Here’s a look at some of SCE’s key electro-drive energy efficiency and load management programs, and how they can help our customers.

Load Management

Load management (also called load shifting) programs move electricity use away from the afternoon peak periods, when energy demand and costs are highest – particularly during the heaviest-use summer months.  

One way SCE encourages off-peak charging is through Time-of-Use (TOU) rates. When customers on our TOU rates charge electro-drive technologies during summer off-peak periods, they pay about a quarter to a half in energy costs of what they would pay for charging during on-peak periods, providing substantial savings.

SCE also supports load shifting by helping customers design the most cost-effective and energy-efficient duty cycles for their equipment. For example, with energy management systems (EMS), time clocks or existing battery charger onboard timers, customers automatically can shift electricity use from on-peak to off-peak hours for charging forklifts, pallet jacks, sweepers, tugs, golf carts and other electro-drive technologies.

Customers also can use an EMS to expand load management strategies to other energy demands, such as lighting, and heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), to save even more. 

A 2004 study commissioned by SCE of industrial customers’ electric forklift battery charging habits indicates that the highest-energy-use customers can save, on average, as much as $5,000 annually by shifting some of their charging from summer on- to off-peak periods, as shown here.
                                             
                                      Forklift Load Shifting Benefits

*kW = kilowatts

In years to come, advanced energy batteries from the transportation sector could play a role in energy efficiency and load management in stationary (non-mobile) applications. For example, less-expensive off-peak energy stored in advanced batteries could be used to help reduce daytime on-peak demand, enhance electricity grid reliability and quality, and even support and complement clean photovoltaic systems.

It’s all part of Electricity…Sustaining Our Transportation Future. 

Energy Efficiency

In this area, SCE’s state-of-the-art Electric Vehicle (EV) Technical Center continues to develop methods and procedures to improve the interface between both the electric grid and the charger, and between the charger and the battery, for non-road electro-drive technologies.

Key EV Technical Center energy efficiency projects include:

Energy-Saving Strategy

The EV Technical Center developed and tested a procedure that communicates with the charger and battery to apply a more efficient charging strategy. When used with electric forklifts, this strategy achieved these impressive results in lab tests compared to conventional charging strategies, which normally involve significantly overcharging flooded lead-acid batteries:

• Required 12% less energy to charge batteries.
• Reduced 32% of battery charging time.
• Decreased 50% of the battery watering requirement.

Field tests confirmed the lab results, showing a 12% energy use reduction with no forklift performance degradation. For a typical SCE commercial customer operating three shifts a day on a Time-of-Use rate, this result translates to savings of up to $400 in electricity costs per forklift annually.

Energy Efficiency Charger Standards

The EV Technical Center is working with the Electric Power Research Institute, or EPRI (an independent, nonprofit center for public interest energy and environmental research) to encourage the establishment of energy efficiency charger standards – similar to ENERGY STAR^® ratings – for non-road electro-drive technologies such as forklifts. In 2006, SCE released draft proposed procedures for charger energy efficiency standards and rating criteria.

Development and adoption of a national standard for efficient non-road battery charger performance could significantly lower charging costs, minimize negative impacts on the electric grid, give manufacturers charger performance design parameters, and offer customers confidence in the efficiency of qualifying products.

Tips to Save Energy, Save Money

Here are some key ways to lower electro-drive technology and other energy consumption and shift usage to off-peak periods. Remember to always review manufacturers’ charging instructions and maintenance requirements to maximize the life of equipment and ensure validation of any warranties.

• Install energy management systems on chargers or equipment to shift usage from higher-cost, higher-demand on-peak periods.
• Utilize an energy management system or time clock to de-energize a charger when it’s not in use. Idle chargers can still draw electrical current. De-energizing them can save up to $100 per unit annually in idling losses.
• Sign up for one of SCE’s Time-of-Use rates for electro-drive technology operators. See www.sce.com/AboutSCE/Regulatory/tariffbooks/ for rate details.
• Tap into SCE’s wide array of energy efficiency and demand response programs, which offer financial incentives and/or other benefits for saving energy and shifting usage from on-peak periods. For more information, visit www.sce.com/drp, www.sce.com/express and www.sce.com/spc. To learn about additional resources for energy savings, log onto the Flex Your Power website at www.fypower.com.

For more information about SCE’s Electric Vehicle Technical Center energy efficiency programs, contact Darcy Skaggs at (909) 469-0315 or Darcy.Skaggs@sce.com. Businesses that would like to learn more about load management programs for non-road electro-drive technologies should contact Richard Cromie at (626) 302-1616 or Richard.Cromie@sce.com.