FAQs

EaglePicher Technologies’ history as a battery manufacturer dates back to 1922. The company became a battery supplier to the U.S. Government in the 1940s and was supplying silver-zinc batteries for missiles and rockets by the early 1950s. The company’s longtime heritage as an industry leader in battery production has resulted in its diverse line of products that exists today.

In recent years, EaglePicher has strategically broadened to its portfolio and technical expertise with the acquisitions of Yardney Technical Products in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, in 2014.

Yes; the company manufactures batteries for use in aircraft applications that include starter batteries and backup power for avionics. EaglePicher’s aircraft batteries feature technology to ensure the utmost safety and reliability, while utilizing onboard electronics to manage the battery’s cells and to monitor the battery’s condition. Our batteries are made and comply with aviation standards such as DO-178 and MIL-PRF-29595, as applicable.

EaglePicher has a rich heritage of providing high-reliability batteries used in space applications. In addition to our batteries being utilized for decades for powering the rockets that launch payloads into orbit or beyond, the company had its first satellite battery (for Explorer 1) launched in 1958. Manned space missions became a high-profile use of our batteries, with EaglePicher batteries playing critical roles in the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo spaceflights of the 1960s and 1970s, including trips that landed astronauts on the moon. (In 1971, EaglePicher’s silver-zinc batteries were used to provide the power to safely return a team of Apollo 13 astronauts back to earth from a moon mission after the spacecraft’s fuel cells failed.)

In later years, our products have been used on the Space Shuttle, and aboard the International Space Station and the Hubble Space Telescope, plus interplanetary missions and exploration of the solar system’s outer limits. Additionally, we have provided high-reliability batteries used for satellites that we’ve come to depend upon in our daily lives: including telecommunications, navigation, weather forecasting, scientific missions, and defense applications. In 2014, EaglePicher achieved a record of two billion cell hours in space without a single failure, and we look forward to being an industry leader in powering space missions for years to come.

The company has a large Research and Development (R&D) group with extensive capabilities; this includes expertise related to the development of Lithium batteries. Additionally, we’re able to perform R&D on projects for external entities needing specialized solutions. Most R&D efforts are carried out in-house by our team of scientists and engineers.

Generally, EaglePicher does not perform contract (out-of-house) manufacturing as a service for third-party products/manufacturers in this industry. While our company certainly has a wide range of manufacturing capabilities utilizing state-of-the-art processes, our core business is to use these resources to provide high-reliability specialty batteries for our own customers.

“Capacity” is the amount of electrical charge stored in a battery, measured in “ampere-hours”. For more general information about batteries and related terminology, please refer to this link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battery_(electricity).

Also referred to as a “standby battery”, this is a primary battery where part of it is isolated until the battery needs to be used. When long-term storage is required, reserve batteries are often used, since the active chemicals of the cell are segregated until needed, thus reducing self-discharge.

The type of battery depends on a number of factors:

• What is the battery application?
• How long does the battery need to operate? Is there a need to recharge?
• What is the expected voltage?
• What are the operating conditions (temperature/environmental)?
• Are there restrictions regarding weight and size?
• What is the price range?

There are many different types of batteries, and EaglePicher manufactures an array of batteries for specialized purposes. Our battery product lines are designed for high-reliability applications, and our battery solutions are tailored for the intended uses.

Batteries with high performance and reliability can be costly due to the best materials and parts being used for construction. In addition, these batteries are designed with our engineering expertise, assembled by highly-trained personnel using state-of-the-art processes, and inspected under rigorous quality assurance standards.

Yes, EaglePicher has international customers for certain product lines; however, some products may be subject to export controls and restrictions including, but not limited to, the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) or the sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).