VYCONhas announced that Follett Higher Education Group chose VYCON’s flywheel system to protect against power outages at its new state-of-the-art fulfillment and distribution center in Aurora, IL.

Follett’s distribution center features technology from Kiva Systems, Inc. to fulfill and deliver an estimated 11 million textbooks and classroom materials. To ensure the robotic handling and computer systems are operational 24/7, power must always be available.

“Because electrical power is vital to our operation, we needed a solution that would protect us against power outages,” said Darlene Edwards, facilities management at Follett Higher Education Group. “We were interested in battery-free backup options because it would reduce our cooling costs and help us earn LEED credits.”

“For Follett’s operations we needed to configure and execute a power protection infrastructure design that was based on high reliability, low maintenance and would advance Follett’s sustainability requirements,” said Mike Isadore, electrical engineer, Environmental Systems Design (ESD). “The Follett team had researched and done its homework before moving forward with this environmentally friendly design.”

“We’re pleased that our VDC-XE flywheel system meets Follett’s reliability and sustainability requirements for this state-of-the-art fulfillment center,” said Dann McKeraghan, vice president sales and marketing for VYCON. “The elimination of battery maintenance and replacements as well as decreased energy costs will give Follett an attractive total cost of ownership while significantly increasing its power protection reliability and lowering its carbon footprint.”

Working seamlessly with three-phase UPS systems, VYCON’s VDC-XE (Xtended Energy) supplies up to 300kW of DC power within a single cabinet. For longer run times and higher power capacities, the UL listed VDC models can be easily paralleled without special communications links or control systems for supporting megawatt load applications. If the distribution center experiences an extended power outage, the VDC-XE will provide continuous uninterrupted power while seamlessly transferring to a standby engine generator.

Tested and compatible with all major brands of three-phase UPS systems and available from VYCON’s global channel partners, the VDC units feature a 20-year life and minimal maintenance requirements. Featuring optimized power electronics for significantly improved power density, the energy storage systems replace traditional lead-acid backup batteries used with UPS systems—providing users with a smarter and greener approach to power protection.