SECTOR REPORT Ӏ BATTERY POWER


whenever possible. For smaller applications, the battery unit can even be powered, in whole or in part, by solar panels to create a completely emissions-free solution. The end result, for this and for other battery solutions, is to allow contractors to significantly downsize the generator for their tower crane and dramatically reduce generator run time and emissions while still meeting peak power demands.


MONEY SAVERS Then there's Wolff Onsite, the accessories division of tower crane manufacturer Wolffkran, which, at Bauma, showcased the Enertainer – a battery energy storage system from Singapore-headquartered energy storage specialist Ampd. “The Enertainer is a


conventional lithium battery energy storage system and it can power multiple pieces of kit,” explains Tom McDaid, managing director of Wolff Onsite. “We have a site in Manchester where we had two cranes and two hoists, powered by four diesel generators. So you can imagine four generators burning all


day – but they’re under load only intermittently. So we brought in the Enertainer which can run either off a small grid connection or off a single 100KVA generator. “At this particular site there was a temporary grid connection but it was only 90 amps; that is not enough to power even one of the cranes. But all the Enertainer needed was 30 amps– so we brought it in, removed four generators, put a 30 amp feed into it and that powered everything on site. That saved thousands of pounds a week in diesel alone, to say nothing of the CO2 that it emits. The site was delighted. “And there is still plenty of


capacity left in it. Last time I visited the site they were also powering three buildings from it as well.” Additionally Wolffkran has a global partnership with UK company Dumarey for its Peak Power 200 system. The Dumarey Flybrid Peak Power 200 is a battery, in the sense that it is an energy store, but it is not a chemical one. Instead, it stores energy in a rapidly spinning flywheel. Alex Keys, sales and


marketing director at Dumarey, explains: “The flywheel is a bit less than a metre in diameter and it spins at several tens of thousands of RPM,” he says. “It is surprising how much energy a flywheel like that can store. And flywheel batteries have one big advantage over chemical batteries in that they are good for as many cycles as you care to put them through.” “Flywheel batteries are good


for harsh and rugged environments also: we have quite a few working in the Middle East.” “Traditionally for a tower crane


you would have a big generator, say 500 KvA, and you would have it running all day consuming around 75 litres an hour,” continues McDaid. “That’s a lot of diesel, a lot of CO2, and it’s very expensive. “With the Peak Power 200 the


Ampd’s


Enertainer on the Wolffkran stand at Bauma


flywheel supplies the energy to make the electricity – it slows down as it does so – and that electric power is available to the crane instantly on demand. Then the diesel generator powers up the flywheel to speed again in time for the next lift. “What this means is you can


reduce the size of your generator. You can reduce it by 50%. So instead of running a 500 KVA generator, if you hook in the flywheel battery to it you can go down to a 250 KVA. So you're going from around 70 litres an hour of diesel down to 30. That’s a big saving. The principle is very simple but it works.” Both the Enertainer and Peak


Power 200 were on display on Wolffkran’s stand at Bauma 2025. Also at Bauma was


Nieuwerkerken, Belgian- headquartered energy solutions provider E-power International which debuted its P-grid product. P-grid is a hybrid energy solution for peak shaving with a generator and a battery in one, for the European market.


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