EVLN(EV industry still humming and well funded)

[Bruce EVangel Parmenter <brucedp@yahoo.com>]

EVLN(EV industry still humming and well funded)
[The Internet Electric Vehicle List News. For Public EV informational
 purposes. Contact publication for reprint rights.]
 --- {EVangel}
Battcon (superscript) ® 2001 and the State of the Industry By J. 
Allen Byrne , 07/01/2001 Power Quality Assurance 64 Copyright 2001 by
Intertec Publishing Corporation, a PRIMEDIA Company.  All rights
reserved.

Since its inception in 1997, the National Battery Conference (Battcon)
has evolved into the nation's leading stationary battery symposium. In
May, battery manufacturers, distributors, users, and members of other
related industries gathered in Boca Raton, Fla., for the fifth annual
conference. The timely theme was "Today's Power: Reliable Tomorrow?"
As in past years, the attendees discussed a diversity of subjects all
hinging on battery application, care, and technology.

The conference, sponsored by Albercorp and the IEEE Power Engineering
Society, was limited to 350 attendees and consisted of a keynote
address, 17 technical papers, five question-and-answer panel sessions,
and a battery seminar. A trade show including 30 exhibitors was held
in conjunction with the conference. In addition to the trade show,
American Power Conversion and Tyco provided demonstration trailers.

Keynote Address
Dr. Imre Gyuk, the program manager for Energy Storage Research with
the U.S. Department of Energy, delivered the keynote address. His
paper (and two subsequent papers) examined the role of stationary
batteries in the electrical energy industry.

In an excellent presentation, Dr. Gyuk pointed out that although
energy storage is not the answer to all of the current problems, it
would become "a necessary and powerful tool in mitigating the effects
of overburdened electricity delivery system[s]." (superscript) 1

Dr. Gyuk held up today's digital world as an example of an
infrastructure not only needing continuous energy, but a supply of
high-quality power without the aberrations normally found on an
electrical grid. This ideal power supply would provide better than
99.999% reliability, whereas the best grid today only can supply about
99.9% reliability.

As Dr. Gyuk stated in his address, "an outage of a few cycles [a few
milliseconds] may take four hours to clean up. While the price of
power is determined by the economy of power production, the cost of a
power outage is determined by the value of the product. As a result,
power quality is becoming as important as power quantity, and the cost
of 'no power' is almost priceless in the digital economy."
(superscript) 2

Dr. Gyuk went on to offer his thoughts on lead-acid batteries and
other chemistries used in energy storage and load-leveling
applications.  He gave examples of up to 20MW battery plants and the
development of even larger plants.

After the keynote address, Dr. Phillip Symons and Jim McDowall gave
their presentations. Symons is the board chair of the Energy Storage
Association as well as the president of Symons/EECI, a well-respected
battery consulting company. McDowall chairs the IEEE Standards
Coordinating Committee on Stationary Batteries and is the North
American business development manager for SAFT America Inc. Both
presentations soundly augmented and advanced the principles put
forward by Dr. Gyuk and discussed the role of advanced batteries and
distributed generation.

Other Battery Issues
The great debate of applying valve-regulated lead-acid (VRLA)
batteries continued over from previous years. Every year, seasoned
users, analysts, and industry professionals bring the latest studies,
newest ideas, and alternative proposals.

Another hot topic featured outdoor environments. Curtis Ashton, of
Quest, and John Zulaski, with the S&C Electric Co., delivered two
detailed studies pertaining to this issue, and Stuart Landsburg, from
SAFT America, presented the case for an increased deployment of
nickel-cadmium batteries in remote telecom applications.

Battery monitoring, testing, and maintenance is always a perennial
issue, and this year's conference was no exception - although more
attention was paid to the cost and methods of maintenance.

Rick Tressler, from Liebert, gave a good perspective on battery
maintenance data analysis. Too often, adequate data is measured and
collected; however, according to Tressler, "what to do with the data
once it has been collected can be somewhat confusing to some involved
in the management of continuing maintenance of large stationary
batteries." (superscript) 3

Battery sizing, charging, grounding, and protection methods also were
featured topics. Dan McMenamin, of Dan McMenamin Associates, presented
a paper titled, "Myths and Performance Problems in Telecom Network
Power," (superscript) 4 which focused on debunking some industry
myths.  Expansions and Additions

The use of expert panelists to address questions and comments raised
by attendees was expanded this year. As always, there were more
questions than there was time to answer, even though five panel
sessions offered over five hours of interchange. Among the topics
discussed were battery charging methods, management issues,
surveillance, and the environment.

As expected, spill containment was a hot issue. The general consensus
was that spill containment should not be required for VRLA batteries,
and the codes are ambiguous and misleading. Many believe the root
problem stems from a lack of distinction in codes and standards
between vented lead-acid (flooded) batteries and VRLA batteries.

A new feature of the conference included a tutorial presented by Jim
McDowall and Rick Tressler titled, "Battery Basics and Beyond for the
User." The seminar benefited the novice and experienced user and
focused on lead-acid and nickel-cadmium stationary batteries.

Proof of the tutorial's success came from conference evaluation
results, which strongly indicated a desire for an expanded tutorial
session next year.  Survey Results

The results of the conference evaluations indicate the event was a
success. An overwhelming 97% of attendees said that the conference met
or exceeded their expectations. The technical content also received
high marks. The technical papers received a 98% positive rating, while
the panel sessions garnered a 97% average or above grade, with 49%
indicating above average. As for the trade show, 98% rated it as
average or above average, with 46% responding with an above-average
rating.

One pressing issue for Battcon organizers has been whether to increase
the size of the conference or to continue with the intimate, limited
gathering that exists. Survey results tilted slightly toward some
limited expansion. When asked the question, "should the conference
grow in size?" 41% of attendees said "no." Another 48% indicated that
the conference should grow by 100 attendees, while 11% said it should
grow by 200.

There also was a sizeable demand for expanding the trade show. This
puts the organizers in somewhat of a quandary. The current location,
the Marriott Boca Center, would have difficulty in accommodating
500-plus delegates, and the nearby Sheraton Hotel, which hosts the
trade show, cannot increase the available floor space. Whatever
direction the organizers choose will strive to serve the best
interests of both the conference and the attendees.

Beyond Battcon
Last year, the conference took place during a time when business was
booming for battery manufacturers and users, especially in the
telecommunications sector.

What a difference a year makes! The downturn in the technology sector
and, in particular, those telecom rollouts that drove battery demand,
resulted in a supply and demand reversal. Now, manufacturers have
product sitting on loading docks and users are canceling orders and
revising forecasts at an alarming rate.

This has given the industry more time to focus on itself and spend
some time on planning its future progress and development. It also
means the industry needs to concentrate more on quality and refinement
of product. With supply exceeding demand, customers can become more
discerning. They'll look for product quality, suitability, and
life-cycle costs and examine alternative solutions.

What lies ahead? One of the industry segments that is still humming
and seems to be relatively well funded is the electric vehicle (EV)
industry. Stronger regulatory requirements or customer acceptance
would drive the further development of existing VRLA and
nickel-cadmium technologies and other advanced battery chemistries.

Much work has already been done with nickel metal hydride batteries in
the EV industry, and more promising results look possible from lithium
ion technology. Other electrochemical mediums such as lithium polymer
also are under development. Still, only a few manufacturers of these
products exist. The challenge lies in developing them in
configurations and capacities suitable for large stationary
applications while at the same time driving costs down. The
traditional lead-acid and nickel-cadmium manufacturers may want to
turn their heads in this direction.

J. Allen Byrne is a senior staff applications engineer for American
Power Conversion Corp.'s DC network solutions. He also is the
co-moderator of Battcon, a board member of the IEEE Battery Standards
Coordinating Committee, and a member of the Alliance for
Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS).

References
Battcon 2001 Conference Proceedings, paper number 1, Dr. Imre Gyuk.
Ibid., paper number 1, Dr. Imre Gyuk.
Ibid., paper number 16, Richard Tressler.
Ibid,. paper number 15, Dan McMenamin.
Note: Copies of the Conference Proceedings of Battcon (superscript)
2001 may be obtained from Albercorp/Battcon 2001, 990 South Rogers
Circle, Suite 11, Boca Raton, FL 33487, or by telephone at
561-997-2299.
 ...
 http://www.intertec.com/
Intertec Publishing
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