Archived Copies of Warranty Week

December 2002 to Today

Solar & EV Warranty Report: Because the new vehicles and power generation systems that rely on renewable energy sources are new, their warranty expenses are somewhat unpredictable. But the warranty metrics for some manufacturers are beginning to settle down, and the average expense rates are pleasantly low.
June 18, 2020
Swappable Battery Service Contracts: Instead of wasting hours waiting for an electric car to recharge, why not design the vehicles to use swappable batteries? Though it may never be as quick as a NASCAR pit stop, it could take about as much time as pumping gas. And a new industry, based around the sale of energy in a rented "tank," could spread among dealerships, parts stores, and filling stations.
October 5, 2017
Power Equipment Warranty Report: While the makers of electrical power generation equipment continue to adopt new storage technologies and new fuel sources such as solar and wind, the gap between the warranty expenses of the old and the new continues to narrow. But the makers of "green" and renewable energy equipment continue to set aside more money, just in case.
May 4, 2017
Solar Power Equipment Warranties: First Solar and SunPower have emerged as major warranty providers, building megawatt power plants in the desert. And Tesla Motors, while not solar powered, has emerged as a major warranty provider in the "green" energy industry. They're still not as big as GE or GM, but they're no longer small either.
June 12, 2014
Power Generation Equipment Warranties: Harnessing multiple energy sources from coal to solar, the makers of electrical power generating equipment are a diverse bunch. While much of what they make also fits into other product categories such as automotive, appliances or semiconductors, this week we've brought them all together.
May 30, 2013
Power Equipment Warranty Report: While GE dominates the traditional end of the electrical power generation business, a whole group of new companies are jumping into the solar energy and electric car businesses. And some retailers that never had much to do with the gasoline engine are angling to become the new homes of the charging stations.
June 9, 2011
Green Warranties, Part Three: To help the environment, extended warranty administrators are stepping up to offer customers gift cards in return for their waste computers and cameras and more energy-efficient replacements for their unrepairable home appliances.
May 30, 2008
Green Warranties, Part Two: While product warranties are focused on repairs at the beginning of a product's life, anti-pollution efforts aim to reduce energy usage over the full life of a product while recycling efforts are focused on waste disposal at the end of a product's useful life.
May 21, 2008
Fixing Things: The best way to measure performance is not just by counting the number of failures or adding up the warranty costs. A better alternative is to measure how the product consumes energy to perform each of its functions, and how successfully it avoids failures caused by energy lost to friction, vibrations, or heat. In short, it's a restatement of the second law of thermodynamics.
May 31, 2005