Unlocking the Potential of Telecom Energy Cabinets
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By PAGE Editor
Every phone call going through, every piece of data being transferred, and every emergency alert being delivered is reliant on an infrastructure chain that many people are completely unaware of until it stops working. The telecom energy system supports the backbone of this chain; the energy system powers the base stations, switching nodes and remote sites used to keep networks operational.
For operators of telecom networks (large or small) the quality of their energy infrastructure directly affects all three aspects of running successful telecom networks: dependability, operational costs, and long-term performance with respect to competition. It is the telecom energy cabinet that serves as either a source of profitability or failure for this infrastructure; and by understanding its full capabilities operators can modify their approach to all sites within their network.
The evolving demands on telecom power infrastructure
The demand for telecom networks continues to grow due to the implementation of advanced technologies, increased urban density, and rural and remote expansion. The resulting demands on each site's power system are also increasing. For example, base stations have used a modest budget in the past, but the amount of power consumed has dramatically increased as data throughputs and simultaneous user connections increase. As remote sites continue to rely on lead-acid backup systems to support their operations, these sites will require energy storage solutions that provide extended run-time, integrate with renewable resources, and have an intelligent energy management capability.
At the same time, telecom operators are under increasing pressure to reduce their operating expenses as well as the carbon footprint of their networks. Diesel generators, which have long been the primary backup power source for off-grid and/or unreliable-grid sites, are expensive to fuel, are difficult to maintain in remote locations and are becoming increasingly incompatible with the operators' corporate sustainability initiatives.
What separates a modern telecom energy cabinet from legacy systems
In terms of performance and reliability, modern lithium telecoms cabinets have a vastly better match when compared with traditional lead acid systems used across many of the world's telecom networks at all levels and in all applications. Due to the nature of lithium chemistry, lithium batteries have much higher energy density per unit of volume so they can provide much greater overall storage within a much smaller footprint; lithium batteries also have a greatly extended cycle life, with many lithium-iron-phosphate batteries rated for in excess of thousands of charge/discharge cycles versus just hundreds for most lead acid batteries; furthermore, lithium batteries require extremely low levels of maintenance compared to lead acid batteries, as flooded lead acid batteries need to be periodically watered, equalised, and terminal cleaned to ensure proper functioning.
Additionally, lithium-based telecom cabinets have integrated battery management systems that actively monitor each individual cell within the battery pack, balance voltage across all cells, and provide protection from conditions that accelerate cell degradation. Ultimately, these systems provide network operators with a consistent capacity rating for their batteries throughout their operational lifespan and provide operators with more predictable performance in the field, which is critical for those operators who may only visit their sites two or three times a year.
Solar integration and the path to off-grid reliability
With many telecom sites unable to access reliable sources of power through the grid or that pay high electricity costs due to unreliable access, the integration of solar energy with battery storage is now accepted as the best solution for ensuring that operations can achieve reliability. The solar hybrid solution manages the relationship between generation, storage and demand for wireless networks in order to maximise renewable energy use while ensuring continuous uptime as required by wireless users.
This hybrid architecture has been incorporated into modern telecom power solutions from the ground up. Instead of treating solar power as an additional source of power for a grid-dominant system, renewable power is treated as the primary source with grid or generator sources as backup, thus dramatically improving the economics of operating remote telecom sites. As a result, fuel consumption is reduced, hours of operation on generators are reduced and the total cost of powering each site is significantly reduced over a longer-term operational period.
Remote monitoring as an operational multiplier
Monitoring an energy cabinet located in the telecom network from a remote location is not merely a function of convenience but rather a critical component of enabling operators who manage large and far-flung networks with hundreds or thousands of locations to efficiently manage the network as a whole. Automated status reporting by sites via standard protocols for network management enables an operator to turn from reactive and manual management of sites' energy to proactive and data-driven management.
Thermal resilience across diverse deployment environments
Telecom networks exist in every kind of environment you can think of, from tropical coastal regions with constant heat and humidity all the way up into high altitude locations where it gets extremely cold and where there is very little air pressure. An energy cabinet that works perfectly in a temperate city would be of little value to operators who have networks spread out over a variety of geographical locations if that same energy cabinet is going to fail quickly when placed in a desert climate or in an arctic climate.
High quality energy cabinet systems include thermal management designs that accommodate for all temperatures fall within the range of real world temperature situations. For example, during extreme heat and during periods of high usage, active cooling will ensure that your energy cabinets are working optimally by keeping their cell temperatures within optimal ranges. Conversely during cold weather locations, the thermal management system will keep cell temperatures above the temperature threshold where performance will start to decline so that your energy cabinets can provide rated capacity when the ambient temperature is well below zero. The actual energy cabinet will also include the proper level of ingress protection (e.g., against dust, water, and insects) to protect sensitive electronic equipment from environments that are likely to cause failure to unprotected equipment in a short amount of time.
Making the transition from legacy to modern cabinet systems
Operators considering a move from legacy power systems to a new generation should know that transitioning can be relatively straightforward. The first step is to conduct an audit of the existing power infrastructures throughout the entire network in order to identify sites suffering from lower-than-standard performance, those that have the highest maintenance costs per site, and those with batteries due for replacement. The sites identified in these audits are the sites that have the highest priority for upgrading to the new power systems, as they are also likely to give the operator the quickest return on investment.
The next step after identifying these sites is selecting the appropriate cabinet for each site based on the load profile, the required autonomy, the available solar resource, and the integration requirements to the existing rectifiers and inverters already in use. Suppliers with real telecom experience will help in this selection process, thereby ensuring not only that each system deployed at each site will match the site’s specific needs but also eliminating the likelihood of each site receiving a generic one-size-fits-all solution, which will cause its performance potential to be compromised. Deploying the new systems on a phased rollout at each site across the entire operator's network will allow the operator to manage its capital expenditure, while at the same time improving the reliability of the network, and lowering costs of operation on a per-site basis.
FAQs
1. What is the expected lifespan of a modern telecommunication energy cabinet?
The modern quality lithium iron phosphate cabinet systems can be expected to have a lifespan of 10+ years of continuous use, with predictable and gradual capacity loss, which can be monitored via a remote monitoring system and planned for in advance.
2. Is it possible for a telecommunication cabinet to run completely off of the grid?
Yes, if a modern cabinet is coupled with appropriately sized solar generation, it can continuously run off of the grid by using the battery storage to bridge the times of low solar production (both nighttime and when it's cloudy).
3. How can switching to a modern cabinet decrease my operating costs?
Switching to a modern cabinet will provide longer battery life (which means less frequent replacement), less need for field visits due to monitoring from a distance, decreased fueling costs as a result of solar system integration and decreased labour costs at the network level through lower maintenance requirements.
4. Is it possible to upgrade existing telecommunication sites without having to replace all of the infrastructure?
In most cases it is possible; modern cabinets have the ability to be integrated with existing rectification and inverter systems, so the upgrading can be accomplished in phases that provide for greater performance and reliability even though the infrastructure on the site must be replaced.
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Every phone call going through, every piece of data being transferred, and every emergency alert being delivered is reliant on an infrastructure chain that many people are completely unaware of until it stops working.