US healthcare organisation to eliminate lead-acid batteries

Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota have decided to replace the lead acid batteries used for back-up power in the hospitals’ data center.

The traditional battery backup system is being replaced by an environmentally-safe flywheel system will be used.

The children’s healthcare organisation, which is the seventh largest in the US, has decided to go ahead with VYCON’s VDC flywheel backup system. The VYCON flywheel UPS system has been in operation since April of this year.

Serving as Minnesota’s children’s hospital since 1924, the health care organisation has 332 staffed beds at its two hospital campuses in St. Paul and Minneapolis.

On being part of Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota green initiatives, VYCON’s chief marketing officer, Frank DeLattre said the flywheel UPS is superior to batteries in that it is a highly reliable protection system in the event of a power failure, and it does not contain any toxic elements.

The VDC units can replace traditional UPS batteries or work in tandem with batteries to provide instantaneous on demand power.