Aaron Crumm: Thousands and Even Millions

I enjoyed learning about the aspects of production that go into the fuel cell and the advantages of a ceramic powder solid oxide fuel cell which Adaptive Materials produces. AMI chose a particular fuel cell that had inherently low cost of raw materials and used flexible fuels that are readily available like propane and butane. The first patent that AMI held was for their process of forming ceramic. This allowed them to make ceramics conducive to fuel cells in a way that others can not. The extrusion process allows them to make tiny fuel cells that produce ten times the energy as their old counterparts. Aaron also discussed the PEM proton exchange membrane fuel cell which is a hydrogen fuel cell with a platinum catalyst. It is being developed by the auto industry to help in the change to green energy. It was interesting to learn that AMI only produces the fuel cell stack in house; which is the engine of the fuel cell. Everything else, such as the housing and electronics are purchased through B2B and assembled in the facility. AMI is also looking into moving from their 3,000 square foot facility to one around 40,000 square feet. This would definitely help them to stay ahead of the growth of their niche in the industry. This interview was very informative. I am interested to see how AMI’s plan for growth unfolds. The battery market in massive; over a billion batteries made every year. Aaron believes that it is not unreasonable for millions of their batteries to be produces in the near future.