What are the commissioning activities of an energy storage system (ESS)?

Commissioning is required by the owner to ensure proper operation for the system warranty to be valid. The activities relative to the overall design / build of an energy storage system (ESS) are described next. The details of the commissioning activities are described in Section 2. Figure 1. Overall flow of ESS initial project phases

What is a commissioning process?

Commissioning is a gated series of steps in the project implementation process that demonstrates, measures, or records a spectrum of technical performance and system behaviors. This chapter provides an overview of the commissioning process as well as the logical placement of commissioning within the sequence of design and installation of an ESS.

What is a commissioning plan?

Commissioning is a required process in the start-up of an energy storage system. This gives the owner assurance that the system performs as specified. A Commissioning Plan prepared and followed by the project team can enable a straightforward and timely process, ensuring safe and productive operation following handoff.

What happens during the design phase of a metering system?

During the design phase, the system must be designed so that all necessary tests can be performed with appropriate metering, data point identification and location, and access to the data. During this phase, the commissioning team develops the plan and confirms the change process.

Do energy storage subsystems have to pass a factory witness test?

Each subsystem must pass a factory witness test (FWT) before shipping. (Note: The system owner reserves the right to be present for the factory witness test.) This is the first real step of the commissioning process—which occurs even before the energy storage subsystems (e.g., power conditioning equipment and battery) are delivered to the site.

What are the challenges in an ESS commissioning process?

Several challenges in an ESS commissioning process have been noted. All of these challenges can be minimized or avoided by careful planning. Design for Commissioning: Sometimes commissioning is complex or difficult if access to measurement points or data screens is not considered in advance.