Victorian startup to step up production of lightweight electric motor tech

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Kite Magnetics, a Monash University spinout producing “ultra-efficient” lightweight electric generators and engines, will establish a manufacturing facility in Melbourne’s southeast with investment support from the Victorian government.

The company said the state-of-the-art facility will allow it to scale up development and production of its patented Aeroperm technology that combines novel nanocrystalline magnetic materials and advanced manufacturing techniques that allow for the development of electric motors that are significantly lighter and more efficient than anything available on the market today.

The key nanocrystalline core material, which is mostly iron, cuts the energy wasted “by up to 97%” compared to existing core alloys, due to “quantum mechanical effects,” according to the company.

Kite Magnetics said the technology improves the efficiency, reduces the mass, and lowers the operating costs of electric motors and generators across a wide range of industries.

“Aeroperm is accelerating electrification with smaller, lighter, and more efficient motors, driving down EV costs and extending the range of electric aircraft,” Kite Magnetics co-founder and chief executive officer Richard Parsons said.

“This breakthrough is set to transform industries worldwide.”

The new manufacturing facility is expected to allow Kite Magnetics to increase production of Aeroperm to 50,000 tons per year by 2029, boosting local and export markets.

In a statement, the Victorian government said it is backing the new manufacturing facility but did not reveal the scope of its investment.

The state government said it expects the new factory to create “more than 140 highly skilled jobs and up to 550 indirect jobs.”

“Kite Magnetics is innovation at its best,” Victorian Minister for Economic Growth and Jobs Danny Pearson said. “They are producing a brand new technology that will shape the automotive, transport and mining industries into the future, while backing quality jobs right here in Victoria.”

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