Scaling up battery pack production is not a manufacturing challenge. It’s a challenge of balancing act between speed and precision, volume and consistency, ambition and accountability.
Every company building battery-powered products eventually hits the same inflection point: demand goes up, and suddenly the processes that worked in your pilot phase start to fall apart. Yields drop. Defects creep in. Lead times stretch. And you’re stuck juggling between hitting targets and maintaining quality.
At Karkhana.io, we work closely with energy storage providers, EV startups, and industrial product OEMs navigating this scale-up phase. Our customers often come to us after burning time and money trying to expand production, only to be pulled back by quality issues or supply chain bottlenecks. We help them scale without sacrificing control.
In this post, we’ll unpack the key trade-offs that emerge during scale-up — and how to get ahead of them with smarter engineering and integrated manufacturing solutions.
1. The Speed vs. Stability Dilemma
One of the most common traps is prioritizing speed of output over process maturity. In early production, teams can afford to “babysit” builds. But as you increase batch sizes, you can no longer rely on tribal knowledge or manual workarounds.
What can go wrong:
- Increased defect rates due to inconsistent manual processes
- Skipping validations to meet timelines
- Rushing suppliers, leading to missed specs or incomplete documentation
- Operator fatigue causing repeatability issues
What we recommend:
At Karkhana.io, we build repeatability into the process early — with jig-based assemblies, SOPs, inline quality gates, and real-time SPC (statistical process control). Before scaling output, we stabilize the workflow. That’s what creates throughput and quality.
2. Component Sourcing Bottlenecks
Battery packs aren’t just about cells — they include interconnects, plastics, BMS PCBs, thermal interface materials, connectors, wire harnesses, fasteners, and more. When volumes increase, every small delay in any of these inputs becomes a serious bottleneck.
Common issues:
- Long lead times for custom enclosures or interconnects
- MOQ mismatches — too high for one part, too low for another
- Supplier capacity mismatches with your ramp-up plan
- Quality degradation when switching vendors last-minute
How we solve it:
With a network of 500+ vetted suppliers and internal procurement support, Karkhana.io offers flexible sourcing strategies — from high-MOQ custom parts to off-the-shelf components that meet spec. We manage the entire BOM, including backup sourcing and inventory planning, so you can focus on scaling your product, not chasing parts.
3. Scaling Workforce Without Losing Skill
In low-volume builds, you can rely on a small team of skilled technicians. But as you scale, the build shifts to larger assembly teams — and consistency becomes a challenge.
Risks include:
- Variability in torque, wire routing, and insulation stripping
- Inconsistent potting or adhesive application
- Improper handling of cells and PCBs, increasing ESD or mechanical damage
- Poor documentation or handover between shifts
Our approach:
We deploy structured training modules, mistake-proofing fixtures, and visual SOPs. With dedicated battery assembly teams and quality checkpoints at every stage, we ensure process ownership at scale. Our goal is to remove reliance on individual heroism — and build institutional stability.
4. Yield vs. Throughput Pressures
When pressure mounts to meet shipment volumes, it’s tempting to let yield issues slide — especially if failures aren’t visible immediately. But in battery packs, every “silent failure” — like a bad weld, unbalanced cell, or loose crimp — can lead to catastrophic field failures.
Hidden risks:
- Balancing drift that’s not caught during basic QC
- Cracks in solder joints on THT components due to rough handling
- Improperly torqued fasteners loosening under vibration
- Moisture ingress in enclosures that weren’t tested for IP rating
Our focus:
At Karkhana.io, we don’t treat quality as a post-process — it’s embedded in the build itself. We implement inline inspection (3D AOI, X-ray), functional tests after each sub-assembly, and simulate real-world use cases before final approval. That means higher yields and consistent quality.
5. Integration Challenges at Scale
When scaling from 100 units to 10,000+, integration becomes far more complex. Each part of the pack — BMS, cells, wiring, housing, thermal solution — has to fit not just once, but over and over again with minimal variation.
What scaling exposes:
- Tolerance stack-up causing parts to misalign
- Variants of PCBA or enclosure requiring retooling
- Routing paths that worked in prototype becoming unmanageable in production
- Pack sizes that grow without test capacity scaling accordingly
How we handle it:
Our turnkey box build services include mechanical integration, cable routing, cell welding, and final packaging — all handled on the same floor. That means fewer handoffs, faster change management, and scalable build consistency.
6. Test Infrastructure Lagging Behind
As production ramps up, test infrastructure must evolve too. The same bench-top testing that worked in the R&D lab will quickly bottleneck large-scale assembly.
What breaks down:
- Manual test processes slowing down cycle time
- Inconsistent data logging or traceability
- Limited fault analysis capabilities
- Insufficient test coverage (only testing OCV, not communication, thermal, or BMS logic)
Karkhana.io solution:
We help customers design customized test jigs and EOL test stations suited to high-volume builds. From functional BMS validation to insulation resistance testing and thermal stress simulation, our systems are built for speed and depth — with traceability baked in.
Final Word: Scaling Smart Is Scaling Sustainably
Scaling battery pack production isn’t just about making more — it’s about making more without compromising what made your product work in the first place. That means aligning engineering with operations, supply chain with production, and ambition with real-world capabilities.
At Karkhana.io, we provide flexible and scalable turnkey battery pack manufacturing — from PCBA to final assembly, including sourcing, integration, quality control, and logistics. With a 1,00,000 sq. ft. facility, 7 SMT lines, and dedicated box build zones, we help hardware teams bridge the gap between product vision and scalable execution.
You don’t have to trade off between speed and quality. You just need the right partner to scale smart.
Let’s build battery packs that scale — with confidence.