BATTERY ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEMS Ӏ SECTOR SNAPSHOT
operator is hiring them from us, that is our job, not his. We will say ‘you need to power this type of crane doing this type of operation for these kinds of hours. Here is a system that will do that.’ And we will stand behind its performance. It is our risk on that, not his. We can protect the value of our second life batteries by managing them smartly. And the crane operator gets a system that powers his cranes the way he needs.” Crane manufacturer Liebherr has also identified this gap in the market around battery management and charging strategy. Its response has been to launched a new company, Liebherr Energy Solutions, to help customers reduce energy consumption and CO2
construction sites. Liebherr says the new company
batteries on the right applications. So the customers always get the results they need without having to worry about the specific technology that's being used inside the battery cabinet.” Which is relevant because this is still an emergent technology. Early buyers into emergent technologies frequently find themselves wrongfooted as rapid developments make the original products obsolete. Thus the electric cars of five years ago have tiny ranges compared to today’s models. The reason is, simply, the progress in battery technology. “Generator-hire companies are
investing in batteries but they are rightfully being quite cautious in what is a new technology that they are not 100% comfortable with yet,” says Long.
BATTERY MANAGEMENT The life of an expensive battery depends hugely on the precise charging regime it is subject to: running it down to flat then fully recharging it, or rapidly charging to keeping it at full all the time, are equally bad; battery management is a complex skill – and one that crane operators have neither the time, nor perhaps the inclination, to learn. They have too many other tasks on their plate.
The solution is simple: let
others handle the learning curve. Instead of buying your BESS
20 CRANES TODAY
Zenobē uses both new and second-life batteries
system, rent it and let the owner or manufacturer look after the charging regime and take on the risk of getting it wrong. “The management system is built into the software of the batteries,” explains Long. “We will configure it to the individual jobsite. The main factors we consider are based on site restrictions: so, is it charging from a grid supply? If so, at what rate can it charge? What is the size of that grid supply? Can we pull 100 amps from it, or only 50? When can we charge? Are there any limitations from different hours of the day? Do we need to always charge up before 7am because they do lots of work in the morning, or is the workload evenly distributed? If the charging is from a diesel generator are there limitations on when it can run? Some building sites now have limitations on running generators at night because local residents don't like the noise or it could be that the site doesn't want it to run in the day so that the people on site don't have to have the noise and smell of a diesel generator while they're working. “Underlying all of this is optimising the charging strategy, and that is really quite complex. The idea is to squeeze the most value out of these battery assets and protect them so they last for a longer time. But since the crane
focuses on energy storage technologies along with in-house developed software solutions, with the aim of providing energy hardware, software and service under one roof. The company’s product
portfolio currently incorporates the mobile, battery-based energy storage system, Liduro Power Port, and the browser-based Energy Planner software, for holistic planning of the power and energy requirements of a construction site in different construction phases. "The rapidly growing energy demand on construction sites and the associated transformation of the construction industry take the topic of electrification to a new level," explains Daniel Bachmann, managing director of Liebherr Energy Solutions. "This brings new complexity to the areas of planning, management and infrastructure. This is exactly where we come in, supporting construction site operators, planners and equipment suppliers in this transformation – efficiently, sustainably and with an eye to the future." The final word on BESS goes to
Zenobē’s Long. He puts it simply: “If you are running a tower crane; and if you have a generator and no battery; then quite simply, you are wasting your money.” And you are pumping unnecessary carbon into the world as well.
emissions on
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