Peter Witehira

Peter Witehira
NEW ZEALAND BORN
FOUNDER AND MANAGING DIRECTOR
OF POWERBEAT INTERNATIONAL LIMITED

Of Scottish and Maori descent Peter learned while young the value of hard work and doing things right. A trait that has remained as he worked as an aluminum joiner, policeman, and house builder. Peter is the fifth in a family of ten children. His family were originally dairy farmers from the far North of New Zealand.

Peter's family are of the Ngapuhi tribe who were amongst the first Maori to be converted to Christianity by the early English Missionary settlers. They later joined the LDS Church following the arrival of American Mormon Missionaries in the late 1800's. Peter's father is half Scottish and his mother half Yugoslav.

In 1987, Peter came across a book that listed the 10 most-needed inventions; among them, a better car battery. He read all he could on the subject and learned that, if a battery suffers repeated "deep discharge," it goes through a process of sulfation that kills it. Battery makers tried to cram in more plates, but he felt this was no cure.
The battery had to have a new format - both a high current discharge ability for starting the engine, and the ability to deep discharge without compromising starting ability.

Peter had a clear idea about what he wanted to achieve in a dramatically different battery. He saw the battery as a refrigerator; people could use the fridge section frequently while the freezer retained power for starting the engine. That's where the concept for POWER BEAT came from.

Peter developed special double-grid, high-density plates that he folded like books. The fold traps electrolytes, creating a capillary action that distributes battery solution over their surfaces. This controls sulfation, eliminating deep discharge in the auxiliary cells.

Along with the plates he created a sensor for the battery that recognizes movement such as a door opening. The sensor generates a voltage that is amplified and relayed from the auxiliary cells to the starter cells enabling the vehicle to start.

Peter holds a strong view that knowledge is power and intellectual property is a country's greatest wealth. He actively pursues technological advancements with the same drive and ambition as when he first started the Company.

Peter has achieved phenomenal success including a R&D 100 Award for the battery. Power Beat continues to be New Zealand's most important emerging technologies company.

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