enersys

Battery giant EnerSys has introduced a service-reporting tool called the Service Activity Report Management (SARM) system, which allows the company to maintain a full service profile and audit trail for its complete range of Hawker batteries and chargers for motive power applications.

Information logged on to the system during installation and service visits can be analysed to prepare detailed reports and identify maintenance trends. The SARM system gives EnerSys insight into the maintenance of its Hawker batteries and chargers in the material handling and motive power markets. It collects and records service-related information that can be made available to customers who require verification of compliance with procedures and maintenance for key performance indicator reports.

Data relating to a battery or charger is entered into SARM at commissioning and at maintenance or service sessions using unique product details to provide a complete profile of the product’s service history. The system can be accessed online to allow field engineers to update information form any location. 

Samsung SDI and Xtreme Power are installing a 1MW/1MWh lithium-manganese oxide energy storage system for a demonstrative smart grid project in Texas. The system, to be installed at the Reese Technology Centre in Lubbock, is partly funded by the Department of Energy.

The project aims to promote utility scale energy storage with wind energy. The battery system will be utilised to regulate power generated from local wind turbines that suffer from intermittent loss of generation.

Samsung’s lithium-ion battery technology together with Xtreme Power’s Xtreme Active Control Technology (XACT), which gives millisecond response time, will enable the wind generated power to be fed into the national grid.

This is the first project Samsung SDI and Xtreme Power have worked on together to provide energy storage solutions for renewable integration and grid support. The companies have formed the alliance to reach renewable energy goals and promote a cleaner electric grid.

The European Commission is taking the UK to court over its reduced VAT rate on energy-saving products.

The UK charges 5% instead of the standard 20%. Under EU VAT rules, discounts are only allowed for social policy reasons, not environmental reasons.

In a statement, the European Commission said: "Member States themselves unanimously decided on the list of goods and services that could benefit from a reduced VAT rate, and they also insisted that this list be strictly applied, with no room for manoeuvre or interpretation. This is important to prevent competitive distortions in the Single Market and to ensure a fair and level playing field between all Member States."

The Commissions added economic studies showed reduced VAT rates "are often not the best way to achieve policy objectives" and direct subsidies could be more efficient.

Enersys and Ioxus have entered a joint agreement to develop and market new products incorporating the core experience of both companies. The benefits will combine Enersys’s knowledge of batteries with Ioxus’s expertise in the ultracapacitor market.

The partnership will focus on bringing to market products related to regenerative braking and energy recovery in the material handling market markets, UPS bridge to generator markets, automotive and heavy truck critical and cold start markets, as well as energy storage/power conditioning markets.

“The combination of Enersys battery technology with Ioxus ultracapacitor technology will benefit many vertical markets in need of high-performance, extended energy storage life under harsh environmental conditions, including select automotive markets,” said Mark McGough, CEO of Ioxus.

John Gagge, Vice President of Enersys America's Reserve Power Sales and Service, said Enersys is pleased to be working with Ioxus to bring better solutions to its customer base. The joining of ultracapacitors with Enersys’s product portfolio will expand the markets for both companies and Enersys hopes to bring benefits to users in both stand-alone and hybrid applications.