Electric Forklift Batteries- EP Energy’s Affordable Solution

Replacing a forklift battery can be a confusing and expensive process with so many different batteries at different costs available in the market. EP Equipment has worked with our energy experts to provide a simple guide to choosing the right forklift battery for your material handling requirements. When choosing a battery the first thing to consider is the type of electric forklift battery you would like.  As leaders in lithium technology, EP aims to popularise the use of clean and efficient energy to replace other out dated power solutions. EP Energy is making great efforts to facilitate traditional industry transformation and advocate for cleaner, more efficient utilisation of energy supply. When looking for forklift batteries there are 2 main solutions available: Lithium-ion vs Lead Acid

Lead Acid Batteries – Electric Forklift

Traditionally Lead Acid Batteries have been the only solution available when purchasing electric material handling equipment. Despite being a great green advancement in technology, Lead Acid batteries are not without many negative limitations that can effect the productivity of your business.

The Limitations of Lead Acid Batteries:

• Short life span
• No opportunity charging
• Low efficiency
• Special charging room requirements
• Less environmentally friendly.

When looking for a solution to combat these limitations EP Equipment experts suggest Lithium-ion battery replacements.

Lithium-ion vs Lead Acid Batteries- The Benefits of Li-ion

Longer Life Span

Lithium-ion batteries have a lifecycle of 3000 or more compared to just 500-1000 cycles in lead acid. Lithium-ion batteries generally last for several times the number of cycles as lead acid batteries, leading to a longer effective lifespan for lithium-ion products. Cycles are also counted in % of charge rather than one cycle every time you connect the battery to the charger. This means: 10% charge is 1/10 of a cycle with a Li-Ion battery, while a 10% charge at a lead acid battery is 1 full cycle.

Opportunity Charging

While lead acid batteries always need a full charge cycle of 8-12 hours to keep the batteries chemistry in balance, LI-Ion batteries really like opportunity charging. They can be plugged in the wall and charge for 10 Minutes during a lunch break. This offers a unique way to work your shifts and reduce the overall Ah carried around in the truck.

Higher Efficiency

Most lithium-ion batteries are 95 percent efficient or more, meaning that 95 percent or more of the energy stored in a lithium-ion battery is actually able to be used. Conversely, lead acid batteries see efficiencies closer to 80 to 85 percent.

Faster Charging

Higher efficiency batteries charge faster, improved efficiency means a higher effective battery capacity. Lithium batteries takes 2-3 hours to charge while lead-acid needs 8 hours. Lithium batteries high effective capacity reduces downtime in warehouse duties.

Environmentally Friendly

From an ecological point of view, it‘s non-toxic and harmless. Lithium batteries emits no gas so it is a much cleaner technology and is safer for the environment than lead-acid.

Choosing The Right Forklift Battery

When choosing the right forklift battery you may think that lithium-ion is not an option for your lead-acid machine. Well EP Equipment can provide the affordable solution to transform your lead-acid truck to clean lithium-ion power. EP Energy is the newest subsidiary of EP Group. As a lithium-ion battery manufacturer, EP Energy is home to some of the material handling industries leading experts in forklift battery technology. EP Group has manufactured lithium-ion battery trucks for years and have found huge success world wide with our market leading battery technology and developments. Now with solid relationships and cooperations with brands such as Still, Linde and Clark the influence of EP Energy on the forklift battery market is undeniable.

With the recent announcement of the EP DIN BATTERY 48V/280AH SERIES EP has created a specially designed solution to replace lead acid batteries with clean Li-ion for forklifts using 4PzS, 5PzS, and 6PzS batteries. Using the 48V/280AH Li-ion option, operators can see all the benefits of lithium-ion without the need to replace the entire truck. Plus, with EP’s BMS system, the EP DIN battery saves the operation costs on labor and preventive maintenance by constantly monitoring the status of the battery to boost forklift uptime time without risking the battery operating life. But why choose an EP Lithium-Ion Battery?

Why Choose an EP Lithium-Ion Battery?

When considering replacing an existing lead-acid with a Lithium-Ion battery you must be able to trust that you are purchasing a high quality product that is safe to use. EP Equipment batteries are created with:

• HIGH QUALITY CELLS
  The cell is the heart of battery. EP uses only the highest quality cells of the safest technology and strive to improve energy and power density and extend service life. EP adopts LiFePO4 cells that can be operated in a wide range of temperature for various applications, even in extreme weather condition. EP has been designing and assembling custom battery solutions or various electronic applications.

• RELIABLE BMS SYSTEM
  Safety of lithium-based batteries his a common industry talking point. Battery management systems (BMS) play a crucial role to protect the battery against short circuit, reverse polarity, over and under voltage, and over current in the reliability of systems utilising lithium-ion batteries. By data-collecting, calculating and controlling the charge and discharge process of voltage, current, temperature and state-of-charge, BMS secures the battery longevity and improves battery performance. The BMS communicates with the battery, with the truck and with the charger and continuously monitors the temperature. The BMS kicks in when the temperature is out of range.

• STABLE CAN BUS SYSTEM
  The Controller Area Network (CAN bus) is the nerve system, enabling communication between all parts of the battery. The CAN bus acts as a central networking hub communicating information of battery condition and automatically sending alarms to the BMS system when damages occur.With combination of BMS and CAN functionalities, EP develops its remote diagnostic system to proactively monitor the battery performance of all EP Lithium-integrated trucks. It is a powerful system providing advanced data monitoring and analysis capabilities for better technical support service.

• SUITABLE FITTINGS
  EP batteries are engineered with the highest quality components to maximise the performance of your battery system.