Century Yuasa's Australian foundation began with the Century brand - a household name with Australia’s motoring public since it first began more than 75 years ago in 1928.

Our brand portfolio now includes the world-renowned GS Yuasa together with a range of specialised brands, including Besco and Intelepower.

The product range meets most needs across a full range of applications, including automotive, transport, heavy equipment, forklift, materials handling and standby power.

A reputation for quality
Our reputation for quality and value is backed by our talented managers and R&D team – based locally in Australia. Our people ensure that Century products are made in Australia for our conditions.

At the same time, we also benefit from our affiliation with the GS Yuasa Corporation – a company built on its commitment to technological innovations. We are the exclusive Australian distributor of GS Yuasa’s leading automotive, motorcycle and valve-regulated lead acid (VRLA) products.

CenturyYuasa's highlights

1928

• The Century factory was established in Alexandria, Sydney, to produce both battery components and finished batteries for the Sydney market.

1930s-1950s

• Century expanded into Victoria and our parent company was listed on the Sydney Stock Exchange.
• The company began to supply original equipment (OE) batteries to Chrysler. Further expansions took the company to Queensland and South Australia.

1960s

• A Century manufacturing plant was established in Melbourne and there was further expansion into Western Australia.
• Century became the first company to introduce polypropylene battery assembly in Australia.

1970s

• A Century manufacturing plant was established at Wacol in Queensland. Century also helped to set up a battery factory in Indonesia with a minor shareholding interest.
• At the end of the 1970s, Century was taken over by Repco Limited.
• As a sign of changing times, Century's hard-rubber container manufacturing plant was closed.

1980s
The '80s was a time of solid market share growth for Century.

• Century added another manufacturing facility to the existing two in Australia.
• Century established an industrial battery division.
• International partnerships were forged after Century signed a technical agreement with Japan Storage Battery Company. Century was contracted to supply Ford, General Motors, Nissan and Toyota.
• The Australian aftermarket distribution network also grew following the introduction of the ‘Agency Concept’.
• With the mid-80s came the rationalisation of our Alexandria and Footscray plants and the sale of a Century factory in Malaysia.
• Following on from this rationalisation, we established the Carole Park plant in Queensland as a central manufacturing location.
• The end of the decade saw joint venture partners Yuasa Batteries Co Ltd of Japan and PT Sapta Panji Manggala of Indonesia take an equity share in the business. They injected even greater technical knowledge and human and financial resources.
• Yuasa is a well-established, global brand that is even older than Century. It was established in 1910 and has risen to become a global benchmark for lead acid battery design and quality.
• Century's name changed to CenturyYuasa Batteries Pty Ltd.

1990s
In the ‘90s, Century focused on refining battery technology and quality assurance.

• Century achieved ISO 9000 and QS 9000 accreditations for our Carole Park factory.
• The company's market share grew steadily during this period, a testament to our Australia-wide distribution network and our full-service offer for trade customers.
• In the mid ‘90s, Century established a battery manufacturing plant in Auckland to give the Century brand a presence in New Zealand.

2000s

• Sales grew after Century introduced large national aftermarket retail sales networks.
• Century achieved a number of major upgrades to manufacturing facilities, which included the addition of the latest in automated strip-mill and expander-line equipment.
• Century also made substantial product improvements by introducing new battery technologies, creating batteries better suited to Australia’s harsh conditions.
• The ground-breaking ‘Performance Series’ was launched. It features many internal improvements and new alloy technologies. This has resulted in a battery that has been proven, through independent testing, to outlast typical automotive batteries by up to three times^*.
• Meanwhile, the Yuasa Corporation merged with Japan Storage Battery Company (GS) to form GS Yuasa, one of the largest lead-acid battery companies in the world.

*Based on independent third-party testing, commissioned by CenturyYuasa, using international battery testing standard JIS D 5301 1999 Light Load Endurance test at 75 degrees centigrade of an 11 plate multi-fit product readily available on reseller shelves. Results released April, 2004.

2010s
CenturyYuasa’s vision is to be 'the first choice in stored energy solutions'.