Nevertheless, many industries continue to rely on a lead-acid battery pack, including electric forklifts applications. Are you using traditional lead-acid forklift batteries in your operations? If yes, this article is a must-read! You need to learn what lead decontamination measures are mandated at the place of production (spoiler alert: Pandemic precautions are a joke compared to what you have to do to stop lead poisoning of workers and their families).

Whether you have all the safety protocols in place to prevent lead poisoning and decontaminate before going home to protect your family, the main question is,

“Why should you continue using lead?”

Dan Askin, a Speaker at a recent BCI event “Worker Decontamination: Preventing Take-Home Lead” says it best:

“The less lead you start with, the less lead you have to clean up.”

Why Manufacturers of Lead-Acid Batteries Take Workers’ Lead Decontamination Seriously, and Why You Should Too.

On November 4, I participated in a webinar titled “Worker Decontamination: Preventing Take-Home Lead & The Role of Operations and Supervisors in Lead Health Programs” organized by Battery Council International. I have full respect for the organizers of this education effort aimed at reducing the harm. I was quite impressed with the mandated lead decontamination measures to prevent spreading lead dust (and consequent lead poisoning) outside of a workplace.

The health risks discussed were mainly those for the families of employees of lead-containing product manufacturers. Today, 75 percent of lead used in industrial manufacturing goes into lead-acid batteries, so we are talking about manufacturers and users of lead-acid batteries here.

Lead Poisoning

Since lead is a dangerous neurotoxin, especially dangerous for children, a safe level of lead dust on the floor is defined at below 10 micrograms (one-millionth of a gram) per square foot. According to Dan Askin, the first speaker at the event and the president and technical director of ESCA Tech, a company developing blood lead level reduction programs, If a worker takes 1 milligram (one-thousandth of a gram) of lead home, that is enough to cover 100 square feet at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s maximum safe level.

Askin provided an example of a one-week test of a battery plant air-shower. At the entry to the men’s locker room, they recovered 108 milligrams of dust per person who walked through the air-shower. This dust was typically 60 to 70 percent lead. That means we are starting with more than 70 milligrams of lead to be removed before a worker leaves the plant. If this much lead from one person was uniformly dispersed throughout the locker room, the result would be 700 square feet of space at 100 micrograms per square foot.

How Can a Worker Take Lead Home?

How can one take the lead home? Multiple ways: Lead dust is transmitted on shoes, clothes, skin, hair, fingernails, phones, keys, wallets, coins, tobacco, cosmetics and toiletries, socks, underwear, glasses, watch, rings, jewelry, and of course, cars. It can even be carried in your sweat. To prevent lead from being carried over to homes, companies should install advanced filters in their air conditioning systems throughout the facility, not only in the working areas but also in corridors, meeting rooms, and offices. Enter and exit routes must not cross. A policy of no street clothes or shoes inside must be enforced. If you touch your shoes, re-wash your hands. And wash your car before driving home every day.

Battery manufacturing plants must check daily whether training rooms and chairs are used by people in both street clothes and work clothes. Are the training room chairs cleanable? Where are the socks washed? If the socks are washed at home, the lead will collect in the recirculation tank of a home washer and be re-suspended in the rinse water in every load.

And so on. In a nutshell, if your operations involve lead products, the rules of personal protection from lead poisoning and decontamination before you leave the facility to go home must be very strict. And the punishment for not following these rules needs to be quite severe.

When I asked if these measures apply to workplaces that use the lead-acid technology, not manufacture them, Askin mentioned battery distribution centers and industrial batteries charging stations, with which they “had issues in the past.” He could not give more details because there is simply not enough data. These facilities are not regulated and measured in the same way as production areas, and the blood lead levels of workers and their families are simply unknown.

Askin finished his presentation with a very clear message:

“The less lead you start with, the less lead you have to clean up!”

Leave the lead dust behind!

The next two speakers, Carl Raycroft, vice president, EHS compliance, at RSR/ECOBAT, and Pedro Chacon, senior director of manufacturing at Trojan Batteries, both presented examples of policies and best practices at their organizations aimed at mitigating the risk of lead poisoning. Rigorous testing and reporting of the lead blood level test results, investments in lead decontamination equipment and employee education, and hygiene improvements of workplaces, offices, and lunchrooms all lead to reduced lead levels in the blood. And this has also become an important KPI of the management’s performance.

Now, “thanks” to COVID, we all know very well what life in a respirator feels like. And I can truly appreciate the difficulty of this and all the other efforts necessary to keep the risk of lead poisoning at an acceptable level. But listening to the presentations, I kept asking myself,

“What is this level of acceptable risk and why do we need to put up with this risk at all?”

In my previous article on some obvious problems with lead-acid batteries, recycling called

“The New Merchants of Death: Why Lead Acid Batteries Manufacturers Are Increasing Production Volume?”

I wrote about the reality of the renowned 99 percent recycling rate of lead-acid batteries. The industry-wide recycling rate was truly a success story of turning something as dangerous as a lead into something so acceptable and widespread as lead-acid batteries. With no available commercial alternatives, lead-acid technology was an important achievement, which allowed for economic growth and many engineering inventions. But with readily available, safer, more economical and “greener” power alternatives such as lithium batteries, lead-acid now is simply an outdated technology using a dangerous toxin.

Many companies have already run the numbers and have switched to Li-ion batteries to reduce the Total Cost of ownership of material handling equipment in their operations. Others prefer to sub-contract their electric forklifts fleet management to a 3d party, thus not having a choice of the power source. The calculations leading to the use of lead-acid batteries at your workplace probably do not factor in the HSE risks. Because in case you do have all the recommended safety measures in place, like a daily carwash for every car entering the facility, advanced air-filtration, air-showers, automatic footwear cleaners, etc. – your bottom-line would scream for a change of the power source! So the most sensible decision for the users of material handling equipment is to switch to Lithium-ion forklift batteries – and leave the lead dust behind, once and for all.

The article was written by Maxim Khabur, Marketing Director of OneCharge Inc. 

The post The Less Lead you Start with, The Less Lead you Have to Clean Up appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

If you’re reading this, you’re likely considering switching your fleet of forklifts and hand jacks to Lithium-Ion batteries. Or you might be in the market for new batteries and are looking for guidance on which Li-Ion technology to purchase.

If switching from older lead-acid technology, you’re making a sound business decision on several levels. It doesn’t matter if you have a single forklift working a single shift, or a large fleet working multiple shifts, upgrading to Li-Ion batteries offers you many benefits over lead-acid.

Here are just a few highlights to consider before we go myth-busting on needed Li-Ion charging times. In no particular order:

• Li-Ion batteries give you more consistent, stable power when in use. Unlike lead-acid types, the voltage level and power availability remain at a higher, more even level. Lead-acid technology loses both voltage level and power in a downward curve, from the time you plug in the battery to the final job. This can be particularly important in cold storage or freezer applications. Cold is the sworn enemy of lead-acid batteries. You will lose between 30-50% of available capacity in cold or freezing applications with lead-acid.
• Li-Ion batteries are virtually maintenance-free. Lead-acid batteries need to be cleaned, watered and equalized on a regular basis. Li-Ion batteries don’t need these operations. And there’s no crusty caustic build-up to remove.
• Li-Ion batteries are designed for opportunity charging. In other words, you can plug them into a charger anytime the forklift isn’t in use. This saves time by eliminating the need for labor-intensive battery swaps.
• Of course, because they can be opportunity charged, you eliminate the need for and expense for additional batteries, normally at least one per forklift. In some cases, this may even allow you to cut down on the number of lifts needed for your operation. Not to mention the related battery handling equipment required for lead-acid.
• Along with opportunity charging capability, Li-Ion batteries have much faster charging times than their older, lead-acid batteries counterparts.

It’s that last item—faster charging times—that will be addressed in the remainder of this article. There are two main Li-Ion battery technologies used in forklifts, each with its own unique characteristics, advantages, and limitations.

LFP, or Lithium Iron Phosphate, has been around for quite some time. Because of that, it has a better track record for reliability and other factors than its Li-Ion battery counterpart, NMC. NMC, or Nickel Magnesium Cobalt Oxide batteries, are a newer technology.

When first developed, NMC Li-Ion batteries were much more expensive than LFP Li-Ion batteries. That’s often the case when a new technology is developed. However, the cost between them is leveling out, so the price may or may not be your main consideration.

There are other, more important differences.

The Myth of a Necessary 1C Charging Rate Revealed

What is an important consideration is charging times during normal forklift operations? The charging rate is designated by C, which stands for charge current, not charge voltage. A battery that can be charged at 1C will go from 0% charge to fully charged in one hour. NMC batteries achieve this charging rate easily, as many manufacturers and sales reps will inform you.

In fact, that’s one of the main selling points they’ll tout during their pitch.

An LFP Li-Ion battery, on the other hand, normally has a charging rate of between .5 to .8 C. What this means is that the battery will charge from 0% to 100% in about two hours at .5C and perhaps closer to 1-1/2 hours at .8C. That seems significantly slower, a potential downside to LFP batteries.

So obviously, the sales rep’s biggest draw is that the NMC will charge completely in half the time of the LFP Li-Ion battery. The cost to do that may be slightly higher, both for the battery and the accompanying heavy-duty hardware required.

But the time saved for the entire charge cycle makes up for it, right?

Not necessarily.

The need for a zero to 100% charge in 60 minutes sidesteps one of the main benefits of Li-Ion batteries as a whole: opportunity charging.

Think about it for a minute. When will you ever completely drain your battery? If you’re seeing that happen, you’ve likely got a personnel problem not a battery issue. One of your drivers is not taking advantage of opportunity charging.

The fact is that if opportunity charging is used, you’ll rarely get more than a 20-30% power drain, even in freezers and cold storage operations. Therefore, the higher charging rate of 1C for an NMC Li-Ion battery is really a non-issue. It’s just an exaggerated selling point with no real tangible benefit.

You’re being sold a tractor/trailer rig … when a box truck or van will do the job.

But there’s one final and important nail to hammer in the coffin of the 1C myth.

Safety.

You Really Don’t Want the Heat of 1C NMC Charging Rates

Any form of flowing electrical current generates heat. That’s a fact. It’s an immutable law of electricity that must be accounted for and dealt with. The higher the amperage or current, the higher the heat.

How do you get a faster charge rate?

You raise the current flow, producing more heat. That heat must be dissipated by either using larger diameter cables, more robust insulation, or a combination of both. And the connectors that join battery to cable must also be heavier made or they’ll melt.

Even the battery charger must be constructed more robustly, adding to the overall cost of the installation.

Look at the cabling of an NMC high charge rate battery compare it with an LFP cable set. The size difference is quite noticeable. And remember, the heavier hardware is NOT for using the battery, but for charging it. More heat from higher charging rates mean more potential for fire and other heat-related accidents during charging.

High amperage burns hot. Need a practical example? Turn on a 100-watt incandescent light bulb and let it sit for a minute. Then, unscrew it while it’s still powered.

Any questions?

One Final Myth to Debunk

You might be told—during the course of an NMC sales spiel—that an LFP Li-Ion battery cannot be charged at a 1C rate. It’s just NOT true! LFP cells can now readily accept the higher 1.0 to 1.5C charging rates. If you still think you’ll benefit from that higher rate, it can be accomplished easily and more safely than possible with NMC technology.

LFP battery cells can be charged with dual output cables from the charger. Two cables at half the charging rate. Because the current draw is also split, the associated heat is lowered, allowing the smaller cable sets to be used.

When it comes to charging time capability, run the numbers. With opportunity charging for Li-Ion batteries, you likely don’t need what you’re being sold.

The post OneCharge explains 1C Charging Speed of Lithium Batteries appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

A typical paper roll may be loaded, transported, and unloaded 4-16 times on the way from the paper mill to the printing machine. All stages of this transport chain require dedicated, powerful handling equipment working with minimum downtime and operating costs.

Newsprint, coated stock, craft, or linerboard – the high-volume, uninterrupted handling of paper rolls, pulp, and scrap bales require powerful equipment. The power source often needs to be so tough and reliable, you can run it non-stop.

Until recently Class I and II lift trucks and AGVs that employ tilting and rotating attachments were powered mainly by LPG internal combustion engines or lead-acid electric. Both have their own set of problems but the three major problems were common: runtime, high energy costs, and pollution.

Solution

Lithium-ion batteries are better suited to meet the needs of the paper industry three-shift-a-day operations in the stevedoring, mill, warehousing, shipboard, transporting operations, or harsh recycling applications. Clean and safe Lithium batteries are powerful enough to support the most demanding applications, increase runtime, and reduce energy costs.

OneCharge Lithium Batteries are designed and built for tough applications and offer a high level of expertise in paper handling. We helped our customers to switch from LPG to electric or from lead-acid to Lithium-ion batteries to successfully move paper rolls and bales through the supply chain. OneCharge batteries support the handling of large size rolls in paper mills, printing, and converting houses.

Our customers get rid of the acrid smell, acid spills, exhaust gases, and noise pollution created by LPG engines or lead-acid powered electric trucks.

Where sanitary handling is a mandate, like in paper converting and packaging, including food packaging, the safety and zero daily maintenance of OneCharge Li-ion batteries are important.

How OneCharge Lithium Batteries Helped

Application 1.

A US paper mill has switched its end of the line lift trucks to Lithium. The 12.000 lbs. electric powered cushion tire trucks are all 80V, powered by 540Ah OneCharge Li-ion batteries.

Four trucks are traveling with the paper rolls to the loading docks, where the rolls are stacked both in cargo trucks and railcars for distribution. There are also two trucks for making shorter trips with rolls that require rewinding.

All 6 trucks are operating on a single battery each, which will last through the full day with quick opportunity charging events during breaks and lunch.

Application 2.

A large paper mill is using special AGVs to feed the production line. The end of the line is served by 15 smaller lift trucks, that have all been recently switched from the LPG powered IC engine to Electric Lithium. There are 12,000lb capacity trucks equipped with 4,000lb paper roll clamps, and 5,000lb capacity trucks with push / pull attachments. The smaller trucks are engaged in a very heavy application – 3 shifts a day averaging 4,800 hours of operation per year! This is way beyond any industry-standard lease (roughly 1500-2000 hours per year).

Powerful, durable OneCharge Lithium batteries are the best when you need to maximize uptime and safety handling paper and pulp products.

Return on Investment

OneCharge is known for producing some of the most durable, trouble-free Li-ion batteries for applications, where durability, speed, and energy efficiency directly affect the bottom line.

OneCharge Li-ion Batteries help decrease downtime by using breaks for opportunity charging whenever it is most convenient for the operations. Zero maintenance and efficient energy add up the savings quickly.

Typical Savings from switching to Li-ion technology.

The article was written by Maxim Khabur, Marketing Director of OneCharge Inc. 

The post OneCharge Lithium Batteries increase runtime appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

Are you interested in learning about the test results from an expert battery user? Nigel Calder has written an expert overview to provide you with a closer look into the difference between a TPPL battery and a Lithium-ion battery. This is an abridged version of his article.

Keep reading to learn more!

What Are TPPL Batteries?

TPPL is an abbreviation for Thin Plate Pure Lead batteries. These types of batteries are a new type of Absorbed Glass Mat batteries or AGM, which have been on the market for some time now.

TPPL Batteries and AGM Batteries Are Both Lead-acid. The way that TPPL batteries work is very similar to the AGM battery. The total time it takes for a TPPL battery to reach its full charge is reduced, however, TPPL batteries need to be brought to full charge to limit sulfation.

The largest difference between AGM batteries and TPPL batteries is the rate of charge. TPPL batteries can absorb more charge than the standard AGM battery faster. This results in an increased but declining acceptance rate. This means a TPPL battery can charge quickly up to 70-80%, but it takes a long time to get it to the fully charged state.

Performance of TPPL Batteries Compared To Li-ion

When you compare TPPL batteries to lithium-ion batteries, you will find that TPPL batteries need roughly double the nominal capacity to do the same job. They typically can not be discharged below 40% SOC without damaging the battery and/or voiding the warranty.  (It’s still lead-acid). With a Li-ion battery you do not have this limitation.

TPPL batteries have a high rate of charge and discharge. This increased rate translates to an increased level of internal heat inside of the battery. This can cause a reduction in the life expectancy of TPPL batteries.

Even if you take proper care of TPPL batteries, TPPL batteries won’t have as long a life expectancy as the majority of the Lithium-ion batteries that you’ll find on the market. Life expectancy is routinely measured in cycles.

When you compare Lithium batteries to lead-acid batteries, you’ll find that lead-acid batteries will lose their capacity when being used at a permanent partial state of charge, or “opportunity charged“. This isn’t the case with lithium-ion batteries! NO Memory effect!

TPPL Battery Claims

There have been many performance claims made about TPPL batteries, based on their beneficial characteristics. Let’s take a closer look at some of the claims made about TPPL batteries.

Increased Charging Rate. According to some manufacturers TPPL batteries can be charged at a rate up to six times the rated capacity that they have. One of the leading manufacturers of TPPL batteries on the market claims that TPPL batteries can go from completely dead to a full charge in under 30 minutes.

However, based on testing performed by Nigel Calder, even as TPPL batteries absorb 2 times their rated capacity, this rate only lasts for a limited amount of time. When a TPPL battery reaches around 70% charge, the acceptance rate dramatically slows down (about 300%).

While many manufacturers will claim that TPPL batteries charge faster than other types of batteries on the market, testing has shown that TPPL batteries follow the same charging curve as lead acid-based batteries. (It’s still lead-acid).

Charge Capacity. When TPPL batteries are being used in a partially charged state, they work in the same way that AGM batteries do. This means that when a battery is partially charged, there’s an increased risk of a loss of charge capacity. (Memory effect).

While a TPPL battery charge capacity can be adjusted, there’s special equipment that’s needed to modify the charge capacity. The charge capacity can be adjusted by controlling how much the battery can be overcharged, but this only occurs when the voltage of the battery is driven to high levels.

During the process of recovering the capacity of the battery’s charge, it’s to be expected that the venting of electrolytes will take place. In simpler terms – expect acid fumes or “gassing”.

Usable Capacity. Another common claim about TPPL batteries is the usable capacity. Manufacturers will claim that up to 80% of the capacity will be usable for up to 1200 cycles. Compare to Li-ion batteries that offer above 80% of usable capacity at 3000 plus cycles, depending on charging habits and application. That’s more than double the cycles!

Whenever there isn’t a complete full recharge, the entire capacity to which a TPPL battery can be charged is reduced. This results in an additional drop in the battery’s charging capacity. As an end result, this can cause a reduction in the capacity to around 50%, i.e. “memory effect”.  Li-ion batteries can be charged at any given moment and for any amount of time with no loss of capacity. NO Memory effect!

Storage. One claim that has been proven to be true about TPPL batteries is the shelf-life of their charge. When a TPPL battery is brought to a full charge, the battery can be stored for several months without losing any charge. This is because of the low self-discharge rates that are found with TPPL batteries.

Some Li-ion batteries have an “on-off” button to switch off the battery when not in use for as long as 6-12 months.

The Differences Between a Lithium-Ion Battery Vs the TPPL Battery – Not a Fair Comparison

Now that you have a basic knowledge of the differences between Li-ion and TPPL batteries, we hope you understand that this is not really a fair comparison. They are often included in the same conversation because two technologies can be said to have the “no-maintenance” feature. Aside from that, they are completely different technologies. It’s like comparing “apples” to “Lions”!

The article was written by Maxim Khabur, Marketing Director of OneCharge Inc. 

The post OneCharge makes comparison between TTPL and Li-on batteries appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

Executive Summary

Briggs & Stratton merged its smaller warehouses across the U.S. into two large distribution centers and switched forklift fleets at both locations to li-ion batteries from previously used lead-acid batteries. The detailed cost analysis demonstrated significant savings of lithium batteries compared to both LPG (propane) and lead-acid batteries. After over a year of impeccable performance from OneCharge li-ion batteries, the company is committed to switching all of its remaining lead-acid batteries to li-ion.

Challenges

With over 110 years of experience, Briggs & Stratton is trusted by millions of people around the globe and backed by the largest service network in the industry. Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Briggs & Stratton Corporation is the world’s leading producer of gasoline engines for outdoor power lawn and garden equipment and pressure washers through its Briggs & Stratton, Simplicity, Snapper, Ferris, Vanguard, Allmand, Billy Goat, Murray, Branco and Victa brands. Briggs & Stratton products are designed, manufactured, marketed and serviced in over 100 countries on six continents.

In 2019, Briggs & Stratton was consolidating a number of its smaller existing warehouses throughout the U.S. into two large warehouses in Richfield, Wisconsin and Auburn, Alabama, with a total area of 1.1 million square feet.

“By consolidating our current footprint into two large distribution centers, we’re increasing efficiencies to more effectively serve our customers,”

Bill Harlow stated in the company PR release at the time.

The drive for efficiency has guided Harlow’s decisions for 42 years at Briggs & Stratton.  His career started in August 1978, and in 2020, Harlow is responsible for over 1.5 million square feet of warehouses and distribution centers in the U.S. and Europe (Netherlands).

About 10 years ago, the company started to experiment with an alternative charging pattern of these “wet-cell” batteries to increase uptime. Instead of a standard practice of 8 hours of

operations and 8 hours of charging followed by 8 hours of cooling, Harlow’s team was charging lead-acid batteries frequently to keep them in the 40-70 percent SOC (state of charge) corridor. Harlow thought this was not enough.

There was still maintenance to take care of. With an average of 20 minutes per day spent on watering and changing the lead-acid batteries during shifts, the inefficiencies were piling up quickly for the 150 people operating over 50 trucks. The uptime increase has become a real issue for the company with the two shift operations.

So, Harlow decided to test the long-standing practice of using lead-acid batteries as a power source for the company’s fleet of electric forklifts.

Harlow had been closely following the developments in li-ion technology. One of the company’s commercial brands, Vanguard, has a line of lithium-based power solutions. Harlow asked his longtime trade partner Dwayne Lawhorn from YES Equipment to help estimate the available options for the two new distribution centers.

How OneCharge Lithium Batteries Helped

The initial comparison included all available alternatives of power sources: fuel cells praised for their safety, li-ion batteries for longevity, “wet cell” batteries and LPG (propane) for lower initial costs. Both battery types and LPG went into the total cost of ownership calculations.

“The cost analysis made the decision straightforward,”

said Lawhorn. The estimate was based on the 15 years of operations of 54 trucks, alternatively powered by LPG, lead-acid and OneCharge lithium batteries, and factored in the lease, daily maintenance and fuel/electricity costs. The li-ion option was by far the most attractive: it demonstrated a savings of $2,800 per truck compared to lead-acid and $8,100 compared to LPG. Accumulated over the full period for all 54 units, the savings add up to a $2.2 million vs. lead-acid and $6.6 million vs. LPG. And this analysis did not even take into account the air ventilation makeup, battery room expenses, potential hazards with acid spills and potential safety costs for LPG tank changeouts!

Once the deal was sealed, there was no problem fitting all of the new Class I and III lift trucks with the optimal li-ion batteries. Lawhorn and Jerry Mastroianni, sales manager from OneCharge, developed the battery specs to choose from the OneCharge product line of over 550 models.

Results, Return on Investment and Future Plans

One and half years after the start of the operations at new distribution centers powered by li-ion batteries, Briggs & Stratton has seen no issues with the equipment, and Harlow is happy with the performance boost. No leaking acid, none of the downtime associated with lead-acid batteries and

“what’s nice about lithium batteries is that there is no memory effect! You can randomly charge it at 90 percent or at 10 percent,”

Harlow said.

This is true “opportunity” charging. If you can’t opportunity charge a lead-acid battery outside of the 40-70 percent SOC range, this actually is a strict pattern of a “memory effect”.

Bill reports a 5 percent overall efficiency increase, and for a large company, this is a big deal. There are a few lead-acid-powered trucks left until the current lease term is over, and the plan is to transition to li-ion only at Briggs & Stratton.

Efficient li-ion batteries are replacing the old lead-acid technology across industries and applications. Tried-and-tested lithium solutions are no longer the newcomers, and we will see an accelerating adoption of li-ion batteries by all players in material handling over the next few years.

The post OneCharge Lithium-ion Batteries help a leading U.S. manufacturer stay at the top of the game appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

In this article, we’ll cover the main trends and challenges in warehousing that have caused this transformation. Then, we’ll explore the ways in which innovations – especially with respect to material handling equipment and alternative motive power systems – provide effective solutions to these trends and challenges.

The creation of the modern consumer

The rise of Amazon and e-commerce has given consumers greater choice. As a result, warehouses and fulfillment centers must now handle many different types of materials and products across a variety of stockkeeping units (SKUs). At the same time, these facilities must also maintain peak efficiency in their operations, but without sacrificing operational flexibility.

In order to handle the greater amount and variety of SKUs, warehouses need more storage space. But expanding horizontally often carries too great a cost for budget-conscious directors. In fact, as Modern Materials Handling reports, the trend is to reduce warehouse footprints, as doing so can shave up to 65% off operating costs.

One way that warehouses have sought to expand their storage capacity without increasing their footprint is by building taller racking. Whereas in the 1970’s the typical racking height was 20’, the evolving standard is a whopping 36’. This upward growth provides a particular benefit in space-strapped, expensive areas like Los Angeles, where the First 36 Logistics Center is one of the area’s newest warehouses to feature this new, taller racking configuration.

Another strategy warehouses have used is reducing the space between aisles in order to fit more racking into the same space. This has resulted in the creation of very-narrow aisles (VNAs), which can increase storage capacity by 40 to 50%.

The consequence of both of these warehousing trends is expanded demand for material handling equipment designed to reach these new heights and fit into these new, smaller spaces. Thus, tall-mast reach trucks and very-narrow aisles machines like articulating and swing-mast forklifts are becoming increasingly popular in the modern warehouse.

How industrial lithium batteries enable warehouses to boost storage space

Li-ion batteries are particularly well suited to help warehouses adapt to these dual trends of reducing facility footprints while increasing reliance on specialized material handling equipment.

For one, using Li-ion batteries eliminates the need for costly battery storage areas. This allows companies to repurpose their existing industrial battery warehouse space to accommodate more storage area, or eliminate future construction costs altogether.

The root reason for this is that Li-ion batteries provide greater run times and faster charging cycles than lead-acid industrial forklift batteries. Consequently, they do not have to be changed multiple times per shift, eliminating both the need for spare batteries and the space to store them.

One such company who has benefited in this regard is Allan Brothers, a fruit producer based in Washington State. They were able to save $440,000 in construction costs for a new lead-acid battery storage space by switching their forklift fleet to run on Li-ion batteries.

In addition to the space-saving advantage, Li-ion batteries also have the ability to work across a wide swath of specialized material handling equipment, like the aforementioned tall-mast reach trucks and articulating forklifts.

In fact, OneCharge, one of the top lithium battery manufacturers in the USA, has over 550 Li-ion battery models available to fit nearly any type of machine. Better yet, they fit within standard battery compartment sizes and connect to existing electrical systems, so there is no need for expensive modifications to accommodate them.

Labor shortages and budgetary pressure

Another warehousing trend prompted by the demands of the modern consumer is a shift from centralized warehouses to regional hubs. Warehouses have felt the need to make this change in order to improve delivery times, given the expectation of two-day delivery established years ago by Amazon Prime.

However, in moving closer to customer bases, warehouse directors have found two problems: A shortage of workers and higher costs associated with recruiting, hiring, and training the workers they do find.

Both of these problems have been compounded recently, given the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The resulting pressure has forced facilities to raise their wages in order to recruit and retain scarce warehouse workers, further straining their already-tight budgets. Leading the pack in this is Amazon, who recently increased their workers’ pay to $17 per hour to attract workers to their fulfillment centers.

In order to reduce their reliance on expensive and difficult-to-source labor, while also maximizing productivity to meet consumer demands, many warehouses are increasing their use of automated guided vehicles (AGVs).

One company that has found great use for AGVs is Oxford Cold Storage, who have reported benefits such as utilities savings, wage cost reduction, and improvements in order picking accuracy, among others.

How Li-ion batteries enable facilities to achieve maximum productivity with automated material handling equipment

AGVs are electric vehicles and thus require batteries for power. And where lithium battery systems really shine is in their compatibility with AGVs and other automated equipment. There are multiple reasons for this.

For one, Li-ion batteries have quick-charge capabilities, enabling longer operating hours without incurring the life-reducing effects of opportunity charging that is associated with lead-acid forklift batteries. In fact, lithium battery cycles can span up to 3,000 charges as opposed to 1,500 for lead-acid batteries.

Additionally, using Li-ion power means having a no maintenance battery system, eliminating the need for daily upkeep as is required with lead-acid batteries. And where problems do arise, an integrated battery management system can immediately alert facility operators so corrective measures can be taken.

One company in particular that has benefited from adopting Li-ion batteries for use with their AGVs is Spirit AeroSystems, a manufacturer of aerostructures, which relies extensively on material handling equipment to fulfill the needs of their manufacturing processes.

The major advantage Spirit has realized since they began using Li-ion batteries is a reduction in charging times to 1 to 1.5 hours, once or twice daily. Lead-acid batteries, on the other hand, require 30 to 40 minutes six times per day. Such a reduction in idle time can add thousands of dollars to an operation’s budget in the form of improved productivity.

Closing Thoughts

The warehousing industry has experienced an upheaval in recent years. Emerging trends have placed unprecedented pressure on existing structures and solutions, forcing a change in the function and configuration of the modern warehouse.

The article was written by Maxim Khabur, OneCharge Marketing Director

The post OneCharge Lithium-Ion batteries help warehouses keep up with modern commerce appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.

“We ran the numbers and never bought a lift truck without a Li-ion battery after that!”. Warehouse Manager.

Executive Summary

The Company featured here is one of the country’s largest branded food and beverage companies with 13 manufacturing plants throughout the United States.

In 2018 the Company was looking into ways to improve its operating efficiency and safety. Freezer and Cooler environments with low temperatures put a lot of strain on lead-acid batteries resulting in long charging hours and frequent disruptions of daily operations.

The switch to Yale trucks powered by OneCharge FROST Li-ion batteries was smooth and did not require any operational or infrastructure changes. As a result, the operations management saw an increase in their forklifts runtime and a major decrease in charging and overall battery maintenance time. Workplace safety has also improved.

Challenges

This dairy producer, with almost 200 years in business, has grown to become one of the leading national dairy producers with the highest operational and safety standards. Although electric forklifts are the best choice for food manufacturing and personnel safety, the lead-acid batteries were creating constant issues. Besides acid spills and fumes in the course of daily maintenance, lead-acid technology has an inherent weakness – these batteries lose up to 33% of its power in cold environment (30F), and up to 50% in a Freezer enduring its brutal -20F. Taking into account that a lead-acid battery can’t go under 20% of discharge, and a rigid charging schedule of 8 hour of charging and 8 hours of cooling, the fleet performance was obviously suboptimal.

The uptime increase has become a real issue for the company with the 2 shifts operations, when batteries needed to be charged and changed in the middle of a shift.

“There was a lot of frustration!”,

said Steve Castrignano, NITCO Sales Manager, one of the leading national dealers of Material Handling Equipment.

How OneCharge Lithium Batteries Helped

When Steve Castrignano from NITCO introduced the facility management to the new Li-ion technology, management had already known about this technology for years. The Warehouse Manager was however, apprehensive regarding the actual performance of Li-ion batteries in the cold environment. There were no benchmarks and other cases to review of Li-ion batteries operating in similar applications.

Steve started with a full power study of the equipment application, including an analysis of data including charging time, maintenance time and full ROI calculations. He came up with a “one truck – one battery” design based on Li-ion power solution, and a new set up for the chargers much closer to the operations.

The Company decided to start with a Demo battery to make a data-driven decision. The OneCharge Lithium solution features advanced data capabilities. The battery’s BMS (Battery Management System) provides insights on the battery State of Discharge, exact timing and duration of charge and discharge events and calculates total Ah throughput. This allowed Steve to calculate the useful lifetime of the battery accurately, but also helped make the decision on the voltage and capacity best suited for the specific operation!

After a few weeks of operation, the actual usage data from the Demo battery was clear – a battery of a bigger capacity is required for optimal performance. The 630Ah capacity recommendation was updated to an 830Ah.

OneCharge offered FROST I batteries for lift trucks operating in the Cooler environment. These batteries have thermo insulation of the cells, allowing to safely operate at around 30F, and occasional trips into the Freezer. These batteries need to be charged outside of a Freezer.

The Freezer operations required OneCharge FROST II batteries, which can operate at temperatures as low as -22F, and never have leave the Freezer, including charging time! These batteries have a thermostat controlled heater to warm the cells, the cells are insulated and the case is sealed to keep out dust and condensation. Opportunity charging during any break and lunchtime provides top performance to a Li-ion battery at any given moment, one, two or even 3 shifts a day!

Results, Return on Investment and Future Plans

This dairy producer branch now operates forklifts powered with OneCharge Li-ion Batteries specifically designed and customized for each operation – FROST I and II for Freezer and Cooler environments and Standard American Lithium for regular ambient temperatures.

The Warehouse Manager reports a slight increase in their lifts runtime, and massive decrease of charging and overall maintenance time. The safety improvements are also important – there are no more risks of acid spills and fumes or battery swapping related risks. Other company facilities are looking closely at this case and some are already on the way to make the switch to Li-ion.

Any major stress on the economy and business propels the trends in technology that were already building momentum in “peaceful” time. Companies are looking for ways to improve efficiency as a matter of survival, not just a “nice-to-have” or “expendable” environmental initiative.

Efficient Li-ion batteries are replacing the old lead acid technology. Tried-and-tested lithium solutions are no longer newcomers and we will see an accelerating adoption of Li-ion batteries by all players in material handling over the next few years.

Source: OneCharge

The post OneCharge Li-ion Batteries become important for leading Dairy Producers appeared first on North America FarmQuip Magazine.