Ather Energy Limited, one of India’s electric two-wheeler manufacturers, announced the expansion of its R&D and testing capabilities at its Product Testing & Validation Centre- The Juggernaut, in Begur, Bengaluru. The expansion of this facility is key to Ather’s R&D ecosystem designed to ensure the quality, reliability and performance of its scooters, while also accelerating product development, testing and validation.
Spanning 38,692 sq. ft., the facility is designed to validate durability and safety across vehicle, system, and component levels, including on-road endurance. It houses dedicated labs for structural durability, battery testing, electrical & electronics reliability, and vehicle environment testing.
Ather follows a layered validation approach, ensuring testing and validation at every stage. The facility features a 4 DOF Road Simulator/MTS 334 road load simulator, for targeted testing of systems like suspension frames, enabling early bug detection, faster design optimization, and lower change costs. The MTS 334 road load simulator is capable of replicating intricate real-world two-wheeler riding conditions, compressing a 1,00,000 km endurance test into just 15 days - a process which typically takes around 10 years to cover on road.
With multi-stress factor testing and a feedback loop from field data to test cases, Ather aims to continuously refine its validation processes to improve real-world performance. This data-driven testing enhances accuracy, helping engineers predict and address potential failure points before they reach customers. Additionally, in this facility Ather also conducts battery validation tests including thermal performance test, water wading test, drop test and vibration and thermal cycling to tune the battery for performance and safety. Battery packs are tested under real-world load conditions, cycling them through typical customer usage patterns to monitor degradation in equivalent kilometers.
Swapnil Jain, Co-founder & CTO, of Ather Energy, said, “EVs are radically different from ICE vehicles and are a relatively new technology, so it is important to thoroughly test all the components of the vehicle. At Ather, we have made significant investments in R&D over the years and have developed processes & standards for testing to deliver quality products. Our products go through rigorous tests that are designed around Indian riding conditions and extreme usage scenarios, reflecting how customers use our scooters. With the expansion of The Juggernaut, we are scaling up our testing capacity & capabilities, enabling us to accelerate innovation and product development, while maintaining our focus on performance, quality and reliability.”
Ather scooters go through multiple tests to ensure they can handle Indian roads. Ather’s vehicle testing facilities are equipped with sophisticated instrumentation and testing protocols that evaluate various aspects of the scooter. Ather’s battery packs undergo 272 tests, including over temperature testing, mechanical drop testing and extreme vibration testing, and are certified IPX7 waterproof and AIS 156 compliant. Ather also follows the Ather Product Development System (APDS), which mandates eight quality reviews before any product launch. As of December 31, 2024, Ather had conducted 4,535 unique tests to validate its electric two-wheelers, reinforcing its commitment to engineering high-quality, durable products.
Ather currently has three R&D facilities in Bengaluru, Karnataka, including one recognised as an in-house R&D unit by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR). As of December 31, 2024, Ather's R&D expenditure was Rs. 2,388 million, accounting for 15% of revenue from operations, and about 46% of its total workforce is dedicated to R&D. Ather’s R&D activities typically involve design, development and testing of (i) its E2W products, (ii) software for its scooters, (iii) its charging infrastructure, and (iv) accessories. With focus on R&D and innovation, Ather also became the first E2W to offer features such as a touchscreen dashboard with navigation, internet connectivity, cloud integration and aluminium chassis on their electric scooters.
Ather has two lines of scooters - the Ather 450 and the Rizta that cater to the performance and convenience segments respectively. Ather currently has 2 manufacturing plants in Hosur, Tamil Nadu, one each for vehicle assembly and battery manufacturing and an upcoming third manufacturing facility in Bidkin, AURIC, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, Maharashtra.