How Temporary Power Solutions can Solve Healthcare Challenges
With over 60 years of experience in providing temporary power, Power Electrics has been at the forefront of innovation within the power industry and has many years of expertise in delivering power within a healthcare setting. From providing critical backup generators to hospitals nationwide, to mobilising emergency generators after a quick phone call and providing game-changing sustainable solutions for hospital equipment.
Generator Hire and Traditional Power for Healthcare Applications
Power Electrics plays a key role in ensuring continuous power for critical applications. In these instances, we provide an engineered solution with our fleet of generators ranging in size from 20kVA to 2000kVA. Our range of generator sizes ensures that we have the right-sized solution for every project, ensuring no overpaying for excess capacity or risking underpowered equipment. Additionally, the generators powering the healthcare settings must remain compliant with environmental legislation such as the Medium Combustion Plant Directive (MCPD). Power Electrics ensures that our fleet of generators are compliant with this legislation through several key measures:
- Applied Emissions Abatement Technology – for larger diesel gensets (like those over 400 kVA or roughly 1 MW thermal), Power Electrics installs Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) systems using AdBlue. The SCR unit reduces nitrogen oxides (NOₓ) emissions by up to 95%
- Environmental Permitting – Power Electrics assists customers in securing the correct environmental permits required by MCPD
- Ongoing Emissions Monitoring
- Strategic selection and deployment of backup assets - tailored to regulatory thresholds.
This commitment to compliance is showcased in our work with Royal Bournemouth Hospital, where our team of generator experts were able to identify exactly what the existing generators required to meet MCPD. The expert team made modifications on three generators, considering their individual specific requirements for N0x reduction and installing equipment such as: roof, plantroom & exhaust mounted SCR Units to reduce emissions from engines along with an AdBlue Tank and pipework.
Read the full Royal Bournemouth Hospital Case Study
A key reason for hospitals having a generator on site is to provide standby power if needed. Power Electrics has a long history of providing resilient and reliable backup power in settings where it’s needed most. When implementing a standby generator, one of our Project Managers will visit the site to carry out a full assessment, including a thorough technical and logistical evaluation of power requirements, site layout & access, electrical integration, compliance and health and safety. They will ensure the correct generator is chosen for the power loads while maintaining good access for generator maintenance. We also ensure power continuity even when the standby generator is being serviced, as highlighted in our South Wales Hospital case study.
Emergency Temporary Power for Healthcare Providers
With depots strategically placed nationwide, Power Electrics is well positioned to respond rapidly in instances where temporary power is needed quickly and efficiently. This rapid response time was integral to ensuring operational continuity in June 2024, when the Bristol Royal Infirmary required a 2000kVA generator due to power cuts. As soon as the call was received, the generator was prepared and deployed – arriving into the BRI with a police escort.
Powering Healthcare Settings with Sustainable Solutions
Power Electrics is proud to offer a range of sustainable solutions, all of which have proved to be essential in a healthcare setting. Our hybrid experts have utilised BES units to provide power for medical scanners, BES units are ideal for peak shaving - charging during low demand and discharging during power spikes.
A Game-Changing Power Solution for Scanners and Medical Treatment Units
A long-standing customer in the medical sector planned a new site setup, including two mobile scanners and a treatment support unit. This would traditionally require a minimum of 500kVA in power, diesel generation was expected as the default solution. However, Power Electrics proposed and successfully implemented a cleaner, more innovative approach: eliminate diesel generation and supply the site's high power demands through a combination of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) and a modest grid connection. BES units are particularly beneficial in a healthcare setting as they improve air quality and deliver near-silent power during critical periods, ideal for noise-sensitive areas like wards, treatment units, and diagnostic facilities. They are advantageous in cutting fuel use (as illustrated in our recent case study where the medical site saved over 62,524 litres of diesel), CO₂ output and operational costs for healthcare facilities.
Drawing on in-depth performance data from previous installations with the same customer, in partnership with Greener Power Solutions, we designed a fully diesel-free power solution using a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) paired with the site’s existing 100A three-phase grid supply.
But the real breakthrough came through continued monitoring and optimisation. We discovered the entire system could reliably operate on just a 50A three-phase grid supply, with the battery discharging safely to around 45–50% state of charge (SoC) - without any compromise to performance or uptime.
With the custom in house built DB panel & the ability to not have the expected 500Kva generator running 24/7, this is a game changer and proves that such setups can be run from small 50Amp 3 phase supplies which will have a massive impact on NHS setups - with a massive saving and also making mobilisation of such projects days rather than weeks.
Aligning with NHS Net Zero goals and environmental regulations, while ensuring reliable backup power for medical equipment, BES Units are well positioned to be utilised in a variety of healthcare applications. Power Electrics has partnered with various healthcare providers to help them overcome challenges ranging from providing emergency critical power, to removing diesel generation entirely and powering their equipment with sustainable solutions.
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