Did you know that we also make static power and battery security systems for the telecommunications industry? At maxwell+spark we are all about intelligent lithium-ion battery solutions that have a range of interesting and essential applications! One of these is standby.li, which includes the High Security Battery Cabinet (HSBC) and our high capacity 19” rack mounted lithium-ion battery pack. These products offer scalable industrial energy storage solutions within the telecommunications industry and protect batteries from theft and vandalism.
Telecommunication infrastructure, including cellular towers and wireless internet service providers, are considered essential infrastructure. Powering these base stations are batteries which keep us connected during both scheduled and unscheduled power cuts. However, over the last few years, South Africa has seen a steep increase in the theft of these batteries.
Vodacom, one of South Africa’s largest mobile network operators, recorded an average of 700 incidents of battery theft and vandalism per month. This resulted in a spend of R1 billion (€55 million) to replace these batteries and supply back-up diesel generators in 2020 (Luke Daniel, Business Insider SA 15 June 2021). While this is an exorbitant sum, an important consideration is that the cost of the theft isn’t limited to replacement costs alone, but extends much further into South Africa’s social and economic landscape. It extends to all people who depend on communication for work and to generate an income for their families. As a result, every South African suffers when batteries are stolen and business grinds to a halt.
Maxwell+spark’s standby.li HSBC is a secure outdoor battery cabinet, which houses the powerpacks (power modules and power distribution unit). The sleek, secure cabinet boasts no exterior handles, hinges or purchase points and incorporates cutting-edge, anti-theft features that have been extensively tested by us. The cabinet can only be unlocked with the correct mechanical and software token sequence. In addition, the control of the opening tokens makes entry into the cabinet auditable and accountable.
High performance, reliable and safe lithium-ion batteries are at the core of standby.li’s powerpack architecture which is designed around maximising energy density within the confines of a standard 19” rack battery footprint. The pack is configured with auto fall-back in case of a master module failure. The maxwell+spark telemetry system also provides critical information to clients remotely. Clients can log into the reporting app and draw down reports of battery usage and key managerial information.
With an increase in theft and vandalism in the telecommunications industry, it has become vital to find solutions to ensure the uninterrupted delivery of the cellular and internet services we have come to depend on.
