New SAE Committee Aims to Help Detect Counterfeit and Poorly Manufactured Batteries

Because counterfeit and substandard batteries are increasingly affecting both government and private sectors SAE International has announced the newly formed G-21B Counterfeit and Substandard Battery Risk Mitigation Committee under the G-21 Counterfeit Material committee to help the Aerospace and Defense Industries address the risk.

Existing anti-counterfeit standards are not focused on addressing the significant threat of counterfeit and substandard batteries. Previous failures have caused injury to users and have resulted in high profile issues affecting an entire industry, leading to regulatory changes.

With the trend of computers and electronics being incorporated into daily life, the number of devices dependent on batteries for power sources is increasing. The risk of the threat is growing as the demand for such devices increases, as does the general exposure of people to devices dependent on battery powered devices. Additionally, devices are becoming more powerful in terms of processing power, with more features, while at the same time decreasing in size, requiring increasingly advanced batteries to satisfy the increased power requirements.

The new committee, which will provide a dedicated focus on addressing the threat of counterfeit batteries within SAE's existing counterfeit mitigation standards suite, will bring together technical experts who will enable specifications for:

• Identification of counterfeit and substandard batteries
• Testing standards for signs of counterfeit and/or poorly manufactured batteries.
• Identification of risk mitigation strategies
• Methods of sourcing and acquiring batteries which have been proven effective at mitigating the risk of obtaining counterfeit and substandard batteries.

Anyone interesting in joining the committee should contact, Jordanna Bucciere, Aerospace Standards Specialist , SAE International.