President Obama Visits Saft America’s Advanced Lithium-ion Battery Manufacturing Plant
Saft’s Jacksonville, Florida facility is a model for U.S. manufacturing renaissance
Jacksonville, Fla. February 29th, 2016
– Saft, a world leading designer and manufacturer of advanced technology battery solutions for industry, hosted President Barack Obama at its Jacksonville manufacturing plant on Friday. Saft’s facility is one of the most advanced, automated lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery factories in the world.
President Obama credited Saft for its role in providing high-tech manufacturing jobs in America. Saft’s Jacksonville facility has nearly 40 percent of veteran employees with the skills required for the complex manufacturing of advanced battery technologies.
“I came here to Saft to show what it means to invest in the future. The future is built by the workers here at Saft and in companies like it all across the country. Because there are few areas where our efforts to build a new economy have paid off in a bigger way than in how we manage energy ─ make it cleaner, make it more efficient ─ help consumers, help businesses, and create jobs,” said President Barack Obama during the speech he delivered at Saft’s Jacksonville facility on Friday. “We can see real, tangible evidence of what a new economy looks like. It looks like this facility right here.”
Saft develops advanced technology batteries for the aviation, defense, energy storage and renewables, marine, medical, oil and gas, railways, space, telecommunications and utility metering industries. In particular, the Jacksonville facility produces state-of-the-art battery solutions for telecommunications, transportation, defense, smart grid support and renewable energy storage.
“Saft is able to supply its customers with tailored battery solutions for mission-critical applications because of the expertise of our employees,” said Thomas Alcide, President of Saft America, Inc. “Our Jacksonville facility allowed us to broaden our U.S. footprint and create quality, local jobs.”
Investing in next-generation technology is key to Saft’s success. Li-ion batteries are driving the future of the battery industry and Saft continues to expand its offerings of Li-ion rechargeable technology for multiple applications and markets, including telecommunications, renewable energy and the Internet of Things.
About Saft
Saft (Euronext: Saft) is a world leading designer and manufacturer of advanced technology batteries for industry. The Group is the world’s leading manufacturer of nickel batteries and primary lithium batteries for the industrial infrastructure and processes, transportation, civil and military electronics’ markets. Saft is the world leader in space and defense batteries with its Li-ion technologies which are also deployed in the energy storage, transportation and telecommunication network markets. More than 4,000 employees in 18 countries, 14 manufacturing sites and an extensive sales network all contribute to accelerating the Group’s growth for the future.
Saft batteries. Designed for industry. www.saftbatteries.com
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