Linda Lipp, Greater Fort Wayne Business Weekly
lindal@fwbusiness.com
An Indianapolis startup that has found a home in Wabash is nearly ready to begin manufacturing E85 adapter modules for gas-powered automobiles, and hopes to begin making and installing complete electric propulsion systems by the end of the year.
ClearFlex Automotive Technologies was incorporated early this year by Indianapolis business colleagues John Johnson and Adam Goldstein.
"Adam is the mad scientist guy and I am the business person," Johnson said. The two were introduced to Wabash and Norm Benjamin, president of Bulldog Battery and Precision Battery Fabrication, by Bill Konyha, president and CEO of the Economic Development Group of Wabash County.
ClearFlex is leasing space from Bulldog in its PBF building in the Wabash North Industrial Park, and has worked in partnership with Benjamin to develop the battery propulsion systems that would be installed in existing autos to replace the gas-powered engines.
"Starting a new car company is not the way to go," Johnson said. The existing automakers already manufacture autos more cheaply and more expensively than a new company could, so it made more sense to develop a propulsion system that could be used to convert other manufacturers' vehicles.
"We're just trying to make the mousetrap a little better," Johnson said.
The company also settled on lead-acid battery technology, which has been around for 150 years and is much less expensive to produce than the lithium batteries some electric car companies have proposed using.
"They're estimating those cars at $80,000. People who can afford those kinds of cars aren't worried about $5 gas," Johnson said in an announcement of the project.
Bulldog makes industrial batteries, one of which, developed by Benjamin, will be used by ClearFlex.
"The technology is not new, but it's how it's assembled, the components," Johnson said. "I tell you, it's an art. It's pretty to watch."
In order to install the battery system and controls in an existing car, the engine and everything associated with it - including the exhaust system, radiator and emissions system - must first be removed, as well as the spare tire. The space is needed to install the rechargeable batteries, about half of which go in the engine compartment and half in the exhaust and spare tire spaces. Cells also are installed in the fender wells.
The process can only be done on a small car, such as the Ford Focus the company has been using as a test vehicle. The heavy battery systems will give it the weight of a mid-sized car when the installation is finished.
"The ride is actually better because the weight adds a stabilizing factor," Johnson said.
The propulsion system will allow the car to travel about 100 miles on a charge. Recharging at home on a 220-volt service probably will take eight to 10 hours.
ClearFlex is looking both at buying new cars that it can retrofit with the battery systems and then sell, and doing propulsion-system installations on customers' existing autos. The new vehicles would be priced at about $25,000, and the custom installations could be done for $12,000 to $15,000. Under its current space configuration, the company could do about 1,000 installation/conversions a year, Johnson estimated.
Currently, Johnson and Goldstein are the company's only two employees; the engineering, design and tooling work has been done by subcontractors. Once it is up and running, the propulsion-systems business could eventually employ 50 production people, along with support staff.
The E85 modules, which would allow autos to use the high-ethanol fuel, "are about ready to go. We've already developed that," Johnson said. That part of the business would employ six or seven people.
The company will take any government incentives it can get, "but a smart person realizes that government programs come and go. We're looking at the long term," said Johnson, who believes the company has to be viable without that kind of financial assistance.
"We have to assume we have no help whatsoever and that's what we've planned on."
Johnson also said that relocating to Wabash has allowed the company to move its plans along faster.
"It's quicker than we anticipated, but it's been because we have had such a great working relationship, not only with Norm (Benjamin) but with the community," he said.
Konyha noted that Wabash competed with several other communities for the project. "The skill sets and availability of an appropriate work force were among the factors that put Wabash on the competitive map for this project," he said.