n the last 10-20 years have come not from the batteries themselves,
but from new battery maintenance practices. A micro industry has developed
that offers a variety of tools available to battery room and warehouse
managers, enabling them to extend the lives of their batteries and ensure
the highest possible level of performance while increasing worker productivity
and improving warehouse safety and compliance with OSHA regulations.
As a result, managers responsible for their companies forklift operations
are increasingly touting the return on investment they achieve in their
operations.

Battery watering: A simple job done poorly

There are a variety of tools geared toward helping to manage battery
assets. Properly maintained, industrial batteries should provide five
years of reliable power. But one of the simplest battery maintenance
tasks is also one of the most poorly performed: battery watering.

Over-watering a battery can create boil overs, in which sulfuric
acid is spilled onto the surface of the battery as well as the lift
truck, floors, racks and potentially workers. This not only creates
a damaging and hazardous condition within the warehouse, but also decreases
the batterys useful life. Why? During a boil over, some of the sulfates
are washed out of the battery, and sulfates are needed to maintain the
capacity of the battery. For every boil over, the battery loses approximately
three percent of its capacity. Over time, boil overs can decrease the
life of a battery by six months or more.

Under-watering is another common problem. Under-watering can happen
when batteries arent watered on schedule or when they are manually
watered and the operator accidentally skips a cell. When a cell is skipped
in a typical watering regimen, it might not get the water it needs for
another week. That can result in permanent damage. When parts of the
batterys positive and negative plates get dry, battery capacity is
decreased. A condition called sulfation develops on the dry part of
the plate, and even when water is re-introduced to the dry cell for
example, at the next scheduled watering it will not return to its
previous performance. In the worst case, a damaged cell would need to
be replaced entirely, which is an expensive proposition.

The most common factor contributing to over- and under-watering is
the hand-watering of batteries. An estimated 70 percent of industrial
batteries are filled by hand, despite the fact that single point battery
watering systems have been available for years. However, as managers
push for greater warehouse efficiency in order to achieve corporate
profitability goals, interest in and sales of single-point watering
systems are on the rise.

Single-point systems offer a cost-effective and safe alternative to
hand-watering. There are several such systems available, and, for the
most part, they operate similarly. The first single-point systems were
manufactured with floats that gauge the electrolyte level. In the early
1990s, Philadelphia Scientific pioneered a pressure-dependent watering
system that uses water Injectors that are snapped onto each battery
cell and are connected to one another with corrosion-resistant plastic
tubing. Each Injector has its own level-sensing valve, which is powered
by water pressure, ensuring precise sensing of electrolyte levels in
each cell.

To fill the batteries, a hose is attached to the input fitting and
a valve is opened. The water flows through the plastic tubing and, simultaneously,
into each of the cells. Within 15-20 seconds, the battery is filled
with each cell receiving the precise amount of water needed.

Using a single-point watering system, batteries can be filled up to
20 times faster than by hand watering, increasing worker productivity
and improving safety. In 2006, Philadelphia Scientific surveyed more
than a dozen users of its single-point Water Injector System to determine
the ROI those systems provided. ROI was determined by considering labor
savings from the decreased time spent watering batteries; time saved
due to less frequent battery changes during shifts; and savings from
less frequent battery purchases as batteries experienced longer life
spans with proper maintenance. Survey results revealed that in a typical
100-battery fleet, a company can expect to save approximately $26,000
per year with an ROI of approximately 13 months.

Getting organized

Battery room and warehouse managers can also more effectively manage
their battery usage and, therefore, the useful life of their forklift
batteries by organizing and sequencing the use of their batteries.

When a fork truck driver enters a battery room to get a replacement
battery, how does he know which battery to take? Normally, chargers
have a small light indicating that the battery connected to it has finished
charging. But in most battery rooms, there are often several of these
lights on at any one time. Which one does the driver pick? Usually,
the nearest available battery. That means the batteries nearest the
entrance get used more than those at the far end of the room. Sometimes
the ones at the far end dont get used at all.

There are several battery organizing systems on the market that can
eliminate the uncertainty of battery selection, increasing the useful
life of the battery fleet. As an example, the iBOS system from Philadelphia
Scientific works by determining precisely which fully charged battery
is next in line for use by the truck driver. It does this by collecting
charger data through electronic monitors. These monitors send data to
a central controller, which then processes the data and sends a message
to a scrolling LED display informing the forklift driver which battery
to take. If the driver misunderstands or ignores the displays instruction
and selects the wrong battery, a Shouter loudspeaker points out the
error.

The monitors can work with virtually any charger, including high-frequency
types.

While battery organizing systems can range dramatically in complexity
and cost, most will pay for themselves within two years, and do so in
two ways. First, they improve the efficiency of day-to-day operations. Such systems help by organizing the battery-changing operation,
in real time, to ensure that all batteries are used in strict rotation,
preventing battery abuse and related problems down the road.

Secondly, battery organizing systems improve corporate asset management
by diagnosing problems. Many organizing systems collect an enormous
amount of data from the chargers, and some are designed to reduce the
data to a compact executive summary report. Such a capability is extremely
valuable for leasing companies, companies with multiple sites, companies
operating during peak periods of seasonal activities or for any medium
to large facility with a hectic schedule.

Easy-to-implement, cost-effective ROI

Warehouse and battery room managers are no different than any other
business manager today; they are all looking for tools to help them
run more efficiently and, where possible, demonstrate a healthy ROI
to their direct reports. Battery maintenance has not been viewed as
a key strategy in improving efficiency in the past. Hey, theyre just
batteries, a manager might have said. But todays arsenal of battery
maintenance tools can save large warehouse and distribution operations
tens of thousands of dollars per year. Better battery maintenance may
be one of the simplest and most cost-effective strategies a manager
can implement to demonstrate an impressive ROI.

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