Canadian battery manufacturer Discover Battery has launched a Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) calculator allowing users to fully understand and determine the operational costs of a battery over its lifetime.
The calculator allows users to input data such as battery specifications, costs, labour expenses and service frequency to calculate total operational costs. The company says it can help users save up to 40% when selecting a battery.
An AGM battery pack
Discover hopes to show that there are substantial cost savings gained by using Dry Cell AGM batteries rather than the cheaper traditional flooded lead acid batteries.
Vice president of business development Alexander Marotz said: “While the initial cost of Dry Cell AGM batteries is higher, their lifetime savings typically range between 20 to 40 percent compared to lead acid batteries over the total service life. Every customer who has made the switch to AGM batteries will agree that the initial decision to change is difficult, however once they have used the AGM batteries, they love the benefits and do not want to go back to the old, flooded batteries.”
"Many hidden expenses contribute to the total cost of ownership apart from the obvious benefits of not having to regularly top up the water,” said Stefano Giuliani, Discover Battery's technical sales director. “These include fewer equipment repairs caused by corrosion damage from acid spills, off-gassing, and reduced machine down-time due to improper battery maintenance in the field."
Example: A fleet of 200 scissor lifts
The TCO calculator can calculate the real-life cost savings for a fleet. In this example, it assumes:
• Using 4 x 6V 190Ah batteries
• Dry Cell AGM around 25% higher initial cost than premium flooded batteries
• Three years battery life expectancy
The data input into the calculator includes initial purchase price and monthly maintenance resulting in a relative cost of the Dry Cell AGM battery compared to the flooded lead acid battery.
Unexpected call outs and unforeseen repairs have not been included in the chart but can be added to the calculator if desired.
The this example the calculator shows that a Dry Cell AGM offers a 33 percent cost saving, and over three years and the savings can easily run into three figures. You can access the free calculator here
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