Wageningen University & Research, abbreviated as WUR, is very satisfied with ELINEX, which quickly and efficiently installed an emergency power supply without disrupting ongoing laboratory processes. WUR conducts worldwide research on problems in three core areas: food and food production, living environment and health, lifestyle and living conditions. In the Laboratory of Food Process Engineering, modern analytical equipment is used, which contains power supplies that are very sensitive to voltage spikes. Sudden power outages can cause damage or disrupt costly processes. Jos Sewalt, a technician in this chair group, called in the help of ELINEX to secure this equipment against calamities that can occur due to a poorly functioning power grid.
A broad issue
A widespread problem "Unstable power supply is unfortunately a common problem in the Netherlands," says Jos. "In a few months, we have seen several expensive analytical devices fail due to voltage spikes, sometimes due to power outages. The power supplies in our analytical equipment, as well as displays and boards, are so sensitive that they become irreparably damaged. This brings a series of problems. Repair costs are sky-high, and there is often a long lead time for replacement parts. In an environment where researchers are bound to very tight schedules through contracts or educational planning, the equipment is literally indispensable. You can have the best maintenance contracts, but if the power supplier causes the problem, you are up against the wall. An affordable warranty agreement does not cover this.
Continuity is a must
Continuity is an absolute requirement The Laboratory of Food Process Engineering needs continuity. "We work with rheometers, tensile testers, particle size analysis equipment, drives for our shear cell, HPLCs, calorimeters, and many other instruments," Jos explains. We ask him if he can give an example of a process. He replies: "We are, for example, involved in giving a fiber structure to meat substitutes, a hot topic nowadays in the transition from a diet based on animal proteins to a more sustainable diet based on plant proteins. We do this by adding structure to plant-based raw materials. We experiment with different compositions, but mainly with optimizing the process to achieve an ideal product."
Contact with ELINEX
Contact with ELINEX Despite the fact that Jos has an excellent workshop with experts at his disposal, the power problem cannot be solved internally. Through the building manager, Jos came into contact with ELINEX. "René from ELINEX made a list of the required capacities together with us. Based on that, a quote was made. After the assignment was given, ELINEX delivered the emergency power equipment on-site in advance, so everything was available for the ELINEX technicians, and they could install the equipment within a week."
Working ‘with the shop open’
Working 'with the store open' Due to the continuous processes running in the laboratory, it was important that ELINEX worked 'with the store open'. Jos: "They did this excellently, the communication was very good. ELINEX managed to work with the busy schedule of the laboratory without getting in the way." Jos is also very satisfied with the speed of action; the request to ELINEX was made in April, and just before the summer holidays, the emergency power supply was put into use. "Since then, we have had no outages," says Jos. "The emergency power supply is also very convenient for plugging in equipment; we can now do this while everything continues to run."
The Laboratory of Food Process Engineering consists of nine laboratory rooms with equipment and a food hall. ELINEX installed various Centiel Premium Tower UPS units with power classes between 1 kVa and 10 kVa.
.jpg?resolution=1550x1250&quality=100&type=webp)
