Australian-first Hybrid Battery Remanufacturing Exchange programme launched

Workshops in Australia will have the ability to offer their customers more, and increase their servicing and repairs footprint, thanks to Injectronics’ hybrid battery remanufacturing exchange programme.

Currently, there are a significant number of workshops across Australia that turn away hybrid vehicle business - particularly when it comes to battery maintenance - because they don’t have the in-house expertise and specialist equipment to make the repair and get the car back on the road.

To help workshops meet the needs of their hybrid battery customers, Injectronics’ hybrid battery remanufacturing exchange project will deliver Australia’s first scalable component re-use and resource recovery programme of retired battery packs from hybrid-electric vehicles.

Injectronics is Australasia’s leading supplier of quality remanufactured automotive electronic components, as well as the preferred repairer of electronic and mechatronic parts.

Until now, a hybrid battery was seen as a single use part, but Injectronics’ ability to identify battery packs that are faulty, slow to charge or no longer performing at an effective level, will keep older cars on the road for longer – and long after manufacturer warranties have lapsed. It is envisaged that the cost of a remanufactured battery for the hybrid car owner will be between 60 and 80 per cent less than a new unit, and comes with a two-year warranty.

The hybrid battery exchange project works in conjunction with automotive workshops. When a fault with a car’s hybrid battery is presented to a workshop, the repairer simply contacts Injectronics who securely ships a remanufactured battery direct to them. The repairer puts the remanufactured battery into their customer’s car and returns the faulty battery to Injectronics. Injectronics will rebuild the faulty battery and make it available to future customers. Environmentally, this means the workshop is not responsible for disposing of the battery - which is illegal - reducing toxic landfill waste.

“We are extremely excited to announce Injectronics’ hybrid battery remanufacturing exchange programme,” Injectronics executive general manager Gino Ricciuti said. “This is the first of its type in Australia, the country’s only scalable battery replacement initiative, and one that has Federal Government support. A project of this type creates a circular economy, putting to an end the single use nature of hybrid batteries, is environmentally friendly in its approach and will save hybrid vehicle owners a considerable sum when their battery fails to work as expected.”

With the increasing interest in hybrid vehicles, the need for remanufactured hybrid batteries is going to rise over the next decade and beyond. In 2021 alone, it is estimated that over 16,000 hybrid batteries need be replaced in cars across Australia. This will rise to more than 23,000 in 2024.

Apart from the cost savings for the end user, Injectronics is setting the automotive industry – particularly independent workshops - up for success. It gives workshops access to specialist HEV-specific aftermarket products and services by a reputable business, it offers vehicle owners, via their preferred workshop, a viable alternative to new original equipment battery packs, and enables independent general mechanics to expand their service offering to the emerging hybrid-electric vehicle markets.