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Power up your business, even during loadshedding The ever-looming threat of the lights going out remains a reality for all South Africans. This could mean major losses in your business if you don’t have contingencies in place. Industrial Buyer caught up with Hire-It sales director Richard Fraser to shed light on the best alternative power solutions to use in your business.
Q
: Please explain how each alternative power solution works and which is the best option for a small manufacturing operation? A: There are a wide variety of backup options ranging from different types of generators, solar systems and backup inverter battery systems, in a number of different types and quality levels. This is why it can be difficult for end users to understand the different options and the pros and cons. The most important information is to understand the application. As a general rule, battery inverter systems are handy for backing up lights and computers for a home or office environment for a number of hours depending on the size. This is good for the office worker because
it means business can carry on during load shedding, and with any luck the batteries will last until the power comes back up. Battery and solar systems are not the correct option for running machinery like a manufacturing operation. To backup a manufacturing operation, a Diesel backup generator will be best. This is mainly because batteries are not suited to running machinery or heat elements, they get used up too quickly. Q: On average, how long can a generator run? A: There are many different sizes of machine and fuel tanks, but most of our backup units, irrespective of the size, are designed to run for six to eight hours on close to a full load.
AKSA Generators
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INDUSTRIAL BUYER MARCH/APRIL 2020
If the load on a machine is less, then the fuel consumption will be less, and therefore the run time can be higher. We recommend getting a jerry can or plastic petrol canister (available at most hardware stores), so that the machine can be filled up in the event of a very long outage. This is one of the major advantages of a generator over a battery system, the run time is much longer, and machines can be filled up with fuel. Also, in comparison to battery systems, diesel generators are far better suited to running machinery and mechanical applications. I must also mention as a matter of safety, never put petrol or diesel into a machine that is running, always switch it off when refuelling.
