Is a Central Battery Emergency System Right for Your Facility?

When things go wrong and your normal electrical supply is interrupted, you will need an emergency lighting system you know you can trust. Whether from a utility outage or a failure somewhere within your building, your facility is required to have emergency egress lighting in the event of a power failure. But there are several options for powering these emergency lights, one of which is a central battery emergency system. Read on as we shed some light on what a central battery emergency system is capable of, why you should consider one for your own facility and more.

What is a Central Battery System for Emergency Lighting?

A central battery system for emergency lighting is an alternative power supply responsible for powering all of your emergency lighting from one single location. In short, this means that each of your emergency and exit lights does not require its own battery or super capacitor. Instead, your system relies on the central battery to provide power, even in the event of a complete external power failure. Each light will contain a printed circuit board (PCB) and an LED light strip the central system uses to control the light and switch on and off.

Comprised of one or more batteries, central battery emergency systems are capable of delivering as little as 24V or in excess of 240V to your lighting. Additionally, there are two types of central systems to consider, maintained and non-maintained.

Maintained systems are designed to be continuously lit, continuing to work even in the event of a failure.

Non-maintained systems are designed to only turn on when a power failure occurs.

While often utilized as an effective solution for larger buildings and facilities, central battery systems can also be extremely beneficial for use in smaller buildings with no more than twenty emergency and exit lights. Below, we explore a few of the most important benefits.

The main function of a central battery emergency system is also its greatest benefit: sustaining lifesaving emergency lighting in even the most demanding industrial, commercial, and other public environments. These systems offer protection for both your personnel and the public to ensure your business remains a trusted member of the community.

There exists a wide range of central battery emergency lighting supply and test systems to ensure your facility’s unique dependable energy supply needs are met. Standard products include AC/AC static inverter systems and more compact units for smaller installations. Click here for Lighting Inverter Systems .

While a central battery emergency lighting system may be more expensive to install in the short term, it remains one of the most popular choices for emergency lighting due to its wide range of benefits over self-contained emergency lighting.

One major benefit a centralized system has over self-contained options is its resilience to temperature fluctuations. In a central battery set up, each emergency light does not require its own battery, meaning they are less susceptible to temperature changes. Rather than having to carefully monitor and regulate the temperature across your facility, or purchasing specialized batteries for each light, you will only have to do so for one centralized location, lowering both costs and hassle.

The testing of a central battery emergency system is also superior to that of self-contained lighting. Central monitoring makes it possible to monitor each lighting circuit and light individually from one location during your monthly and annual testing processes. Many central battery systems also include highly sophisticated testing configurations and alarms to ensure you remain compliant and your system remains operational at all times.

Centralized battery systems also take the win when it comes to the system’s life span. Such centralized systems are designed to last ten or more years, while self-contained lights generally max out after an average of four years.

Over the lifetime of your facility, this reality can result in monumental cost reductions in terms of maintenance and system replacement.

While voltage requirements will vary depending on the size of your facility and volume of emergency lighting, there are a few rules of thumb to follow when making your final voltage decision.

For example, to overcome issues related to voltage drop, larger voltages are often required when your lighting is located great distances from your central battery, as would most likely be the case in a greater-sized building. Accordingly, smaller locations require smaller voltage, meaning less physical space and smaller batteries are required.

Luckily, central battery systems come with various voltage outputs and most lights can be equipped with the correct voltage gear.

Our team of experts is available for technical review of specifications, sizing assistance, voltage selection, and runtime calculations. If you need help with sizing, installation planning, or simply have general questions about our central battery emergency system products, please do not hesitate to contact us today! You can do so by filling in the appropriate contact form, by calling us at (844) 501-1887, or connecting with one of our product specialists directly in the chatbox on our site!