In collaboration with Engineers Australia (EA) and Electric Energy Society of Australia (EESA), E.S.M.’s Mechanical Systems Engineer, Lovepreet Samrao conducted a public presentation, with attendees in person and online, titled ‘Safe Design of Large-Scale Solar and Battery Energised Storage System’.
The presentation collated findings from numerous Safety in Design activities conducted by E.S.M. in the context of standalone solar or Battery Energised Storage System (BESS) and integrated Solar-BESS. The presentation provided highlights of:
- the most common hazards identified during the complete life cycle of the solar and BESS,
- which lifecycle phase attracted the most hazards,
- hazards associated with the integration of solar and BESS with other assets, and
- the effect of this integrated system on the environment.
Finally, some recommendations were provided, to be implemented during the design phase of these systems to make it safe, so far as is reasonably practicable for human, asset, and environmental interfaces.
Safety in Design (SiD) aims to identify hazards in the early stages of the design process. SiD review workshop objectives for solar and BESS systems include:
- demonstration that all foreseeable hazards have been identified,
- documentation of what had already been done in design to keep people safe, and,
- identify further controls and actions required.
These workshops gave the Clients a formal and thorough record of discussion, decisions, hazards identified, and controls applied.