Nuts and Bolts of Tomorrow

Thinking back at my recent visit to Daimler's facilities in Germany to see where they develop and produce the current and future Fuel Cell technologies, I debated about what elements of the visit I should talk about in my blog. As I recounted the entire day I spent at Daimler with their staff, it occurred to me that much of what I was shown could not be shared with those outside of Daimler, demonstrating the depth of immersion into their Fuel Cell world that I was exposed to.  

The level of access to see where and how these cars are produced was truly a unique experience, especially for a guy who is really nothing more than a customer of Mercedes-Benz.  The visit was beyond that of a canned "factory tour" where you're given a hard hat and led around on a golf cart to see E and C-Class cars being slapped together at Daimler's main production plant in the city of Sindelfingen outside of Stuttgart.  My experience was that of a one on one look at the entire organization, the people, the processes, the technology and the manufacturing steps in the production of Mercedes' Fuel Cell vehicles.  I was given the opportunity to talk, discuss and inquire with the managers of each respective area of design, assembly, engineering and supply, and to be exposed to the big picture of Fuel Cell development and how it fits into Mercedes-Benz's past, present and most importantly, its future.

The development of the Fuel Cell technologies are performed at Daimler's advanced powertrain facilities in Narburn, about a 20 minute drive from their main manufacturing factory in Sindelfingen.  Here, many elements of Daimler's fuel cell technologies are developed, engineered and manufactured, both for the existing vehicle program as well as the next generation of F-Cell cars.  This is the main "hub" of fuel cell development, including the production facilities of the fuel cell stack systems from Daimler's subsidiary company, NuCellSys.  What began as a partnership between Daimler and Ballard Power Systems, eventually adding Ford Motor Company into the partnership before Daimler's 100% acquisition in 2009, NuCellSys GmbH is the heart of the F-Cell's powertrain technology.  They develop not only the fuel cell systems which combine the hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity, but integrate the electric motors and the hydrogen storage and dispensing units as part of the entire F-Cell powertrain system. In addition to designing and engineering the Fuel Cell, NuCellSys works hand in hand with Daimler to test the technologies through a dedicated testing facility for fuel cell and other advanced powertrain system.

Many car companies have testing and proving labs to run engines as well as whole cars in simulated real world conditions in an attempt to evaluate their limits and determine their reliability.  But as with all car companies, these facilities often must be shared with other projects and departments, especially with those teams that produce bread and butter production products which tend to get "priority" in the development hierarchy.  As a commitment to fuel cells and other future technologies, Daimler has built a dedicated testing facility specifically for the advanced powertrain group.  This lab is located right on the advanced powertrain campus, right next door to NuCellSys' facilities, allowing for immediate testing and efficient communications between all parties involved.  During my visit, they were running multiple tests of the next generation Fuel Cell systems, using programs which simulate real world driving patterns.  These are actual computer reading taken from actual cars driving around real roads that are run through the test powertrains as if they were actually on the streets themselves.  These test can determine power, smoothness, reliability and efficiency in real world conditions, without ever stepping foot outside the lab. 

NuCellSys also is developing not only the next generation F-Cell powertrains, but the processes in which they will be manufactured.  Much of the current F-Cell cars are pretty much hand made, one by one, which is fine for a limited run of fuel cell cars, but would be inefficient on a larger scale production.  As such, much of the component manufacturing for the next generation of Fuel Cells are being engineered to be produced at greater volumes using similar techniques and processes as normal C-Class and E-Class cars, with outside supplier partners involved in the mass production of components which are sent to Daimler for final assembly.  With much greater production output projected in the future compared to the current F-Cell program, NuCellSys was in the process of opening a larger area in their facility for the manufacturing of the Fuel Cell systems.  I have seen first hand that steps are actively underway for full scale production of a Fuel Cell vehicle in the next year or so.

Once the fuel cell powertrains are produced at the facility in Narburn, they are trucked to a special line in the main Sindelfingen factory where the F-Cell cars are currently being built.  Unlike the highly automated main lines which produce the C, E and S-Class cars, the current F-Cell is virtually hand built, each and every one.  An unpainted metal structure referred to as a "body in white" arrives from the B-Class production facility in Leipzig and is slightly modified in Singelfingen to accommodate the fuel tanks.  Then the body is painted and then assembled by hand.  It takes about 10 hours to complete each F-Cell as it moves from station to station.  On the line next to the F-Cell's, I saw many of the armored limousines being built under the M-Guard sub-brand, as well as hand assembled prototypes of upcoming Mercedes models that I am not allowed to disclose. 

The hand made nature of the F-Cell as it currently stands will be replaced for the next generation F-Cell by a much more efficient "normal" production line type of assembly process, though still no where near as automated as their mass produced offerings.  But a step in the forward direction towards "normalizing" the fuel cell vehicle's production allowing for greater numbers and cost savings. 

Looking at my entire day's itinerary, there were many aspects of the Fuel Cell technology and the background behind its evolution and eventual place in the Mercedes-Benz lineup that began to make much sense.  At the same time, it raised just as many questions on several fronts as far as the technical and infrastructure realities of implementing the sale and support of Fuel Cell vehicles to the masses. My contributions as an end consumer were focused around these realities, which are currently being hammered out through the very program I am participating in with my current F-Cell vehicle in Southern California.

Bottom line is, this truly is uncharted territory, and despite nearly 20 years of fuel cell experimentation and experience, Mercedes-Benz is still learning how to design, engineer, manufacture, sell and support fuel cell vehicles to this day.  The magnitude of the responsibility and the potential to revolutionize personal mobility is a large one that now rests upon companies like Mercedes-Benz, on government leadership like the State of California, on energy supplier partners like Linde and upon consumers like myself.  With petroleum prices continuing to skyrocket and the need for energy stability and sustainability reaching critical mass, we must succeed in all our efforts to make this fuel cell technology a reality for tomorrow. 

How much attention does the F-Cell Generate?

As with anything else in life, your message is only as good as your ability to deliver it.  So it begs the question: How effectively does the F-Cell communicate the Fuel Cell Message?  I recently had an opportunity to share the technology at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in my company's trade show booth.  So how did the F-Cell fair?

First, a bit of background: my company ITOYA produces office products and artists and photographer supplies, including our best selling Profolio line of inexpensive presentation albums.  These are sold through many consumer electronics and camera/photo stores across the country, and that's why we exhibit during the annual CES show.  For a small company like ours, we've had to resort to 'gimmicks' to attract visitors and fight for attention next to the multi-million dollar booths from giants like Samsung, Panasonic and Sony.  And one gimmick that's worked well for us in has been to use a promotional car in our booth. 

In years past, we've had a Lotus Exige, a mocked up Camaro pace car, a fully wrapped Mazda minivan and a wrapped Smart Car to call out to attendees walking down the halls to stop at our booth and take a look at our products.  And you know what?  It's worked each and every time.  People like seeing things out of the ordinary and our car strategy was able to garner a lot of stares and smiles out of a sea of cameras, televisions, mobile phones and accessory devices in surrounding booths. 

For 2012, not only did we have access to a F-Cell hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, but as previously blogged, Daimler Chairman Dr. Zetsche was the keynote speaker for the CES show.  His presentation included discussions specifically pertaining to fuel cell technology and I thought there was no better time to tie into this subject and shamelessly self promote my business and attempt to rub off some of the hype and hooplah from Daimler's presence.  And you know what?  It didn't work....

Now mind you, it had nothing to do with the technology or the lack of interest in Electric Cars at the CES show.  In fact, a booth around the corner from mine had a Tesla Model S sedan, and Verizon Wireless were showing their On Star tie in with a Chevrolet Volt , both of which were attracting a lot of attention.  And our humble F-Cell?  Well, let's just say that compared to past years with a Lotus or a Smart Car, or even a a fully wrapped Mazda minivan, people walking by failed to recognize the revolutionary technology lurking under the otherwise pedestrian sheetmetal.  In fact, if it wasn't for the decorative wrap done on parts of the F-Cell, I'm afraid no one would have taken any notice at all.  And by in large, the only people who did know what the F-Cell was and stopped to inquire about it were middle aged engineer types who were as fun to talk to as my tax attorney.  The car just failed to shock and awe and call attention to itself. 

The B-Class design, which is already yesterday's ham sandwich with a new model already out, just fails to really attract any attention in the same way a sports car, an exotic, or even the futuristic goofiness of the Nissan Leaf does with the average person.  I used to get smiles and people waving all the time when I drove around in the Smart ForTwo.  I could rob a bank in the F-Cell and between its unassuming design, its neutral color and the fact that it makes no noise, I bet no one would even notice me hauling off with bags of money. 

Maybe next year, I would be better served either completely wrapping the F-Cell in a loud color (like Mercedes did for the F-Cell world drive), or using a different car all together.  Despite the compelling message of the Fuel Cell technology, the ho-hum looks as the car stands just fails to get the "foot in the door" with the average American. 

Easy Come, Easy Go. Culver City is no more.

 
So the Culver City location for Shell Hydrogen has been shuttered.  Apparently, and this is all unsubstantiated speculation and assumptions on my uninformed end, Shell just could not find it fiscally prudent to continue investing in the hydrogen superhighway, particularly at this location.  Situated strangely in between a standard Shell gas station and Interstate 405, this parcel of useless land the size of a medium-range trade show booth will be relegated back to... well I'm not quite sure what it could be used for.

To wax nostalgia and out of actual necessity, I went to the Shell Hydrogen station on December 31st, 2011 for one last fill up before ringing in the new year, a new year without a 700 BAR filling station anywhere in greater Los Angeles.  As I stood looking at the plot of land which currently contains the filling dispenser, the hydrogen tanker, the refrigeration unit and the gas necessary to power the refrigeration unit, I imagined what other potential use could come of this property.

Despite its "prominent" location near the corner of Venice Blvd and Sepulveda Blvd, the fact that this property is sandwiched in between the elevated highway on one side, a lovely alley with car repair shops behind it and the regular Shell station on the other, one can only scratch their head as to what the property could be used for.  The land is too small for fast food, or any retail for that matter due to the need for required parking.  It isn't big enough for a smog check station or a drive up oil change business either.  

But realistically, it has nothing to do with the actual land utilization I would imagine.  It had everything to do with the ongoing fixed costs of supplying hydrogen from the station and the operating expenses of maintaining the equipment, and the human resources required in the maintenance.  And assuming the property isn't owned by Shell or a franchisee, the lease expense of the property itself.  Any accountant would say it was prudent to walk away from this experiment and write off all the losses to date and not accrue any new ones going forward into the new fiscal year. 

Some would certainly call Shell Hydrogen Culver City a waste of capital, as where others would call it an investment in sustainable fuel and a study in maintaining Shell's continued relevance in automotive energy.  Regardless of which way you see, the cold hard fact is that this Hydrogen Station is no more.

The hardware is being "donated" to the University of California campus up the street in Westwood, dumped by Shell for a mere $10 to a state funded public University, who has received public subsidies to implement and operate a new station on their campus.  Once again, the State of California is required to take the initiatives, as where private enterprise, specifically petroleum companies, have failed to make the necessary continued investments. 

Who Killed the Fuel Cell Car?

I'm not implying or pointing fingers just yet, but my first suspect is big oil.

Now before we all get bent out of shape and I'm accused of being some whale hugging anti-oil bigot, let me remind you that I own four other cars, all of which burn lots of dino juice and I'm not about to give up any of them.  But hear me out.

We all know petroleum isn't going to last too much longer, and that we're on the road to alternative forms of energy to power our cars.  We also all know that there are two strong and leading candidates to replace the internal combustion engine: plug-in battery electric and hydrogen fuel-cell electric.  Now these aren't the only ones, but they are the ones that many car manufacturers are backing.

Battery powered electric vehicles (EVs) has been around for a few decades now, and advances in battery technology and plug in infrastructure are making plug-in Battery EV's much more accessible to the average driver.  Nissan already produces the fully electric Leaf, and Mitsubishi will be launching the "i" electric car next year.  In addition, we have the fully electric battery powered cars in the next few years like the Tesla S sedan, the Honda Fit EV, the Ford Focus EV and many others.  The major challenge with plug-in EV's remain range and recharge times.  Range will continue to increase, from 60 miles to 120 miles to 300 miles.  But the battery charge times still force drivers of plug in EV's to change their current routines.  They must account for recharging times into their driving lifestyle, allowing from 2 hours to 20 hours to partially or fully charge their batteries.  Set aside the other arguments against plug-in EVs for the moment (where the electricity from the plug comes from; battery disposal etc), and the recharging issue remains the single biggest hurdle for plug-in EVs.

And this is where hydrogen fuel-cell cars, I believe, have a much more realistic 'lifestyle' application than plug-in electric cars.  We drive around, and when we run out of energy, we pull into a station and pump it full of more energy, exactly as we do today with petroleum based internal combustion cars.  We still have the benefits of zero-emission driving as plug-in battery electric cars, but without the need to factor in recharge times.  We as consumers have to make no changes to our existing lives, our existing routines, and this is why I personally believe that the hydrogen fuel cell car is the answer.

The current shortcomings with fuel cell is where to get hydrogen?  As discusses previously, this is the "Chicken or the Egg" syndrome of hydrogen fuel cells.  Without great numbers of cars on the road to warrant a demand for hydrogen, energy companies can't invest in making hydrogen pumps readily available.  But without hydrogen pumps readily available, you won't have any fuel cell cars on the road.

Automobile manufacturers and Petroleum companies have shared a symbiotic history of dependency upon each other for over a century.  When 'horse-less carriages' came to the forefront, slowly but surely, gasoline stations began popping up around the world to power the greater number of people embracing this 'new' technology.  We are right back to this dawn of energy infrastructure with hydrogen fuel cells.

Auto manufacturers, like Daimler, have invested decades and millions into the development of hydrogen fuel cell cars, which I again argue is the future of personal mobility.  In addition to Daimler/Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, Honda and Hyundai have committed to launching production hydrogen fuel cell cars to the American marketplace in 2014, with cars from General Motors, BMW, and others not far behind.  The car I drive today, every day, is part of a 'test-trial' lease program for hydrogen fuel cell cars.  The Cars themselves are here, TODAY.  They're ready for the roads.  And anyone who says otherwise need only sit on the side of the 405 freeway at 7:45AM and 6:45PM EVERYDAY to see me and others using hydrogen fuel cell cars as part of our uncompromised daily lives.  The Cars are here: where are the fueling stations?

Of the two prevailing energy sources for electric cars, one includes "big oil" in the retailing of energy (hydrogen fuel cell), and one completely cuts them out of the equation (plug-in electric).  So it begs the question: why aren't energy companies pushing more aggressively to sustain their current position in the automotive food chain and retail hydrogen in the future?

I recently had an opportunity to have a very candid and casual discussion with someone familiar with hydrogen retailing who works for one of the major petroleum companies.  His answer was very frank and honest: petroleum companies sell oil, and that's how we make our money.  The world still runs on oil and oil is what pays the bills and demand for oil will still be strong in the decades to come.  Hydrogen is maybe tomorrow, but unless we see a greater demand for hydrogen, we won't invest further into it.

As a business owner, I can relate to the needs of today and profitability of today.  I was reminded of a professional athlete's mentality in his statement: earn as much as you can today, in your prime, because you're gonna be washed up in a matter of years and you need dough to keep you going after the fame and fortune is all gone.

While companies like Royal Dutch Shell, BP and Chevron/Texaco all have 'feel good' TV commercials showing alternative energy through wind, solar and geothermal, it appears the campaigns are all public relations only, and in practical applications, Big Oil do it more because they 'have to' and not because they 'want to'. And who are we to say how they need to run their business?

What big oil need to understand, however, is that long term survival as energy providers will depend upon their partnerships with other industries like Automotive to come up with solutions for tomorrow's energy needs.  All the current senior mangers at Big Oil will be long dead before we see hydrogen become as critical to profits as petroleum is today.  But isn't immortality about leaving a legacy for your kids and grandkids as opposed to taking what you need today without any positive impact for tomorrow?

I challenge energy providers to come up with more hydrogen fueling solutions, especially for the only market in the US that can currently sustain a demand for it.  We need to actively and voluntarily look for way to increase demand of fuel cell vehicles and demand for the hydrogen that energy companies will inevitably be able to retail.  Energy companies can't wait for state subsidies or federal incentives for hydrogen.  For the same price of paying for an expensive advertising agency to create and media buy "feel good" TV commercials, energy companies could actually "do" feel good actions by investing into new hydrogen retail stations and promoting hydrogen fuel to consumers.  There are not many industries where you can drive demand for your own products, and by helping sell more fuel cell cars, energy companies win long term by owning the refueling needs of the future consumer.

You're either part of the problem or part of the solution, and if Energy Companies fail to act, I'm afraid the hydrogen fuel cell concept will go the way of the Betamax.  We'll all be left with plug in electric cars, plugging into wall outlets at home and at the office, and completely removing Shell, BP, Chevron/Texaco and Conoco/Philips completely and fully from the energy equation for automobiles.  Energy companies have a choice when it comes to retailing of fuel for automobiles in the future, and they alone are now in charge of their own fate.

The Egg Cracks in the City that is Culver

Goodbye, Shell Hydrogen in Culver City.  You've been mediocre...

Shell has decided to close the hydrogen station in Culver City, located off the 405 freeway at Venice Blvd.  This is a significant blow to 700 bar users in the greater Los Angeles area, leaving no other options for hydrogen dispensers in the west side of LA.  As previously stated on the earlier post, the 350 bar station in West LA is the only duct tape solution to this problem in need of a weld.  The station will be relegated to the history of hydrogen fuel in Los Angeles on December 31, 2011.  Perhaps all of us Fuel Cell car owners can throw a big party there on New Year's Eve and ring in 2012 without anyplace to fill up! 

There are plans for a new station in Beverly Hills, but last I checked, they were still just "plans".  Once again, two steps forward; ten steps back.  I personally still have easy access to the Torrance station as my office is down that ways, but for my Fuel Cell driving colleagues who live and work on the west side, their practical refueling options just got significantly diminished.  

Chicken or Egg in West LA

I was recently trained to use the West LA Shell station which also houses a hydrogen refueling pump.  It's located off Santa Monica Blvd and Federal, about a mile west of the 405 freeway. The only problem is, it only gives half a tank per fillup. 

As we've discussed before, there are two prevailing pressures at which hydrogen fuel is delivered currently; 350 bar (5,000 psi) or 700 bar (10,000 psi).  Everyone who has fuel cell cars on the road today all use 700 bar, except  Honda and the FCX Clarity.  Those silly Honda engineers will give you a million reasons why 350 is better than 700, in the same way they used to explain why a V6 AWD luxury sedan was better than a V8 RWD luxury sedan.  My point being, Acura sold significantly fewer RL sedans in its history than Lexus LS/GS or Infiniti Q/M sedans.  But I digress.

The West LA Shell station was one of the first fully retail stations to dispense hydrogen, and was built in 2008 when many car manufacturers stil used 350 bar, and was made available primarily for customers of Honda's FCX Clarity. Fast forward to 2011, when most manufacturers are now operating cars at 700 bar.  What does the West LA station mean for us 700 users?  It means that we can still use it, but because the hydrogen is pressurized at only half the pressure we're set up for, it will only be able to give half the energy.  So if I get 180 miles from one full tank of hydrogen at 700 bar, will only get 90 miles from half a tank, filled up to the max using 350 bar.  As you can imagine, this means much more frequent stops to fill up with hydrogen than just going to a 700 bar station.

So why doesn't Shell just switch over and start offering 700 bar?  Well, as with all things in life, it's all about $$$.  The current station's hardware associated with producing and storing hydrogen are all stored up above in the roof structure.  In order to offer 700 bar, additional tanks as well as refrigeration systems need to be installed in order to quickly compress the hydrogen further.  Meaning more weight and the need to completely rebuild the structures through additional capital investment. 

So Shell won't spend more investment to refit 700 bar until more people use the station. But with only 350 bar, not many of us 700 bar cars will use it.  Once again, it's the viscous circle of "chicken or egg", which continues to be the single biggest challenge with Fuel Cell vehicles. 

10,000 in the Bank

A milestone was reached yesterday, at least for the F-Cell car itself.  It has reached the 10,000 mile mark since being put into service. Now, I can't claim all those miles, as the car itself was delivered to me with 2446 miles already on the clock.  Unlike a normal new car lease, these F-Cells need to undergo some preliminary testing, especially the early ones like mine.  It was probably also used for promotional events and appearances.  For all I know, Alec Baldwin's butt may have been sitting on my seat before it was decontaminated and delivered to me as new last May. 

So in the seven approximate months I've had it, I've driven 7554 miles, averaging 1080 miles per month.  My daily commute is around 40 miles round trip, with trips out to lunch and around town during the week.  I try not to use it on the weekends, as I feel I'm neglecting my other cars, but admittedly, being the easiest to drive of all my cars, it does make it out for weekend errands to the market and such.  

For everyday normal driving for most people, the F-Cell is perfect and can meet 99% of our needs.  With the exceptions of trips that require me to go beyond 70-ish miles from a fueling station, I've been able to use the F-Cell without hesitation.  My buddy in the Prius from Car and Coffee might argue that the range is unacceptable and not practical for Americans, but considering I've been able to do 1000 miles a month without using dino-juice with absolutely zero emissions, I think the few occasions where I've had to use my other petroleum powered car is a non-issue for the average 2+ car household. 

It's not the sportiest thing I've driven, it has no bells and whistles inside to amuse me or my passengers, and it certainly isn't the sexiest car on the road by no means, but as a daily commuter vehicle, I think the F-Cell continues to be ideal.  I reaffirm my previous statement: I see no reason or desire to ever go back to a normal gas-powered car for my daily commuter.