The Abbey habit

The European market for ups has been growing at an unprecedented rate over the past five years, with current year-on-year overall growth being around 20%. This growth is being experienced both in pluggable and hard-wired products and is largely attributable to the rapid expansion in the high-end telecommunications and Internet sectors. These, in turn, are driving the pluggable end of the market, where there is a boom in the teleworking and SOHO sectors resulting from the Internet expansion.

This has to be good news for contractors, for it means that they can be involved in the supply and installation of ups at all levels. In addition there is considerable potential in providing technical assistance to business continuity managers seeking to achieve continuous operation. However, they must be fully conversant with every aspect of ups technology to ensure that the most suitable power protection solution is made available to the client. It follows, therefore, that all parties – ups manufacturer, consultant and contractor – involved in the installation or upgrade of an electrical infrastructure requiring power protection, operate as a team.

According to Chloride Power Protection general manager Duncan McWilliam, the highly competitive nature of the ups industry means that it is no longer a matter of supplying a unit, or units, to accommodate a specified load. The more complex the nature of the load, the greater the requirement for the input of the ups manufacturer in the selection, installation and long term management of the system.

As a manufacturer of ups systems suitable for loads between 250 VA and 3 MVA, Chloride Power Protection is perfectly placed to provide both practical advice on ups and play a major role in a project management team.

Whilst it is normal practice to engage a consultant to design the electrical scheme, when embarking on an electrical infrastructure programme the component parts are usually supplied by various manufacturers and these only come together as a complete scheme on site. Discovering the incompatibility of components, interference in the operation of one part of the system due to maintenance, or there being a fault in another area, at this stage in a project, is too late.

Business continuity

McWilliam reveals that in a recent new build project for Abbey National requiring a load of 1·6 MVA to be supported by ups and generators for total 24x7 power availability, business continuity management took the innovative step of requesting proposals from suppliers and manufacturers who would in turn form a team. Each component manufacturer was then tasked with presenting their proposed scheme to the client and consultant, who together, tested the validity of the scheme.

This approach allowed Abbey National to question suppliers and propose a number of scenarios, thereby ensuring that all the elements of the design brief were proven. This avoided the typical scenario where a design consultant would meet with individual suppliers and then compile a report on the reliability of the overall scheme.

With the awareness of the importance of having an effective business continuity strategy in place, the demands on both the ups supplier and electrical contractor are increasing considerably. Both parties must have a clear understanding of the clients’ needs and business operation and work together in designing the best possible solution.

For many larger commercial enterprises, particularly in finance and telecoms, business continuity means having power available at all times to every part of the load. In the case of Chloride’s project for Abbey National involving the 1·6 MVA load, there had to be no single point of failure; the design had to be fault tolerant; and most importantly there had to be no need to shut down any part of the load for any reason, including maintenance requirements.

Chloride’s contribution to the power protection elements of the solution involved the installation of six 400 kVA ups in a N+1 configuration. By taking this approach, any two of each group of three ups can support the critical load.

Furthermore, any group of three ups can support the critical load of the opposing group. This system has the advantage of using simple, manually operated switchgear, thus eliminating any concerns over the failure of complex plc automated switchgear.

In providing total 24x7 power availability, it must be possible to transfer power from one part of the system to another in order to accommodate maintenance. For example, if it is necessary to maintain ups A and its associated switchgear, then the load must be transferred to ups B without a break. The ups modules, batteries and switchgear can then be isolated and worked on safely, either individually or as a whole.

Once work has been completed, power can be applied to the ups either by mains power or standby generator. Half of the critical supply system can then be tested, even to the point of applying a dummy load. In this way, the complete system can be put under load. This is by far the most realistic way of proving the resilience of a power protection system. Along with a battery monitoring and management system, this solution was only made possible through a team approach to the overall electrical infrastructure requirements.

The ups is the central component in effecting a true power protection solution. However, in those projects where only hard-wired ups satisfy the criteria, the electrical contractor is best advised to establish a close working relationship with the ups supplier and draw on the expertise of its technical resources. Providing a specific solution tailored to the client’s exact power protection needs, has to be the ultimate goal.Advance-Galatrek has launched the 5 kVA Elite. Units have a wide input voltage, tolerance of 170-276 V and a consistent close-tolerance voltage with a clean sine wave on mains or battery output. The 5 kVA Elites have icon-based control panels and plug and play connections. MGE UPS Systems has announced the release of its Galaxy 3000 ups range. Four models with power ratings of 10, 15, 20 and 30 kVA are designed to accommodate the requirements of server farms, interconnection nodes and other high-load applications. The British Power Conversion Company has launched a robust, multifaceted true sine wave, online double conversion ups, the PowerOn. This newly produced unit is available in 4, 6, 8 and 10 kVA with single phase input and output and with three phase input single phase output.Socomec Sicon UPS has launched Net Vision, a communication and management interface that enables users to configure, monitor and manage any ups effortlessly through a standard internet browser. It is available in slot format for smaller units and as an external adaptor for larger ones. American Power Conversion (APC) has enhanced its Smart-UPS line with the introduction of a smaller rack-mounted model that offers enhancements at a lower price. It is available in 700 VA, 1000 VA and 1400 VA. LEM UK has announced the launch of its latest version of its hand-held, power quality meter, the Analyst 2060. It combines a power harmonics meter, oscilloscope and data logger in one instrument, the Analyst 2060. It can measure dc, ac, pulsed and mixed currents up to 2000 A.Powerware has introduced a new three-phase ups, offering one of the most reliable systems in the industry for mission-critical applications for the banking and internet sectors. The Powerare 9315 is a Series 9 ups, featuring double conversion on-line technology. Hipulse is the latest ups system to be developed and manufactured by Liebert Europe to provide conditioned power for critical applications. Available in four models, 80 kVA, 120 kVA, 160 kVA and 200 kVA, the Hipulse operates as true on-line system, maintaining ac power to the critical load.