been tasked with designing and building certain new R& D equipment needed for the fulfillment of a research contract recently awarded to Primet by the Army Research Lab (ARL).

The work for the ARL will also increase Primet’s need for analytical services. The Southern Tier of New York has excellent resources to meet these needs, and from its earliest days, the company has made use of the Cornell Center for Materials Research and IMR Test Labs in nearby Lansing.

When Congressman Maurice Hinchey (NY-22) announced that he had secured $6.4 million in the 2010 Defense Appropriations bill for Primet to conduct R&D work on advanced lithium ion battery technologies, he noted the importance of funding R&D locally because it leads to a beneficial cycle of job creation as the results of those research efforts are brought to market. That cycle is well under way in Primet’s case.