For the last few decades, electric industrial vehicles have been steadily replacing those powered by internal combustion engines (ICEs). Concerns about emissions, fuel prices, supply chain shortages, sustainability targets, and overall efficiency have driven this change.
The flooded lead acid battery has been used for over a century and is a proven power source for many industrial applications such as forklifts and floor care equipment. However, more advanced, maintenance-free battery technologies have emerged in the last few decades that provide additional benefits for customers.
To facilitate true optimisation, EnerSys is the only single source manufacturer for all major battery technologies used in material handling equipment and will be showcasing their range of products and solutions during the Hyster ‘IMPACT Live’ Event, taking place in Weeze, Germany between 8th and 10th October 2024.
Tip 1 - Start by Leveraging the Power of Data
While there are several factors in determining an optimal battery technology and charger combination, the first is determining your overall power needs to identify the right solution. With the advancement of battery technology, this has become a complex exercise because there are so many variables and options to consider.
While many operations focus solely on overall energy storage capacity, they often miss the other key factor, the recharging efficiency and speed of the battery and charger combination. This becomes increasingly critical as operations migrate towards being 24/7 – reducing available charge time to a point where the only option is charging during worker breaks. This “opportunity charging” discipline makes the overall efficiency and speed of the charging activity even more critical for equipment uptime.
EnerSys® EnSite™ modelling software is an advanced simulation tool that can model a myriad of different battery and charger options using the customer’s actual fleet usage data. The monitoring software can even analyse future changes in facility throughput, associated costs and estimations about environmental factors which are crucial to ensure customers make the right decision about their power requirements.
Tip 2 - Selecting Maintenance-free Solutions
For operations with more demanding applications that prefer opportunity charging or those seeking to eliminate battery maintenance, Thin Plate Pure Lead (TPPL) batteries and lithium-ion batteries are becoming the go-to power supply for many industrial and retail applications.
EnerSys offers these advanced technologies for a range of light-to-heavy duty applications. Both technologies have fast charging capabilities with zero maintenance.
These batteries don’t require watering, washing or long equalisations, making them ideal for fleet owners who want to minimise labour use for battery maintenance. They can be plugged in whenever the equipment is not in use, such as during breaks, lunches or between shifts and other facility downtimes.
TPPL has twice the amount of available energy during a day compared to traditional flooded lead acid batteries. can be paired up with the intelligent NexSys® COMpact onboard charger, which is installed directly into the battery tray and can be fast charged from any AC socket with up to 94% efficiency - eliminating the need for dedicated charging stations.
If the goal is to improve charging performance and thermal management in high volume applications, the NexSys® TPPL with Accelerated Throughput Package (ATP) batteries delivers up to a 50% increase of daily energy throughput compared to standard TPPL batteries and up to 200% over traditional lead acid batteries. With intuitive controls and advanced thermal management, NexSys® TPPL ATP batteries are engineered to improve charge performance by up to 25%.
In addition, NexSys® TPPL batteries help businesses achieve their sustainability targets, from reducing water use by up to 2500 litres per year to minimising the emissions of harmful gases, to 99% of batteries being recycled.
Tip 3 - Upgrade with Smart Charging Solutions
Maximising the efficiency of your charging operations is another essential aspect of fleet optimisation. EnerSys offers a range of high-performance chargers designed to improve energy intake and maintain battery health. A plug-&-play solution, the NexSys® + charger, for instance, increases productivity and boosts fleet efficiency by dramatically reducing recharge times and allowing for opportunity charging.
The advanced NexSys®+ charger also has an outdoor version, ideal for charging at airports, building and rental sites, farming facilities, cargo terminals, ports and other environments exposed to the weather. The NexSys®+ Outdoor charger is housed inside a rugged enclosure that helps protect against dirt, water and seasonal temperatures, delivering up to 94% charging efficiency for maximum performance and energy savings.
For mixed fleets, EnerSys offers the light, compact and versatile IMPAQ™ charger. Equipped with an LCD screen and customer programmable menu, IMPAQ™ chargers are high-frequency and value-packed, featuring a standard flooded lead acid, NexSys® bloc and NexSys® standard charge profiles.
Tip 4 - Trust the Energy Experts
A well-matched battery technology and charger system can optimise your fleet’s potential by maximising productivity, reducing maintenance and eliminating unplanned downtime. Choosing the right combination requires careful measurement of data and consideration of several operational factors. For the best advice, contact a provider with a wide range of technology choices and an extensive Service network to support your operational needs.
Using your actual fleet power data and simulation to provide a complete, data-informed assessment of your energy needs and options is where EnerSys can help you get started with its EnSite™ modelling software. If one of your goals is to get your optimal solution deployed quickly, EnerSys maintain inventories of their most popular batteries and chargers for 24-hour shipment from their global distribution centres. As a trusted long-term partner, EnerSys can address any operational challenges with a data-driven power approach that includes analytics, a broad array of the latest technologies, state-of-the-art management tools, Service support and much more.
Learn more about EnerSys® solutions for your fleet of Hyster® lift trucks
ABOUT ENERSYS
EnerSys is the global leader in stored energy solutions for industrial applications and designs, manufactures, and distributes energy systems solutions and motive power batteries, specialty batteries, battery chargers, power equipment, battery accessories and outdoor equipment enclosure solutions to customers worldwide. The company goes to market through four lines of business: Energy Systems, Motive Power, Specialty and New Ventures. Energy Systems, which combine power conversion, power distribution, energy storage, and enclosures, are used in the telecommunication, broadband and utility industries, uninterruptible power supplies, and numerous applications requiring stored energy solutions. Motive power batteries and chargers are utilised in electric forklift trucks and other industrial electric powered vehicles. Specialty batteries are used in aerospace and defense applications, large over-the-road trucks, premium automotive, medical and security systems applications. New Ventures provides energy storage and management systems for various applications including demand charge reduction, utility back-up power, and dynamic fast charging for electric vehicles. EnerSys® also provides aftermarket and customer support services to its customers in over 100 countries through its sales and manufacturing locations around the world. More information regarding EnerSys® can be found at www.enersys.com.
SUSTAINABILITY
Sustainability at EnerSys is about more than just the benefits and impacts of our products. Our commitment to sustainability encompasses many important environmental, social and governance issues. Sustainability is a fundamental part of how we manage our own operations. Minimising our environmental footprint is a priority. Sustainability is our commitment to our employees, our customers and the communities we serve. Our products facilitate positive environmental, social and economic impacts around the world. To learn more visit: https://www.enersys.com/en/about-us/sustainability/.
CAUTION CONCERNING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
EnerSys is making this statement in order to satisfy the “Safe Harbor” provision contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any of the statements contained in this blog that are not statements of historical fact may include forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. A forward-looking statement predicts, projects, or uses future events as expectations or possibilities. Forward-looking statements may be based on expectations concerning future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties relating to operations and the economic environment, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond our control. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those matters expressed in or implied by forward-looking statements, please see our risk factors as disclosed in the “Risk Factors” section of our annual report on Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year. The statements in this blog are made as of the date published, even if subsequently made available by EnerSys on its website or otherwise. EnerSys does not undertake any obligation to update or revise these statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this blog.
