Blog | Collicutt Energy

California Faces Multiple Increased Risks for Power Outages

June 22, 2022
No Comments

The state of California is known to be near, if not at the top of the list when it comes to most power outages in the United States. The most common causes of California power outages are related to extreme weather. California is prone to extreme heat, droughts, winds and deadly wildfires and this year is no exception as this extreme weather is predicted to hit California once again.

With that being said, it’s vital that you are prepared for both planned and unplanned power outages. Unfortunately, as most of you know, there are still global supply chain issues, resulting in lead times that are longer than expected. Therefore, if you’re looking to be proactive versus reactive, start planning now. We can help with all your power generation needs!

To assist in your preparation, we have prepared a list of factors to be aware of that could increase the risk of power outages this summer:

Extreme Heat

During the hot summers that California encounters, more people use power to cool down their homes and business; this greatly increases power demand. When this heat is combined with adverse weather conditions that could reduce output from other power sources, system operators may also be forced to use emergency procedures to prevent catastrophic grid failures and extended outages. In addition to that, the extreme heat will cause electrical equipment to fail.

Drought

In relation to California’s hot temperatures, droughts may also increase the risk of a power outage as they can strain the electricity supply. Hydroelectricity is another energy source that California highly depends on and if its reservoirs run low – likely due to extreme heat – there will be a significant drop in hydroelectric generation. With this drop in energy production, the chances of an electricity shortages rises.

Wind

Extreme heat coupled with drought conditions gets exponentially worse when extreme winds come into play. This is what California is faced with every year when the Santa Ana winds start blowing or when the state is hit with the fierce Diablo Winds. Beside knocking out power, these winds can cause power line breakages which will spark wildfires.

Wildfire Season

Summer and early fall in California tend to also be referred to as “wildfire season”. Wildfires are devastating, unpredictable and they move extremely quickly. They can destroy transmission lines and electrical infrastructure which results in power outages that may last days or weeks.

Planned De-Energization Events – Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPSs)

PSPSs are a newer, more proactive solution where utility companies shut off power during extreme and dangerous weather conditions to reduce the changes of wildfires breaking out in high-risk areas. Numerous high-risk areas have been identified in California and, for that reason, these events are anything but out of the ordinary for California residents and businesses.

Supply Shortages

As mentioned above, hot California summers can result in low electricity generation. At the same time, electricity demand peaks during periods of extreme heat as, people tend to use their air conditioning all at the same time. Because of this, the grid will be challenged and will struggle to meet the energy demands.

All these factors listed above, substantially increase the risk of power outages. We know that, in today’s world, the majority of industries and businesses rely on electricity to be operational and to provide their goods and services to their customer base. Therefore, these hazards cannot be ignored. We want to ensure that you and your businesses are safe, with the ability to still maximize your uptime. We can support you by maintaining your existing generators, upgrading you to a new generator where it makes sense, or providing backup power generation solutions.

888.682.6888 or info@collicutt.com

Find more solutions here!

Successfully Overcoming Project Disaster

February 2, 2022
No Comments

The Challenge

In 2019, Collicutt was approached by one of our clients who had just won the electrical design and build contract for a new residential high rise to be built in downtown Los Angeles. Part of that contract included the supply of an emergency backup generator that would provide power for the building during a power grid outage that is so common in California.

Besides the usual backup power requirements for a building of this type, there were a few challenges that made this project unique:

This unit was going to be placed on the ninth floor of the building.
Once the unit was in place on the ninth floor, the building would be completed around and above it.
The crane doing the lifting was being removed immediately following the generator installation to make way for the remaining building construction. This meant that the generator was on the construction schedule’s critical path.
Because this building is downtown LA, the logistics surrounding the lift of the generator were very complicated. Traffic restrictions had to be minimized and the lift radius of the crane was restricted due to the surrounding buildings and infrastructure.

The Solution

When the contractor started their design process, they reached out to our team at Collicutt. We worked with them and their engineering teams to understand the building electrical loads, design constraints, construction schedule, and the lifting constraints.

We proposed a customized MTU 12V4000 DS1500 solution complete with:

IBC rating (earthquake rated)
Rypos DPF and custom mounting rack
Custom sound attenuating enclosure
Custom tank to meet fire code for a rooftop design in downtown LA

Disaster Strikes!

The project kicked off and proceeded smoothly until the completed unit left our fabrication facility. But then disaster struck!

Shortly after the truck carrying the generator left the fabrication facility, we received news that they drove under an overpass without checking height restrictions and our custom built generator struck that overpass and was totaled in an instant! The only good news was that no one was injured in the accident.

However, we now had a huge problem! We needed to get a new generator built in record time in the middle of one of the worst global supply chain challenges we have seen in recent times. If we failed to get the generator to site before the building crane was dismantled, we would be on the hook for obtaining permits to close roads in downtown LA and assembling a crane capable of lifting a 1500kW generator to the ninth floor of a building that was already constructed!

We immediately placed the order for the new generator and worked with MTU to expedite the build of the generator in any way they could. We also worked with our fabricator and had them build the enclosure and other custom components ahead of time so that they would just have to set the components in place and bolt them down once the generator was ready. To maintain schedule our fabricator’s staff agreed to work around the clock to complete their work once the generator was delivered to them!

Talk about team work!

The Outcome

Although there were many tense moments throughout this build process, we were able to pull our team together and work through supply chain issues and other manufacturing logistics to get the generator produced as quickly as possible.

In addition to this, thankfully, the building construction had been delayed due to unrelated issues so the building crane was still in place to lift our generator!

This left one final challenge that we had to overcome. Much of the building had now been constructed so the options for lifting the generator to the ninth floor were limited. The building crane had limited lifting capacity and it had limited lifting radius due to the proximity of the surrounding buildings and roadways.

To overcome this challenge, we had the generator transported to a riggers yard where we drained the fluids (oil and coolant) and removed the enclosure. We then dismantled the generator package down to it’s frame. This would allow us to lift the frame, engine, alternator, and radiator in individual lifts.

See the photos below for some of the teardown progress:

Completed unit arrived at riggers

2. The enclosure was removed

3. Removal of components began

We transported the components from the riggers yard to the construction site over a two day period and lifted each component starting with the frame. The video below illustrates the tight lifting window that was being navigated:

As each component was lifted, we secured it into place and “rebuilt” the generator package on the ninth floor of the building! After two days of crane picks and placements, we had the generator back together in its final location ready for commissioning and startup! This allowed our client to complete construction of their building and remove the building crane without the generator scope causing any further project delays!

This project is a great example of; applied expertise, project management, technician talent, and overall teamwork being used to overcome huge challenges!

For more information on our power generation services or solutions, contact us via email or at the number below:

888.682.6888 or info@collicutt.com

Collicutt Becomes Alberta’s Distributor for MTU/Rolls-Royce Onsite Energy for Diesel Generators

January 19, 2022
No Comments

Collicutt Energy Services Becomes Alberta’s Distributor of MTU/Rolls-Royce Onsite Energy for Diesel Generators

Collicutt Energy Services is proud to announce that as of January 1, 2022, we are Alberta’s distributor for MTU/Rolls-Royce Onsite Energy for diesel power generation.

This partnership now allows Collicutt to offer our clients both diesel and natural gas power generation options, meeting more client needs by providing them with more variety, reliability and customer assistance.

MTU has over 60 years of power generation expertise along with over 100 years of experience in diesel engine engineering worldwide. That knowledge along with Collicutt’s power generation experience makes this a very strategic partnership.

MTU’s diesel gensets are designed for maximum reliability, featuring low fuel consumption, long service intervals and low emissions to reduce costly downtime. The MTU product portfolio for diesel power generation includes the MTU Series 4000, 2000, 1600, 0080 and 0225 and covers a power range of 27-3,250kW (60 Hz). With mature and reliable design, they are designed to operate in any situation— even in extreme conditions.

The combination of MTU’s product offering with Collicutt’s in-house expertise in power system design, build, and project management, allows Collicutt to deliver a higher standard of power generation service and products throughout Alberta.

In addition to our current solutions, Collicutt is now able to offer more mission-critical solutions along with other applications that include:

Data Centers
Healthcare and hospitals
Sewage and water treatment
Hotels
Airports
Commercial and public buildings
Agriculture
Aquatic Centers
Government buildings
Greenhouses
Landfills
Industrial manufacturing
Nuclear power plants
Rentals
CHP
Residential and utilities
Power stations

Collicutt continues to lead the power generation industry throughout North America and beyond. Our relationship with MTU/Rolls-Royce Power Systems started in California in 2015 and has continued to grow since. In June of 2021 we also announced the new agreement regarding the distributorship of natural gas power generation and oil & gas engines in Alberta. This 2022 announcement is quite the milestone as it gives Collicutt the advantage of offering our clients more comprehensive power generation solutions since both natural gas and diesel options can be utilized.

Call us for more information at 888.682.6888.

See our News & Careers page for more announcements and blog posts.

Check out our Equipment site here!

New Towable Generator Product Line

November 30, 2021
No Comments

Collicutt recently published an article in the BOE Report to announce a new product line of towable generators! We are very excited about this announcement as these units were produced in-house!

The first production of these generators was for two (2) 500kW standby/450 kW prime rated units. Creating these units took a lot of time, effort and research. The units are trailer mounted, 450kW, Tier 4 Final, prime rated, diesel generator packages. They are powered by Scania’s 16L, V8 , engines. A tier 4 final solution is best in class for fuel efficiency and emissions after treatment. These units have a lockable level 1 enclosure for increased security, two voltage outputs (208V & 480V) and so much more.

We polled our in-house experts, external clients, and industry contacts to provide feedback on the standard design, and optional adders that should be part of the build. We believe we created a truly standalone product.

For more details, read our BOE Report article.
Check out our newly designed brochure for more information on the product specifications by downloading the case study below.

Call or email us for more information: 888.682.6888 or info@collicutt.com

Collicutt’s Focus Is Problem Solving

November 15, 2021
No Comments

Collicutt was recently featured in the November issue of Resource in Focus Magazine!

“As a leading manufacturer of custom power generation equipment, Collicutt Energy’s highly trained and experienced team designs, engineers, and manufactures power solutions, while also working to continually raise the standards for customers, whether repairing, overhauling, servicing or performing preventative maintenance on all brands of engine. Collicutt’s mandate includes offering a wide variety of services while keeping customer downtime to a minimum.

This family-run business has recently experienced exciting growth, including the company’s role as a distributor for products including MTU, Waukesha, Motortech, and Scania – in particular, expanding territory in Alberta as a distributor for MTU/Rolls Royce Power Systems for oil & gas systems and natural gas power generation.”

Learn more about what Collicutt does and how we provide unique solutions to our clients by downloading the full article with the case study link below!

For more solution options see our Services and Solutions pages.

Power Generation Solution Provider

November 12, 2021
No Comments

Our world is filled with marketing buzz words that mean different things to every person. So, when Collicutt says we are a power generator solution provider, what does this really mean and why should you care?

Solution Provider Definition

The term Solution Provider started to gain in popularity back in the early 2000’s and then really took off when Keith Eades published his book “The New Solution Selling” in 2004. What Eades had realized is that products were becoming commoditized in our increasingly globalized world. He recognized that in order to be differentiated and increase sales, businesses would need to provide a solution to a customer problem rather than just selling a product.

Simply offering a product for sale, no matter how good the product, is no longer a viable business plan . . . it is a deep discounting race to the bottom! Businesses now have to listen to customers, understand pain points, and offer innovative solutions that put an end to the pain.

In the world of power generation there are many pain points that need to be handled for a customer. There are also a lot of players in the power generation market that provide varying levels of service, products, and solutions.

So what does Collicutt offer that makes us different?

What Makes Collicutt Different

Collicutt is a full service solution provider in the power generation business. As illustrated in the chart below, we provide a complete range of services and solutions that the other players in the market simply don’t provide by themselves.

Our role is to work with whoever we need to work with to pull together a complete solution for our customers. This is the value that we bring to our customers. Our customers no longer have to source out all of the components of a power generation project . . . they just have to engage our team and we take care of the entire power generation supply scope!

Collicutt works with our customers and their engineering teams to provide a complete integrated solution that is not just fit for purpose but also in compliance with all of the engineering requirements, building codes, and environmental constraints. We are able to do this by leveraging our in house experts and partnering with our extensive network of suppliers and service providers.

Take Action

If you are looking at adding any sort of power generation to your organization, give us a call. We can handle all the dimensions of your power generation project!

For more information on our power generation services or solutions, contact us via email or at the number below:

1-888-682-6888 or info@collicutt.com

Finally, see these articles for related content:

Supply Chain Disruptions

September 15, 2021
No Comments

Most of us are aware that commodity pricing and supply chain issues have been very problematic for the last 8 to 12 months. There are many reasons for this, some of which can be blamed on the pandemic and the associated factory slowdowns and outages.

From what we have seen, steel prices are surging because of high market demand globally. According to data from the Census Bureau, unfilled orders for steel in the last quarter were at the highest level in five years while inventories were near a 3-1/2-year low. This is driving up product cost at the factory and with the majority of our suppliers.

Specialty components like microchips are in high demand and cannot be produced fast enough to meet this demand. This is causing delays in many suppliers lead times locally and internationally.

Regardless of the underlying supply chain issues, these disruptions are affecting everything from common electronics to vehicles to generator and enclosure manufacturing.

What We Are Doing

Collicutt has been experiencing these challenges but we have a solid group of suppliers that are working with us to minimize cost increases and to reduce schedule delays as much as possible.

We will continue to keep you informed and do everything in our power to maintain and expedite schedules and optimize product pricing.

Also note that Collicutt maintains a large inventory of parts and generators that are available for immediate shipment. You can view our inventory on our website at www.equipment.collicutt.com

What You Can Do

If you are planning on a project in the near future it is best to engage our team as soon as possible so we can get your order on the factory and lock in pricing and delivery times.

Please feel free to call us or email us for further information.

888-682-6888 info@collicutt.com

How to Properly Design and Size A Generator

September 13, 2021
No Comments

Introduction

Specifying and sizing a generator for your project can be an overwhelming task . . . but it doesn’t have to be! Collicutt and MTU have a great tool available to assist with this task and simplify it as much as possible.

The tool is called PSSPEC and it is available for download using this link.

What follows is a brief introduction to the PSSPEC tool and how it can be used. This is not meant to be a detailed user manual but it does provide enough detail to get you off to a great start on your generator sizing project.

Should you have questions, want training on the tool, or need further assistance, please reach out to our Collicutt team at the contact information at the bottom of this article.

Getting Started

Once you download, install, and open PSSPEC, you will see the following screen:

Select the “Start a New Sizing Project” button. The following screen will appear and this is where the real work begins!

From this screen you can enter:

Customer data and add new customers
Project specific Notes
The Basic generator information – This is where generator information such as; frequency, voltage, fuel type, rating type, temperature rise, load factor percentage, UL2200 requirements, customer supplied cooling system, and PMG requirements are checked.
Specific Site Conditions – this contains the location, elevation, and temperature data
Intermittent Loads – This is where you define the loads that your generator will be expected to handle (there is more information on this below).
Intake and Exhaust information
Advanced options – this allows you to select the % THVD limit

Note that this is an active menu system so an entry in one menu adjusts the menu selections in the other areas.

Once you are completed your entries, click on the “Accept” button and the following screen appears.

Adding Loads

This is where you need to understand the electrical loads that your generator will be powering.

A project’s electrical loading contains a sequence of steps that are defined by the user. Within each step, loads are placed that fit the requirements of the application. All loads within a step are assumed to start at the same time, and steps occur sequentially one after another once the previous step has reached steady state (i.e., generator set has fully recovered to nominal voltage).

PSSPEC offers templates to use for many different types of loads (see graphic below). These templates allow easy selection of the needed variables for the selected load type. The PSSPEC application makes assumptions based on the load type, load criteria, and information entered by the PSSPEC user and populates default values for each load parameter accordingly.

You can select these loads for a particular step by selecting the step and clicking on the “Add Load” button. The screen shown above appears and you select one of the options which will bring you to a screen that allows you to adjust specific parameters for the selected load.

One you are finished adding load steps and loads, you can select the “Sizing and Rating” button on the left side of the screen. This starts the generator sizing and selection process.

Sizing and Rating

When you click the “Sizing and Rating” button, PSSPEC runs its calculations and selects the recommended best fit generator using all of the data that you have provided. This is illustrated in the graphic below.

Note that this window will also display oversized and undersized generator sets that may meet project requirements.

Any generator set in the list can be selected and a sizing report can be generated to provide a ‘mini spec sheet’ for the user. Multiple sizing reports can be created for different generator set models. Just select the generator sets you are interested in and click the Report button that shows up on the left of the screen (see the graphic below).

These reports can be used as a convenient quality check to ensure the generator selected meets your design requirements and then included as part of your generator specification package. If you find errors or things that you missed you can go back through the process described above and make the changes and additions and recreate the report to include your changes.

In Conclusion

This was a very condensed tutorial which illustrated only a small fraction of PSSPEC’s capabilities. The best way to understand it’s capabilities is to dive in and start sizing some of your projects!

If you would like us to provide some training for your organization or just need to have some questions answered, be sure to call us or email us at the link below.

888.682.6888 info@collicutt.com

Note: Sizing of the generator is the responsibility of the “engineer of record.” Input data and the output from PSSPEC must be reviewed and approved by the responsible engineering firm.

Finally, see these article for related content:

Want to learn more? Collicutt has a new PSSPEC webinar available that will give you a thorough walk through on how to utilize the tool.

Do You Need a Generator Specification? Let Our Software Do the Work For You!

September 7, 2021
No Comments

Many of Collicutt’s long time customers are engineering firms. One of the things these engineering firms need for each project is a prepared set of bid packages for each major scope of work on that project. These bid packages will be sent out to potential suppliers of that scope of work so that the supplier can propose a solution complete with an accurate price.

The Challenge

This means that the bid package must have sufficient detail to get price certainty. Without this detail, prices between suppliers will be difficult to compare and the engineering firm will have no way of knowing if they are selecting the best solution.

To solve this problem, the bid package must contain a specification that defines the exact performance details for the piece of equipment or structure under development.

One of the most important specifications that these engineering firms need to complete is an emergency generator specification. This specification defines the generator that will provide emergency power should the power grid fail. Among many things, this specification needs to contain requirements for the following:

Submittal process
Quality assurance process
Warranty
Approved manufacturers and approved manufacturing locations
Industry standards compliance (UL, CSA, ANSI, NFPA, EPA, etc.)
Performance requirements
Engine requirements
Alternator requirements
Electric load definition
Switchgear requirements
Fuel type(s) and fuel system requirements
Environment constraints (emissions, altitude, temperature, size, noise, etc.)
Control and monitoring
Overcurrent and fault protection
Voltage regulation
Enclosure requirements
Installation, interconnections (fuel, cooling-system, exhaust-system, grounding and electrical connections)
Commissioning, testing, and start up
End user training
Life cycle maintenance

Although it sounds simple enough, the creation of specification like this can be a complicated and daunting task!

The Solution

So, what do you do if you are in this situation and don’t have a detailed specification for an emergency power generator set but need one for your project?

You can leverage our unique sizing software to estimate the generator capacity required for your project as well as create your own set of specifications. Just answer a detailed list of questions and the software will prepare an MS Word style document that you can further edit to fit your bid specification package.

Call us or email us at the link below for assistance or download our software using this link and build your own custom specification!

888-682-6888 info@collicutt.com

You can also download the 260kW NG genset spec that is attached to this post to get an idea of what a generator spec looks like.

Finally, see this article for related content – Don’t Make This Mistake When Buying Your Generator!

California Faces Multiple Increased Risks for Power Outages

Top Power Generation Solutions Provider 2022

Collicutt Energy: The Power Generation Engine Specialists

Successfully Overcoming Project Disaster

The Challenge

The Solution

Disaster Strikes!

The Outcome

Collicutt Becomes Alberta’s Distributor for MTU/Rolls-Royce Onsite Energy for Diesel Generators

New Towable Generator Product Line

Collicutt’s Focus Is Problem Solving

Power Generation Solution Provider

Solution Provider Definition

What Makes Collicutt Different

Take Action

Supply Chain Disruptions

What We Are Doing

What You Can Do

How to Properly Design and Size A Generator

Introduction

Getting Started

Adding Loads

Sizing and Rating

In Conclusion

Do You Need a Generator Specification? Let Our Software Do the Work For You!

The Challenge

The Solution