Centiel has completed a major refurbishment, including new capacitors, batteries and fans, of the UPS systems at the National Oceanographic Centre (NOC) in Southampton.
The NOC undertakes world leading research in large scale oceanography and ocean measurement technology innovation, supporting the UK science community based in universities and smaller research institutes with scientific facilities, research infrastructure and irreplaceable data assets – enabling the UK to harness the full power and diversity of its scientific talent in ocean science. The NOC has two sites, Southampton and Liverpool, and employs around 650 staff. Â Both sites are co-located with leading UK Universities, gives NOC a unique position in UK marine research.
Michael Brooks, managing director, Centiel commented: “Replacement and maintenance of battery, capacitors and fans is an essential part of an ongoing UPS maintenance programme to ensure continued, reliable operation and safe upkeep of the system.”
“Last year, we were appointed by NOC’s Southampton centre to supply replacement parts for the UPS systems which maintain the organisation’s laboratory and computer room supporting hundreds of users across the world. The installation was completed in two phases designed to minimise disruption and de-risk potential power interruption.
“The battery replacement was carried out first which involved moving eight tonnes of batteries,” continued Brooks. “Four tonnes of the old batteries were stored on site until all work was completed, necessitating only one collection of hazardous waste.”
To enable the fans and AC capacitors to be replaced, the UPS needed to be shutdown to maintenance bypass and so it was essential the duration of works were kept to a minimum. Â The work was completed, and load tested successfully on a Saturday, so staff and projects were not interrupted.
