News

Lithium Battery Systems for Airport Ground Support Equipment

April 11, 2019 by Scott McMahan

Green Cubes Technology, a maker of batteries for forklifts, reported the company's first large-scale commercial sale of lithium battery systems to the ground support equipment market. With the sale, the company's Lithium SAFEFlex® battery system will power select belt loaders, container loaders, and baggage tractors at four U.S. airports, including Dallas, Texas and Cincinnati, Ohio, as well as Northern & Southern CA. (See image of belt loader above).

"With higher efficiency, better performance and lower long-term monetary and environmental costs, lithium can really transform the ground support equipment industry, especially in cold environments."

Green Cubes Technology, with a large eCommerce retailer and a prominent ground support equipment maker, is powering the switch from legacy lead-acid batteries to the more sustainable and optimized lithium options. According to the company, these lithium battery systems deliver better equipment performance at a lower cost and drastically reduce the environmental impact of battery powered systems.

"We are proud to be a leader in the conversion to Lithium in ground support equipment, a growing $7.5 billion market," said Tony Cooper, General Manager of the Motive Division of Green Cubes Technology. "With higher efficiency, better performance and lower long-term monetary and environmental costs, lithium can really transform the ground support equipment industry, especially in cold environments."

With Lithium SAFEFlex, equipment makers and airports can retrofit pre-existing ground support equipment to mitigate startup costs associated with converting battery systems. Simultaneously, these battery systems need no watering or equalizing and offer true, fast charging, eliminating maintenance costs and time lost from swapping batteries regularly.

"With ground support equipment operating in every kind of climate imaginable, it's imperative to have a power solution that can withstand extreme temperatures," explained Cooper. "Lead-acid batteries simply can't maintain performance in cold environments, and maintenance costs are extremely high. With lithium batteries, ground support equipment operators will see longer lifecycles and increased charging efficiency so equipment can optimize aviation operations, not hinder them."

Green Cubes Technology designed Lithium SAFEFlex to increase speed and efficiency and the company says it provides a reliable and durable solution for any weather environment. A recharge efficiency of more than 98 percent enables Lithium SAFEFlex to drive electrical savings and ultimately reduce damaging effects of heating batteries.

Gree Cubes Technology says its customer will begin to officially use Lithium SAFEFlex at those airports within weeks.