Kautex Textron wins BEV battery housing contract with automotive OEM

Kautex test vehicles. Source | Kautex Textron

Automotive Tier 1 supplier Kautex Textron GmbH & Co. KG (Bonn, Germany), a Textron company, has received an order from a leading automotive OEM for a full battery-electric vehicle (BEV) thermoplastic composite (TPC) lower battery housing unit. The lower housing is part of the company’s Pentatonic battery enclosure portfolio, facilitating BEV and hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) production (read “Moving toward sustainable automotive parts manufacturing”).

The Kautex Pentatonic product line offers lightweight, customizable electric vehicle (EV) solutions made from TPC or metal-composite hybrids. These solutions include products that enhance the thermal management of the battery pack and contribute to the overall lightweight design, boosting vehicle performance and extending driving range.  

The lower housing seals and protects the vehicle battery while meeting extensive structural and stringent thermal requirements, such as crush and bottom impact testing, and external and internal fire tests. Kautex says it will be produced for a major BEV platform, spanning across multiple vehicle brands.

According to Joerg Rautenstrauch, president and CEO of Kautex, Pentatonic offers advantages over its conventional metal counterparts, with lower cost through a reduction in components due to its high functional integration and thus a leaner bill of material. Use of TPC helps to lower the carbon footprint of the part, while the lightweight housing contributes to reduced carbon emissions while driving. This multi-material approach provides corrosion resistance with no compromise in performance throughout the lifespan of the vehicle.  

This order marks Kautex’s second Pentatonic business win, following its initial success in January 2023 with a full BEV underbody protection skid plate that entered serial production in 2024. Pentatonic has garnered numerous awards, including the SPE Grand Innovation Award in Europe, as well as the Lingxuan and Gasgoo Innovation Awards in China. Additionally, Kautex has deployed three on-road test vehicles in the U.S., Japan and Europe, validating the performance of full BEV and hybrid Pentatonic enclosures across various terrains and weather conditions. Collectively, these vehicles have been road-tested for more than 100,000 miles.