From Milliliters until Gigafactories

Hardheim, June 2026: Few industries are currently changing as rapidly as battery production. New material systems, rising cost pressures, and the dynamics of global industrial policy are challenging manufacturers to scale up processes from the laboratory to industrial scale in a short period of time. One company that has not only mastered this transition in theory but has also put it into practice in numerous projects is Eirich, the specialist in mixing and processing technology. While Asian machine suppliers often rely on standardized basic concepts without having a thorough understanding of the operational behavior of the solutions they offer, Eirich has specialized in a area of expertise considered key to future battery technologies: In addition to innovative machine technology, it involves a deep operational process technology understanding of the necessary operating modes of the machines, their interaction with system components, and their impact on product quality. This integrated approach offers customers a fully functional, end-to-end solution rather than leaving them with nothing more than cost effective individual components.

Battery Technology: From the Lab to the Production Line

Hardly any other process step has as great an impact on the quality and service life of a battery as the construction of electrode mixes. The interaction between machine technology and active materials, binders, and additives reveals whether the electrode mix is stable or shows sensitivity to even the slightest fluctuations.

EIRICH’s technologies support battery manufacturers from the coin-cell scale until industrial scale. The EL1nano micro-mixer enables tests with just a few decagrams. This is particularly advantageous in early-stage materials research, where the goal is to efficiently use materials that often cost several hundred to a thousand euros per kilogram. Thanks to the geometrically similar mixing principle across all machine sizes, results obtained on a small scale can then be directly transferred to pilot and production lines. This helps control and simplify one of the most critical phases of battery development: the transition from the laboratory to production.

At the Eirich test center in Hardheim, as well as at its sister companies in China, Japan, India, and the U.S., customers can test recipes, process parameters, and materials under real-world conditions at all scales. This close integration of research, testing, and industrial implementation has shortened development times and provided planning certainty for new cell concepts. With the new Eirich Innovation Center Japan, which will open in Nagoya in July, the group is further expanding its international technology and development network and, in particular, strengthening its ties to customers and research partners in Asia. The center will house state-of-the-art laboratory facilities where, among other things, applications for battery materials will be developed and tested.

Even on an industrial scale, the focus is on reproducibility. EIRICH has decades of experience in the concept development of large-scale mixing systems. These are currently in deployment at several European battery factories, including the UK Battery Industrialization Center (UKBIC). Many developments tested there and at other renowned OEMs and cell manufacturers, along with the operational experience gained, are directly incorporated into projects for series production or near-series production. The spectrum ranges from pilot lines in the double-digit megawatt-hour range to systems capable of several gigawatt-hours of annual capacity.

Experience from over 100 projects

More than a hundred laboratory and mixer installed at the test center have been delivered worldwide, forming the foundation of EIRICH’s expertise.  At the same time, numerous installed systems in Europe and Asia—including giga-pilot plants in the range of approximately two and a half gigawatt-hours, several production sites with annual capacities of five to six gigawatt-hours, and pilot lines in the three-digit megawatt-hour range—demonstrate just how well-established the technology already is in real-world manufacturing environments.

And the support doesn’t end with the deployment of a machine: Eirich supports customers through training and joint commissioning until the system is running smoothly. For projects that need to move forward particularly quickly, rental machines of various sizes are also available, allowing development steps to be implemented immediately.

Quality starts with process know-how

Many challenges in cell manufacturing arise when processes cannot be exactly replicated. Variations in particle size distribution, temperature variations, or even minimal deviations in viscosity can significantly impact electrode production and, ultimately, battery performance.

The Eirich mixing principle, featuring a rotating vessel system and an eccentric mixing tool, ensures that the entire volume of the mixing vessel is completely circulated several times per minute. In combination with high-precision solid matter and liquid dosing and a self-cleaning system within the mixer that uses the liquid specified in the recipe, this produces slurries with a constant solids content and stable rheological properties—a fundamental prerequisite for uniform coating results and low scrap rates. The systems can be fully automated, and inline measurements deliver real-time data for process control systems and quality assurance. The innovative power of the underlying mixing technology was recognized . The jury particularly commended with the German Innovation Award 2026its contribution to efficient and reproducible production processes.

Engineering from a Single Source

In addition to the mixing technologies themselves, EIRICH offers comprehensive engineering services for complete electrode mixing systems. From raw material handling and dosing until the hand-over to the coater, all process steps can be managed from a single source. This reduces interfaces, accelerates production setup, and thus ensures stable operating conditions.

Modular and standardized system concepts shorten assembly and commissioning times, which is particularly crucial for the success of large-scale projects on a gigafactory scale.

Through numerous projects, we have developed well-established partnerships with manufacturers of downstream systems and, as a result, a deep understanding of the specific demands of those systems. The seamless arrangement of interfaces is a key advantage, as it facilitates production setup and reduces dangers during commissioning. For many customers, this results in an all-round, worry-free package that provides planning certainty and accelerates the start of production.

Eirich combines conventional constructional engineering know-how with operational process technology expertise. In recent years, the company’s engineers have supported numerous research institutions and the building up of a wide range of battery production facilities worldwide.

Ready for New Cell Technologies

Eirich is continuously working on solutions for future generations of battery production. These include processes for slurry preparation, the manufacture of dry electrodes, and all-solid-state batteries. In research consortia such as ProLit, the company has collaborated with partners from industry and academia to develop new processes and equipment features for processing dry electrode mixes and ensuring consistent quality over the long term.

“Our mission is to build machines that will still enable the right processes tomorrow,” says Dr. Stefan Gerl, Head of Process Technology at Eirich. “Whether it’s conventional slurry or dry electrodes—the key is ensuring that the highest quality remains reproducible.”

Europe Must Focus on Quality and Precision

While Asian technology, with its focus on scale and speed, has conveyed numerous problems in the scale-up of European battery projects, Europe’s opportunity lies where precision, process reliability, and sustainable manufacture converge. Eirich reinforces this approach by covering the entire development chain, from the first laboratory test until stable, large-scale production is achieved. Combined with over 160 years of experience in mechanical engineering and a deep understanding of materials, processes, and interfaces, this makes a decisive contribution to the technological sovereignty of the European battery industry.