June 2012 Cellwatch Newsletter

Available in three languages, the dynamic flash demonstration illustrates how easily Cellwatch is configured and highlights the technical advantages of Cellwatch battery monitoring systems.

NDSL launches new Cellwatch website

The enhanced Cellwatch website now offers greater information to help customers understand the importance of preventing downtime. Not only will they realize how easy it is to detect and correct battery problems with Cellwatch, they will actually discover how daily battery monitoring can save a significant amount of money. We’ve improved the user experience with new content, dynamic graphics and enhanced navigation. In addition to its updated look, a new resources section containing product brochures, datasheets, case studies and articles will enable visitors to easily obtain the information they need. Tools for specification development and technical support are also easily accessed. We encourage our resellers to link to the Cellwatch website and to refer customers to our site to help support your customer education process. Log in to the Cellwatch portal to access logo files, our design guide and flash demo for use on your site.

Cellwatch flash demo now available

Available in three languages, the dynamic flash demonstration illustrates how easily Cellwatch is configured and highlights the technical advantages of Cellwatch battery monitoring systems. The Cellwatch demo is an impressive tool to engage with data center operators, introducing them to the many benefits of daily battery monitoring with Cellwatch. Launch or Download the demo now.

Just how easy is it to install a Cellwatch system?

This is a question often asked of our installers (and our engineers). Nearly all of the installers we work with prefer installing the Cellwatch system to competitive products due to our simple modular design. They especially appreciate the fact we utilize fiber optics and pre-cut and factory crimp the short DCM wires to make their jobs easier.

While we can’t share every detail of what makes Cellwatch easy to install in this newsletter, this article will highlight a few characteristics that make both initial installation and on-going maintenance extremely simple. So, what exactly does it take to install a Cellwatch system?

There are two basic mounting materials that NDSL uses to connect a data collection module (DCM) to the battery: tab washers and Dual Lock™. The tab washer is a small component that mounts directly to the battery and is torqued alongside the inter-cell link. It is specially designed and manufactured of tinned copper on brass instead of stainless steel to ensure highly reliable ohmic value readings and prevent bolt stretch. This tab washer is tailored for the Cellwatch system. It contains a security dimple and hole that enable the DCM to ‘bite’ the washer thus creating a reliable and secure connection.

We always recommend using our tab washers as they are designed to fit our fast-on connector factory installed on the DCM cables. Using other tabbed washers is not recommended since their size may be slightly different, deforming the fast-on connector, and if not made from the right materials, a reliable connection cannot be assured. All DCMs come pre-fitted with manufacturer crimped leads that ensure reliable connections meaning there is no need to ever cut DCM wires to length in the field.

Wiring connections take only seconds per DCM, and then your DCM is ready to mount to the battery using the Dual Lock fasteners located on the back of the unit. The Dual Lock is factory installed which makes mounting the DCM extremely simple. Each DCM has two Dual Lock strips with a protective covering for shipment. To mount the DCM, simply remove the protective cover and press the DCM to the battery jar or other nonconductive surface. At any point in the future if the DCM needs to be removed, the Dual Lock is designed to refasten allowing for ease of removal and remounting in seconds. Once a DCM is mounted and connected to the battery, the only remaining step is to connect your fiber optic communications between the modules (always remember white to black) and your DCMs are ready to communicate with Cellwatch. No large engineering process, no custom wiring harnesses, no connectors to be applied in the field. The Cellwatch installation process is completed very quickly and safely.

Read our latest article published in 7×24 Exchange Magazine

Combining Mission Critical Systems Protection and Environmental Citizenship — The environmental benefits of a battery monitoring system, by Earl Philmon.

This article highlights an often overlooked component of electronic monitoring. Effective use of a daily monitoring system can have a significant environmental impact. This article was published in the Spring issue of 7×24 Exchange Magazine and is available for our resellers in PDF format for distribution to your customers. Click here to download.

Cellwatch battery monitoring system ensures uptime for the Computing Center of the National Institute of Nuclear and Particle Physics

Headquartered in Lyon, France the IN2P3 Computing Center (CC-IN2P3) is a service and research unit belonging to CNRS, the largest research infrastructure in France. It is responsible for providing computing and data storage resources to researchers involved in corpuscular physics experiments. CC-IN2P3 is a supporting data center for the worldwide distributed computing network supplying critical infrastructure for the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The LHC, located near Geneva, is the world’s largest and highest energy particle accelerator.

CC-IN2P3 has a vast network of computer and backup protection systems to ensure that research and development functions are continuously available and never interrupted by an unfortunate outage.

Prior to installation of the new Cellwatch daily battery monitoring system, the data center’s electrical supervisors manually monitored and analyzed battery performance under load for 408 bloc or “jars” (450V/plant) once or twice per year. Identifying the opportunity to automate the process and the ability to complete it with data capture and analysis, a Cellwatch system was installed.

The data center facility management team now relies on Cellwatch to monitor battery bloc performance, run monthly load testing, and monitor the overall battery plant every day to ensure aging or failing cells are immediately identified so corrective action can be taken. A second Cellwatch system is already scheduled for the second battery plant recently installed. Cellwatch will help CC-IN2P3 deliver reliable uptime and accurate battery performance data as their network expands.