In frail-care, every second counts, and in senior living villages we understand how important time is. Having access to uninterrupted power shouldn’t have to be a luxury when it’s critical infrastructure. We have successfully delivered solar solutions and energy storage systems to APN Retirement in New Germany, and Twilanga Retirement Village in Umhlanga, both in the sunny and warm region of KwaZulu-Natal. Both of these projects ensured these facilities could provide 24/7 operational security even during the most unpredictable Eskom outages
Industry: Frail-care and Senior Living
Locations: New Germany and Umhlanga Rocks, KwaZulu-Natal
Facilities Covered: Medical wards, kitchens, laundry units, residential units
The Challenge
We know as well as every other business owner in South Africa that load shedding and other unscheduled and sudden power outages do not knock politely. It barges in without warning, upending your care facilities operations and plans, potentially disrupting oxygen concentrators, putting an end to meal prep and threatening the general safety of vulnerable residents.
APN and Twilanga both needed airtight solutions to eliminate power disruptions for these critical-care functions, to immediately protect against damages to medical equipment, and to safeguard the communal services. Their frustrations with an unstable grid and the ever-escalating electricity costs could not guarantee them 24/7 energy security, so we sought to help them develop autonomy from the grid with four independent solar and battery systems.
We conducted the site assessment for them, presented a financial savings proposal and went on to design, engineer and fully commission a solar system for each retirement village, that was fitted to their unique and independent architectural and operational needs
Key Engineering Highlights
We installed a total of 234 high-efficiency JA solar panels on the rooftops across the two sites, as well as modular battery banks which enabled us to roll the storage capacity out in phases and without downtime. Our commissioning procedure allowed us to automate this process which ensured that the solar system’s deployment was rapid and without delay, and our solar panel mounting structure, supplied to us by Oribi Solar, were custom designed at marine-grade specs to help overcome the challenge of the risk of humidity and corrosion, being so close to the coastline.
The mechanical and electrical works were done in-house in collaboration with our projects team. APN was happy to go forward on an Outright Purchase which meant that their return on investment was optimised to give them the best bang for their buck as the system pays for itself. Both site also successfully completed their SSEG registrations with us, and we had their municipal approvals and commissioning sign-offs completed on schedule.
The Results
- Zero downtime during power outages
- Seamless power for oxygen concentrators, emergency equipment, kitchens and laundries
- Full independence during outages with intelligent switchover
Financial Savings
APN saved approximately R 291 892.00 in the first 15 months of their solar power journey, and with savings like this available to all stakeholders, a possible predictable monthly energy budget can now be drawn up for annual budget planning.
Lessons Learned
The challenge of hybrid architecture on these unique sites themselves enabled us to fully load the coverage of the panels on the roofs, and with the battery energy storage creating an autonomous system that allows the overnight storage and usage of energy generated during the day, the care homes were able to keep their operations going even with no sunlight.
These two projects together prove that the future of energy security lies in strong engineering principles, with both facilities benefiting from our expertise, quality workmanship and accountability in delivering on what we promise. With a solar and battery hybrid system tailored for your Senior Living facility, you can permanently rid yourselves of the reliance on an unstable Eskom grid.
Get in touch with us today to book a free energy consultation and discover how much more you can save in your energy budget!
🔗 Book a Free Site Inspection: Email us at info@thulamoya.com or cindy@thulamoya.com
📞 +27 64 627 9610 | +27 31 100 2207
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