A new collaboration between ANDRITZ and Cell Impact has been set up, in order to focus on the advancement of large-scale, high-speed production of bipolar flow plates for fuel cells and electrolysers.

ANDRITZ is an international technology group and it has been planned that the joint project will be due to begin in the first quarter of 2025. The aim of the project will be to install a Soucell machine within Cell Impact’s production plant, which is based in Karlskoga. Both companies are hopeful that this part of the project will be complete by the second half of 2026.

Right now, the demand for bipolar flow plates is rapidly growing and this consequently means that the scope of the collaboration is anticipated to grow and expand as well.

Cell Impact of Sweden is a company that manufactures bipolar flow plates and they do this through the use of proprietary high-speed formatting technology. The company intend to boost their production capacity and in order to do this, they have agreed with ANDRITZ that they will be able to combine ADRITZ’s advanced welding process with their own technology.

It has also been planned that throughout this collaboration, ANDRITZ will finish the development of its new Soucell system. This system is a multi-scanner (Galvo-Laser), on-the-fly welding system, which is capable of welding one bipolar plate per second (1 Hz). This neatly matches the throughput of the Cell Impact forming process.

CEO of Cell Impact, Daniel Vallin, commented, “As we prepare for high-volume production, we have been looking for the right welding technology to complement our unique forming process. We are pleased to have found a partner in ANDRITZ that can support our ambitious goals.”

VP Business Development at ANDRITZ Soutec, Daniel Wenk, mentioned, “We look forward to contributing to the transition towards sustainable energy together with Cell Impact. This collaboration is an exciting opportunity given Cell Impact’s exceptional capability to produce bipolar flow plates at an unprecedented scale.”