Backup battery systems: A light (life) saver for the Super Bowl?

Last night’s Super Bowl XLVII was filled with memorable moments – from the Sandy Hook Elementary School choral ensemble to the Raven’s impressive first half to Beyonce’s star-studded half-time show.  But unfortunately for the NFL, the Superdome’s 35-minute blackout stole the show.

In case you missed it, early in the second half of the gridiron showdown, half of the Superdome’s power went out – leaving the press box without Internet, the dome dark and scoreboards black.  See these eerie photos of the blackout, courtesy of Business Insider.

This morning, social media (check out #SuperBowlBlackout on Twitter) is buzzing with rumors about why the power failure occurred.  Even the Los Angeles Times asks, “Did Beyonce cause the Super Bowl blackout?”  The truth is that power outages can result from numerous causes – from natural disasters to human error.  In the case of the Superdome, CBS Sport’s Will Brinson tweets that a piece of equipment designed to monitor electrical load malfunctioned, opening a breaker and shutting off some of the power in the building.

We don’t know the in’s and out’s of the Superdome’s electrical system, but we do help OEMs and contract manufacturers that create mission critical devices and equip power systems that mitigate power outages.  Our electrical engineers will tell you that in blackout situations, the electrical system should automatically switch to a backup battery until the generator can warm-up and kick-in.   Backup batteries are an important component of uninterruptible power supply’s (UPS), and allow for everything from data centers to football arenas to survive blackouts without an interruption in electricity—safely and reliably.

Make sure your organization’s power doesn’t go out in the second half.  Click to learn more about Palladium Energy’s lithium-based battery pack expertise and UPS solutions.

– Rebecca Kritzman, director of marketing & communications

The Role of Battery Backup Power in Data Center Operations

This summer, one of Amazon’s Northern Virginia data centers experienced an outage due to severe thunderstorms.  The company’s generators were off for 20 minutes; and as a result, popular web services such as Netflix, Pinterest and Instagram were disrupted for up to three hours.  The outage is just one example why backup, uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems are integral to data center operations.  If there’s a sudden power loss, such as a natural disaster, the UPS can kick in until another power source (like a generator) comes online, making sure that web services don’t suffer outages and mission critical data isn’t lost.

According to Emerson Network Power’s report entitled “Calculating the Cost of Data Center Power Outages,” the average cost of a data center outage is $505,502 per company.  This figure doesn’t include additional business consequences such as reputational damages, customer churn and lost business opportunities.

Inside an Uninterruptible Power Supply System

The featured component of a UPS system is the battery backup unit (BBU), which supplies current when power is lost.  While sealed lead-acid (SLA) batteries remain the standard power source for about 50 percent of existing data center BBUs, their limitations are widely known.  As Data Center Journal states, “Lead acid batteries need to either be topped off with water every few years or completely replaced.”

Therefore, companies like Palladium Energy are creating lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) powered BBUs to help data center providers save space, improve emergency runtime by 40 percent and reduce maintenance costs without compromising data security or service affordability.

For example, a traditional SLA BBU is typically designed for a three-minute discharge event, but LiFePO4 BBUs have a charge voltage 10 times the energy density of comparable SLA batteries.

Similarly, SLA BBUs can only sustain 50 to 200 discharge events before becoming unreliable and having to be replaced, but LiFePO4 BBU’s can deliver up to 500 discharge events in a lifetime.

As consumers and businesses generate more and more data (an estimated 35 zettabytes by 2020), securing the world’s information is paramount.  To learn more about LiFePO4 power solutions, click here and request a quote today.

– Tom Larsen, Product Manager and Strategic Market Development Manager

Data centers discover the value of LiFePO4 batteries

Did you know Palladium Energy designs and manufactures battery backup units for data center applications?  Our director of product solutions, Riad Nakhleh, discusses the benefits of using LiFePO4 batteries to protect mission critical data in Electronic Products Magazine.

Click here to read the full article.  Excerpt:

International Data Corporation reports that the global annual data generation will reach 35 zettabytes (1021) by 2020. That’s 35 quadrillion gigabytes worth of emails, text messages, documents, images and videos per year, an astronomical number that is likely to only continue growing as data becomes ever more integral to people’s lives.

Computer technology corporations are preparing for this data explosion by building new data centers in strategic locations around the world. The designers of the servers, storage and switches that would go into these facilities are intent on creating a scalable infrastructure that delivers very high service levels at price points that are competitive even in the face of significant commoditization pressures. Consequently, some companies are exploring the feasibility of creating lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) powered battery backup units (BBU) to save space, improve emergency runtime by 40% and reduce maintenance costs without compromising data security or service affordability.

The Evolution of Tablets

The functionality and desirability of tablets isn’t a 21^st century phenomena.  In fact, Egyptian hieroglyphic tablets have been found dating back to 3200 B.C., and Mayans even used engraved tablets around 500 A.D.  Throughout the centuries, humans have longed for portable devices that can contain information.

In 1968, a talented programmer named Alan Kay designed the genesis to today’s modern tablet – the Dynabook.  Kay thought his invention would revolutionize education. According to PCWorld, “The Dynabook was never built, but Kay laid out all its details in 1972 in a paper called ‘A Personal Computer for Children of All Ages.’”

Think Apple’s first tablet is the iPad? Think again.  In 1983 Apple designed a tablet called “Bashful,” in reference to the dwarf in the fairy tale Snow White.  The prototype included add-ons, like a keyboard, stylus, floppy drive, phone and handheld carry-case.  Even though it was never released, Wired Magazine says it “shows how long [Steve] Jobs has been mulling the idea of bringing a tablet to market.”

In 1989, the world got its hands on the first modern tablet – the GRiDPad.  Priced at $2,370, the GRiDPad was launched as an inventory tool and even used by the U.S. Army.  Using a touchscreen and pen-based computing, the GRiDPad became the predecessor for the Palm Pilot (both were created by inventor, Jeff Hawkins).

Four years later, Apple finally put its first tablet on the market in 1993 – the Newton.  Apple desired to create a tablet computer that was portable and affordable.  According to Wikipedia, “Newton was intended to be a complete reinvention of personal computing.”

In 2001, Compaq unveiled a tablet prototype with a Windows OS.  At that time, Bill Gates said “within five years I predict [the tablet] will be the most popular form of PC sold in America.”  It took slightly longer than five years, but in 2010, Apple pushed the tablet doors wide open with the iPad.

As of Q3 in 2011, Americans owned 20 million tablets, up 488% over Q3 2010. Of these, Forbes says products like iPad and Kindle will continue to dominate, but other brands will begin to penetrate.

A variety of mobile features fuels this trend, from location-based services and object recognition to voice-enabled interfaces and HTML5.  As USA Today says, “portable computing is no longer just a desk activity. It now goes to the living room, dining room and bedroom or easily travels in a purse to be shared with friends. It can be both entertainer or lightweight road warrior.”

Further, today’s tablets are being used in industry applications, such as medical.  For example, physicians are using tablets to store electronic records, test results and images.  With a few swipes of the finger, medical professionals can locate pertinent information at a patient’s bedside.  According to a BBC Research study, this telemedicine market is expected to triple to $27.3 billion by 2016.

As more sophisticated applications emerge—in ever slimmer designs—these devices will require lightweight and powerful lithium-based battery packs to meet growing consumer demand.  At Palladium Energy, we’re proud to power these devices so end users can compute, well, anywhere.

–          Rebecca Kritzman, director of global marketing

Summertime is for Telematics!

Today is the first day of summer and coincidentally, the thermostat outside Palladium Energy’s Naperville headquarters reached 90 degrees.  We recently took a non-scientific survey of our employees which concluded that Palladium USA staffers are driving everywhere from Disney World to the Grand Canyon for their summer vacations.  A deeper analysis of these survey results revealed that they’re all using telematics devices and the services offered to get them to their destination.

At Palladium, we not only make reliable lithium battery solutions for telematics devices, we happen to believe that telematics are making our roads safer and making highway travel more efficient.  Auto manufacturers and consumers must agree because an estimated 95 percent of new vehicles will offer some connectivity solutions by 2012.  With vehicle telematics on the rise, we thought we’d share our favorite innovations that can help you reach your summer destination without having to ask the age-old question, “Are we there yet?”

Energy Efficiencies.  Automakers are beginning to integrate telematics that can help you improve your fuel economy.  For instance, Hyundai’s Eco-Coach application monitors driver MPG and driving habits and offers personalized reports on its website   to help motorists lower their carbon footprint. And Ford’s EcoRoute (shown right) allows you to use your in-dash browser to identify the most fuel-efficient route to your destination.

Love this idea?  Then you’re going to love Toyota and Microsoft’s new partnership that will connect vehicles to the smart grid.  Taking vacations just got a lot more earth-friendly!

Vehicle Diagnostics.  Companies like OnStar offer embedded telematics services that monitor everything from your transmission system to your air bags to your vehicle’s emissions.  Subscribers can receive a periodic email alerting them to potential problems.  As a result, drivers can anticipate maintenance issues before they take to the highway.  Some insurance companies reward drivers who utilize this technology by offering premium discounts – saving you hard-earned cash that you can put towards your summer beach rental (or that must-have airbrushed T-shirt from the souvenir store).

In-vehicle Browsing.  Car manufacturers also are providing smarter in-dash web browsing with products like BMW Online which allow drivers to locate the nearest gas station, get stock market updates and even check the weather so they know what lies ahead.  Craving a milkshake on the way to Las Vegas?  No problem.  In-vehicle web browsing will even tell you how close you are to an ice cream parlor.

As a leading manufacturer of telematics battery pack technology, at Palladium we want to know where you’re going this summer and how telematics are taking you there.  Leave us a comment below and happy trails!

–          Rebecca Kritzman, director of marketing