Creating an effective, electronic field test program for stationary batteries

Providing seamless communication service is required to guarantee company viability, revenue growth and business success. Battery performance has long been an important consideration for modern communications companies, where significant emphasis is placed on seamless customer service. Just as the switch hardware is needed to complete the communications path, batteries are required to protect and support the switching equipment. Battery maintenance is typically labour intensive, and therefore it is looked at as being relatively expensive. Qualified technicians with the proper tools and training are essential to perform battery maintenance work safely. It makes sense for companies to try to find the most efficient method available to achieve their battery maintenance objectives. This paper will compare two battery maintenance techniques used to evaluate several working battery systems. This paper reports on two specific battery testing programs. The first section describes a noninvasive site audit process that involved documenting all site conditions. The authors focus on taking a "snapshot" look at the installed batteries using the conductance test meter. Conductance battery tests are done to screen a large number of batteries in a relatively short period of time. Conductance data are reviewed to identify which batteries could indicate a potentially low performing cell or string. The second section of the battery testing program includes a modified performance (discharge) test to compare to the initial conductance test results. These test results are the foundation for designing a comprehensive battery maintenance program. Their data show how a conductance battery-testing program improves overall system reliability and provides operating cost savings.