Conference focuses on emergency power supplies

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Jul 20, 2005

IDC Technologies along with some of South Africa's leading engineers and technicians will present the 2005 Emergency Power Supplies Conference in Johannesburg on 23rd and 24th November 2005.

IDC Technologies along with some of South Africa's leading engineers and technicians will present the 2005 Emergency Power Supplies Conference in Johannesburg on 23rd and 24th November 2005.

This two day conference will cover a selection of case studies and examples of real world, implemented emergency power supply systems.

This conference presents an excellent opportunity to network with peers, gain significant information and techniques for projects and to learn about the new technologies available in the emergency power supplies domain.

Numerous leaders in the emergency power supplies fields will be making presentations during the two days of the conference.

Two half day preconference workshops on the 22nd November on the latest developments in power quality and earthing (morning workshop) and uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems and batteries (afternoon workshop) will set the tone for the two-day conference.

Over the past few years there have been many problems due to power outages where in some infamous incidents such as in the eastern USA, thousands and thousands of people have been stranded in subways, lifts, dark buildings.

Even though the durations of these power failures are relatively short, many questions are raised about the integrity of power distribution systems and the adequacy of emergency power supplies and backups and finally the actual resultant quality of the power supply.

An emergency power supply system (according to the IEEE) is "an independent reserve source of electric energy that, upon failure or outage of the normal source, automatically provides reliable electric power within a specified time to critical devices and equipment whose failure to operate satisfactorily would jeopardise the health and safety of personnel or result in damage to property".

A standby power system (sometimes referred to as "backup power") is "an independent reserve source of electric energy that, upon failure or outage of the normal source, provides electric power of acceptable quality and quantity so that the user's facilities may continue to operate".

Emergency power systems must be properly designed as well as properly installed.

One of the key tests as to whether or not a critical power system has been properly designed and installed is the ability to perform maintenance and load testing on the system without causing a power failure to the critical load.

If the electricity supply fails, a standby battery is the most important asset a company owns.

It ensures that interruptions in power supply will not disrupt an organisation's electrical and electronic equipment resulting in the immobilisation of essential business operations.

Issues here are such as identifying the true cost of the battery system over its life time, selecting the appropriate standby battery and correct installation meeting operational requirements and developing replacement strategies to name a few.