In the telecommunications and energy industries, providing consistent service to customers is paramount to a company’s success.
This includes making accommodations for potential outages.
In the incidence of utility loss, providers want to continue providing service, especially in emergencies so customers can access the information and possible emergency services they need.
A variety of power sources can provide battery backup. The goal is to keep the equipment powered until utility power is restored or until a backup generator is engaged.
American Products offers a variety of turn-key enclosures to help providers manage and protect their backup power. Scroll down to learn more about our battery backup system enclosure solutions.
American Products Battery Backup System Enclosure Solutions
Battery-Exclusive Cabinets
Some providers keep batteries separate from their equipment. This could be due to safety concerns or because of space constraints. American Products offers the AP Battery, which is designed solely for keeping battery backup systems safe and secure.
They are available in single- or dual-bay setups with each bay holding 5 strings of batteries in a 48V system-a total of 40 batteries if desired.
Active Equipment Cabinets
Some organizations may prefer to have their batteries in the same enclosure as their active equipment. The Patriot enclosures are a great example of how providers can manage their equipment and keep their batteries close by, but still in a separate vented bay for safety. In this case, the customer might need to consider battery heating options, as the heat from equipment won’t keep them warm as it would if everything were in a single-bay cabinet together.
Crafting a Solution
At American Products, our team works closely with the provider to ideate and create a turn-key solution that fits their network and safeguards their equipment. When designing battery backup system enclosure solutions, we consider a number of variables.
A key one will be how much backup power the provider wants. The American Products team can calculate how many batteries are needed, and ultimately how big of a cabinet is needed, based on amperage load, battery type and battery backup (BBU) power time.
That also includes discussing what, if any, other backup power source will be utilized. If the provider has an on-site generator, we can include an automatic transfer switch (ATS). These switches will sense a power outage and turn on the generator. In that case, not as much BBU is necessary.
On the other hand, some companies don’t keep a generator at their enclosure site. In the event of an outage, they will bring a generator to the site. For those applications, we can design in a generator inlet/receptacle. Then, the technician can easily plug in the generator and flip the interlock switch to lock out the main breaker utility. Once utility power is restored, a technician will have to be on-site to reset the switches to allow the utility power to energize the cabinet.
Another consideration is the batteries. American Products can design the cabinet to meet the battery needs. For example, if the provider is using VRLA batteries, we can offer a monitoring system so they can check the batteries’ statuses from a remote location. Lithium batteries typically have a monitoring system built in.
If the cabinet is going to house batteries and active equipment, we also like to get an idea of what that equipment will be. This will help us calculate heating and/or cooling solutions, if needed. In most cases, the provider opts for a cooling solution to combat the heat emitted from the active equipment. In climates with extreme cold, though, the equipment might not generate enough heat, so a heating solution, e.g., a battery heating pad, could be necessary.
-48V DC systems are most common. We can include an inverter to backup any AC gear, if required.
For extra safety and peace of mind, American Products can add a battery disconnect breaker or Anderson in-line connector to disconnect power from the battery strings.
At American Products, we strive to provide providers in the telecom and energy industries quality enclosures to protect their valuable equipment, ultimately ensuring they provide uninterrupted service to customers. We design and build every single enclosure in our Strafford, MO. Manufacturing facility using American-made and sourced components as much as possible. This ensures that our cabinets can help you meet Build America, Buy America Act requirements.
If you’re interested in learning more about our battery backup system enclosure solutions, please contact our enclosure specialists at 417.736.2135.