POWER SYSTEMS
Maintaining the ‘health’ of voltage and current
Tom Davies, Sales manager for Energy Control at fortop Automation & Energy Control (fortop UK), explores how improving power quality and energy management is essential for healthcare estates teams in the quest to achieve Net Zero carbon goals.
Far right: Figure 1. Four key elements that impact on power optimisation.
Estates and Facilities managers and their teams in NHS hospitals and other healthcare settings face major challenges. With the NHS committed to becoming the world’s first Net Zero national health service, numerous energy-saving measures must be implemented, with gas as an energy source increasingly being replaced by electricity. Additionally, the growing use of electronic equipment is contributing to electrical pollution, placing the reliable operation of equipment under increasing strain.
Electrical energy supply in NHS hospitals NHS hospitals have experienced a significant rise in the use of electronic medical devices over recent decades, with, for example, CT scanners, MRI scanners, X-ray machines, dialysis equipment, and surgical robots, now indispensable in healthcare. With more advanced devices being introduced, productivity is increasing, and hospital stays are being shortened. At the same time, the need for energy efficiency is becoming more pressing, with solutions such as solar panels, LED lighting, and frequency-controlled drives, being widely implemented. However, these energy-saving devices and medical equipment also introduce pollution into the power grid, negatively affecting power quality (voltage and current quality). Compounding the issue, modern equipment is increasingly sensitive to the very pollution it generates. This has serious consequences for the stability of the electrical energy supply, in terms particularly of:
Right: Figure 2. Measurement, analysis, and optimisation are part of a continuous improvement process for efficient power management.
Far right: Figure 3. Leveraging its experience in critical applications such as data centres and hospitals to ensure voltage and current availability under all conditions, fortop UK says it applies ‘its unique chain of competencies: measuring, monitoring, and improving.’
68 Health Estate Journal June 2025
n Increased risk of system failures due to voltage dips and/or current peaks.
n Emergency power systems failing due to capacitive networks, harmonic pollution, and unbalanced loads.
n Higher maintenance costs and more frequent malfunctions due to increased network pollution from mechanical installations, medical equipment, LED lighting, and solar panels.
n Greater load on the neutral conductor due to unbalanced phases and network pollution.
n Increased transformer load caused by network pollution and asymmetric loading.
n Ever more stringent legal requirements regarding electrical energy quality and responsibilities.
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