Battery manufacturing in action at a Yangon factory.

WE’VE all had that experience; trying to start your car in the morning but hearing only the slow starter motor failing to rouse the engine. Often the problem, you later realise, is because of a weak battery.

Like all living things, which need energy to start the day, motor vehicles require a reliable power source to start the engine and get moving – not to mention powering the lights, fan, radio and a host of other functions.

Batteries are an energy sources widely used in automobiles, electrical appliances and many gadgets because they are portable and easy to use.

Because of this dependency, manufacturers are confident the constant demand will continue and expect it to increase.

U Than Htike Lwin, a director of Proven Technology Industry Co., Ltd, manufacturer of Toyo batteries, said the future of batteries will not diminish because many new technologies and gadgets are still reliant batteries for their power supply.

“Batteries will be needed more and more for the modern appliances so we are manufacturing new types of batteries that are suitable for the advanced technologies we see today and in the future,” he said. “Demand for batteries is pretty stable all year round because they are needed for so many things.”

U Myo Win, sales and service manager of the UT Universal Tractor Co Ltd, said he anticipated market demand for car batteries will increase because of the continuing expansion of local car manufacturing, which will consequently lift the battery business.

He said the peak time for sales was in the early monsoon period, as many car owners change their batteries to ensure a reliable power supply in the rainy season.

His company imports brands such as Bosch, Rocket and Incoe and U Myo Win said quality raw materials were the key to a reliable battery.

“These batteries have been widely used around the world for long times ago because of advantages in size, reliability, service life, maintenance and safety,” he said.

U Than Htike Lwin said that Toyo lead acid batteries are manufactured in Myanmar, according to Japanese industrial standards.

“We manufacture them using 99.99 percent pure lead. The raw materials are produced by Yangon Metal Industry Co Ltd, which is the only large-scale private supplier of purified lead in the Myanmar market and also the sister company of Proven Technology Industry Co Ltd,” he said.

He said that chemical components were imported from Italy and Japan in order to get the best quality products.

“We are able to distribute our products to the market with very reasonable prices because we can get enough standard purified lead locally, from the Yangon Metal Industry Co Ltd, which cuts a lot of the extra expense,” he said.

He said that Toyo gives six month warranty on their product and they plan to extend the life term of guarantee to one year because they have been constantly upgrading the quality of their goods and the production process.

Because drivers depend so much on their battery, he said his company had made a concerted effort to gain customers trust through the reliability of their products.

U Aung Thaung, owner of GF Battery, which imports and distributes batteries from Thailand, said the market has been steadily growing the two years since he began the company.

He agreed manufacturing quality was of the utmost importance, adding that pure lead from Australia was used in GF batteries to ensure the best quality.