First executive director of NENY’s Battery-NY takes office

Malliband focuses on expanding, localizing battery manufacturing         

VESTAL — New Energy New York has selected British engineer Paul Malliband as the first executive director of Battery-NY. Battery-NY is part of the Binghamton University-led New Energy New York (NENY) initiative. New Energy New York is designed to establish a robust lithium-ion battery-manufacturing infrastructure in upstate New York. “I am honored and excited to have been appointed to the role of executive director for Battery-NY, leading the establishment of this new state-of-the-art battery technology development and prototyping facility in upstate New York,” Malliband said in a March 8 release. “I look forward to building upon Binghamton University’s strong foundations in battery R&D [research and development] under the leadership of Nobel Laureate Stanley Whittingham and working alongside our dedicated teams, industry partners, and equipment suppliers to build a world-leading facility with the ultimate goal of expanding and localizing battery manufacturing within the U.S.” Malliband, who began work March 4, will collaborate with Whittingham to usher Battery-NY into its operational phase, NENY said. Malliband brings more than 25 years of experience in academia, manufacturing, and management to the executive-director role. He comes to NENY and Battery-NY from WMG’s Energy Innovation Centre at the University of Warwick in Coventry, England, where he served as chief engineer and head of battery scale-up. In that role, he oversaw pilot-line operations, including a facility that houses more than 60 assets for manufacturing and testing battery electrodes, and pouch and cylindrical cells. “I am excited to welcome Paul Malliband to Binghamton University and the New Energy New York initiative,” Binghamton University President Harvey Stenger said in the announcement. “His experience in both research and business is going to be crucial in Battery-NY launching its prototyping capabilities, which are the first of its kind in the U.S, and working with industry partners. The NENY project, which is built around its great people, has been fortunate to have received external support through the EDA’s Build Back Better Regional challenge, the U.S. National Science Foundation and New York state. We’re proud to now include Paul as a member of the NENY team.” EDA is the U.S. Economic Development Administration, which is an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce. In addition to Malliband’s role at the Energy Innovation Centre, he also worked with the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC) team on the development of its volume industrialization line (VIL) and also co-managed its new flexible industrialization line (FIL).