Lenovo Group Ltd has announced an urgent recall of 205,000
batteries worldwide - 4,000 of them in China.
Dangers of overheating and fire led to the move, the second
global recall of batteries in the past six months, Lenovo China
said yesterday.
The lithium-ion extended-life cells, made by Japan's Sanyo
Electric Co, can become fire hazards if the battery pack is struck
forcefully on the corner, according to the United States Consumer
Product Safety Commission, which liaised with Lenovo on the
recall.
Four reports of overheating led to the latest recall.
About 100,000 batteries, with Thinkpad computers, were sold in
the US and another 105,000 globally, according to the world's third
biggest personal computer maker.
The faulty models include the R60 and R60e series; the T60 and
T60p series; and the Z60m, Z61e, Z61m and Z61p series. But only
batteries with the part number FRU P/N 92P1131 are being
recalled.
Lenovo will offer customers free replacements for all recalled
packs, and the company will use Sanyo and Panasonic's new
batteries, according to Lenovo China.
"Sanyo will financially share the cost of the recall," said
Lenovo China.
Lenovo advised buyers of the faulty batteries to stop using them
immediately.
People can visit www.lenovo.com/batteryprogram or call its
hotline of 800-810-3315 for more details of the recall.
Since last September, a global-scale recall of Sony-made
batteries has occurred in the PC industry. Almost all major
players, including Dell Inc, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo and Apple,
recalled a combined 10 million batteries. Lenovo has strived to
keep IBM clients in the US after it acquired the Big Blue's
personal computer unit in 2005.
The latest case will no doubt impact upon Lenovo's already
declining American sales, and add costs to its operations, industry
insiders said.
Merrill Lynch said in a February report that cost-cutting should
be Lenovo's priority.
The investment bank said Lenovo faces "a tough quarter" to
reverse the US sales trend.
To cut costs, Lenovo said previously it will cut 1,000 jobs
worldwide, or five percent of its total staff numbers.
(Shanghai Daily March 3, 2007)