Fort Bragg, one of the largest army bases in the United States, faced an enormous challenge: The 160,000-acre base was consuming peak electricity at an alarming rate.
Located near Fayetteville, NC, Fort Bragg receives its electricity from Carolina Power & Light and has contracted for a maximum demand of 78 megawatts that can be imported without penalty. To limit this ever-rising demand and avoid penalty charges from CP&L during times of peak energy use, Fort Bragg deployed an aggressive plan using controls and software from ENCORP Inc.
In June 1999, ENCORP and Fort Bragg retrofitted 11 standby generators located at various facilities around the base that supply up to 3.85 megawatts of power. A common electrical-distribution system serves the facilities.
The ENCORP equipment installed at each generator allows the generators to run in parallel with each other as well as be interconnected with the utility grid. ENCORP's entelligent®-VMM (Virtual Maintenance Monitor) software manages the 11 enpower™-GPC (Generator Power Control) units controlling the generators, which in turn are connected through a LonWorks® communication network.
Operators for each generator instantaneously can access generator status, maintenance requirements, and alarm information via the single central Dispatch Workstation running ENCORP's VMM software.
The results? Fort Bragg's peak demand already has dropped by 3.85 megawatts due to the peak-shaving conversion, and electricity costs will continue to decrease significantly. In addition, Fort Bragg will recognize improved performance of its ENCORP-enhanced generators. Regularly exercising engines and generators under load improves their reliability and availability in the event of a grid outage.
