Full Name
Pierre Blanc
Job Title
Chief Technology and Industrial Officer
Company
Leclanché
Speaker Bio
Pierre Blanc, chief technology and industrial officer at Leclanché, is an accomplished engineer and global expert in advanced cell and production technologies with more than two decades’ industry experience.

He is responsible for overseeing all development and production activities within the company, including managing its cell manufacturing plant in Germany and the firm’s new high-volume module production line in its Swiss corporate headquarters.

In 2000, Blanc joined Leclanché as a chemical engineer in its alkaline battery division where he was responsible for the development and manufacturing of battery cells for major brands including Varta, Energizer and Panasonic. His responsibilities expanded to manage all research and development projects as well as production technologies for alkaline, lead acid and lithium-ion batteries.

Blanc was appointed chief technology officer in 2006, where he oversaw R&D and industrialization of the company’s lithium-ion business. He led the introduction of novel and unique production processes, particularly for water-based manufacturing for lithium-ion batteries, still utilized today. He is the inventor or co-inventor of numerous patents relating to lithium-ion batteries and their production methods.

In addition to his corporate responsibilities, Blanc serves on the advisory board of Innosuisse, the Swiss innovation agency, and is a member of the management circle for ProZell, a battery cell production competence cluster. He has spoken at many conferences, most notably the 2017 Central European Energy Conference organized by the European Commission for the presentation of the European Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET Plan).

Blanc received a bachelor’s degree in moderatorship chemistry from Trinity College in Dublin after having started his studies in chemical engineering at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland. A native of Madrid, he resides in Yens, Switzerland, with his wife, Dawn, and 12-year-old daughter, Rebecca. In his free time, Blanc enjoys playing tennis.
Pierre Blanc