Manufacturer Certified UPS Engineers, Service and Maintenance Teams

When it comes to protecting your investment in a critical power system you should always look to use manufacturer certified engineers. Many UPS and generator manufacturers work through a network of approved resellers whose engineers they have certified to provide in-warranty service, preventative maintenance and after-sales support.

EcoPowerSupplies works with a number of UPS manufacturers and generator suppliers. As an independent critical power systems supplier, this allows us to provide the right power solution to solve a client’s power problems. We have also invested in the certification of our service engineers to support the equipment we supply. This investment means that our service team includes mechanical and electrical engineers, professional electricians and battery engineers. We have to operate a multi-skilled team to be able to support the wide range of AC and DC systems we support across the UK and Eire.

Manufacturer certification means that we have the full commitment and support of the UPS or generator manufacturing company. We have access to technical support, the latest documentation and firmware, and off course – approved spares. All this ensures that we can maintain a power system and support it inside and outside its warranty period to deliver years of service.

Within the UPS and generator industry a lot of manufacturers run ‘closed’ protocol systems This means that to access a system for maintenance, and specifically the firmware, you need a dongle or annual license. You only get this if you are a certified engineer. With access, UPS certified engineers can enter service or even factory level functions in the firmware, reset calibration points, clear deep-level alarms and reconfigure the UPS after a battery set change. Similar functions are available to certified generator engineers.

In an ‘open protocol’ UPS or generator system access is fairly open. There may be generic operator passwords which are available through an internet search or are known within an ‘unofficial’ service network. An ‘open protocol’ can lead to a less managed service network and the potential for firms and engineers to pass themselves off as manufacturer certified. Often these types of companies can complete a routine battery change and carry out basic preventative maintenance work but their skill and technical training levels are exposed when a more technical problem does occur with an on-site UPS or generator system. Work on a UPS system or generator by an unauthorised engineer could void a manufacturer’s warranty and end up costing far more in technical remedial work than working with certified engineers from the start.

Certified battery engineers are also important. Whilst there may not be issues relating to firmware and protocols, it is important to use battery engineers who have received the relevant training and certifications for specific battery types – sealed lead acid (gel and wet) lithium-ion and vanadium oxide. As important is the necessary experience to supervise and work on the high DC voltage levels within the sizes of battery strings connected to large kVA or MVA rated UPS systems.

As part of the Thamesgate Group, EcoPowerSupplies operates one of the largest Riello Certified Engineers team in the UK. Our engineers carry ID cards and Riello UPS have set up a specific web portal to help sites differentiate approved service partners from authorised ones. On the portal (www.riello-engineer.co.uk) you can put in a card ID number and check on the validity and service training of a specific individual. For any UPS or generator, if you are in any doubt you should always check with the UPS or generator manufacturer before allowing work on your system. Copy certificates and training records provide good back-up if the manufacturer is not able to verify, which can happen for some legacy UPS systems.

At EcoPowerSupplies we fully understand the implications of both ‘open’ and ‘closed’ protocol systems. By offering both types from the leading uninterruptible power supplies manufacturers like Riello UPS (open) and Eaton UPS (closed), we can help clients to select the right critical power system for their application.