KickStart Locomotive Battery Assist
Replacing locomotive batteries can be a significant expense, and a failed start can cause inconvenience and costly downtime. KickStart uses supercapacitor technology to supplement the locomotive batteries during engine start, reducing the strain on the batteries. The result is less energy drain from the batteries, longer battery life, faster cranking speed, less time to recharge the batteries, improved cold weather starts, and ultimately, increased locomotive availability.
With KickStart, you can extend your locomotive's battery life by up to 50%. Its light, compact design makes it easy to install and requires no regular maintenance. KickStart also minimizes battery voltage drop and ensures reliable cold-weather performance, making it an ideal solution for all weather conditions.
KickStart Performance Data
$4,320
Yearly fuel savings
10.9
Tonnes of CO2 prevented
50%
Reduction in idle time
$13,320
Average annual savings per locomotive equipped with KickStart
650%
10 year ROI
Reducing Fuel Usage
Strategies for reducing fuel usage by upwards of 30% in the next decade and a half have been called for, and KickStart is an excellent way to achieve those goals. Reducing idle time is one of the quickest ways to reduce fuel usage. Maximizing AESS's effectiveness with KickStart saves up to 5,000-8,000 gallons or more, depending on service days and usage.
Lowering Emissions
On top of reducing fuel usage, many strategies call for a 30-40% emissions reductions as well. Maximizing AESS, as noted in the fuel section, can reduce nine tonnes of CO2e depending on service days and usage. With KickStart, you can prevent 9 tonnes of CO2 per locomotive from being emitted annually, helping you achieve your emission reduction goals.
Increasing Locomotive Availability
Running an efficient fleet can be difficult due to dead-won't-starts (DWS) affecting your locomotives. This situation refers to a scenario where a locomotive engine fails to start despite being in a good state of repair and fully operational. Diagnosing and repairing a DWS issue can be complex, requiring specialized knowledge and training. In addition, this event can result in delays, operational disruptions, rescheduling of locomotives, personnel reallocation, and the need for an assisted start, which is costly, time-consuming, and increases the potential of workplace incidents.
On average, a locomotive will experience at least one battery related DWS failure every three years, impacting availability and reliability metrics. However, with KickStart, you can significantly enhance starting reliability in all weather conditions by eliminating virtually all battery related dead-won't-start events, ensuring your locomotive performs when it is most critical, reducing downtime and penalties for missed delivery targets.
White Paper: Improving Locomotive Starting Performance
Benefits of KickStart
Extend Locomotive Battery Life: Batteries are costly to install and replace. KickStart reduces battery drain during starting to improve longevity by up to 50%.
Easy Installation and Zero Maintenance: With its light and compact design, KickStart can be easily installed and requires no regular maintenance.
Minimized Battery Voltage Drop: KickStart augments the power required during engine start, reducing the drop in battery voltage.
Reliable Cold Weather Performance: KickStart supercapacitor technology is not affected by cold weather extremes.
Charge Maintenance: If the battery drains, KickStart will maintain a charge and be ready to assist locomotive starting after extended shut-down intervals.
Increased Locomotive Availability: KickStart ensures that your locomotive performs when it is most critical by significantly enhancing starting reliability in all weather conditions.
Reduced Battery Charge Time: KickStart reduces battery drain which can mean less time to recharge and lower AESS idle time.
Diagnostic Interface: Integrated monitoring, fault notifications and diagnostics eliminate the need to install proprietary software for setup and commissioning operations.
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