Burns & McDonnell
Chris Ruckman, energy storage director at Burns & McDonnell, oversees the development of energy storage solutions to meet growing electrical grid challenges. An electrical engineer with more than twenty-five years of experience, Chris combines a passion for sustainable solutions with his deep technical understanding of the utility industry to develop safe, reliable and cost-effective energy storage solutions.
As we start the transition back to normalcy in the coming weeks and months, pandemic impacts to your battery energy storage projects will surely be on your mind. As you make plans, here are some issues to consider:
Supply lines were disrupted — Battery manufacturers in Asia experienced production disruptions for several reasons. For one, sub-suppliers were unable to deliver necessary raw materials and components.
In addition, the blue-collar laborers necessary for assembling the batteries were in short supply. Coronavirus issues evolved during the Chinese New Year holiday, and many workers who were abroad visiting family had a hard time returning to factories due to mandatory quarantines.
The lockdown in Asia reduced output significantly through March. Most manufacturers are now back online and have reached full output capacity. Others retooled some of their manufacturing capacity to make products for addressing challenges posed by the pandemic.