SCRA affiliate Advanced Technology Institute to install fuel cells for backup power of mission-critical applications

The Army Corps of Engineers has entered into a cooperative agreement with the Advanced Technology Institute (ATI) to deploy 10 fuel cell backup power units in three mission-critical applications at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. The U.S. Department of Energy and South Carolina Research Authority, the parent organization of ATI, are also partners in the project. The total funding to support the deployment, shared among the partners, is approximately $500,000. LOGANEnergy of Roswell, Georgia, will procure and install the fuel cell equipment.

The project, launched officially on December 16, will assess the performance, durability and life cycle costs of commercially-available fuel cell technology operating in a backup power application. The fuel cells will provide critical backup power to the Fort Jackson Telecommunications Center, Energy Monitoring and Control Facility, and Emergency Services Center. After an 18-month performance monitoring period, the Fort will continue to use the fuel cell systems to provide improved reliability, reduced emissions compared to conventional technologies, and lower lifecycle costs in backing up these mission-essential power requirements. The equipment installations also may provide mutually beneficial workforce development partnership opportunities between Fort Jackson and nearby Midlands Technical College, which has developed and begun offering a fuel cell technician program of study.

“We are delighted to partner with the Departments of Energy and Defense, the City of Columbia and the USC Columbia Fuel Cell Collaborative to bring about this important fuel cell project at Fort Jackson,” said Bill Mahoney, SCRA CEO. “This project illustrates how SCRA’s proven business models can benefit the commercialization process of this rapidly growing technology in South Carolina.”

The project team is working to complete the installations and have the equipment operational in time to showcase this project during the 20th annual National Hydrogen Association Conference, which will be held in Columbia, South Carolina, beginning on March 30, 2009.

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About the Department of Energy Hydrogen Program
The DOE Hydrogen Program supports the research, development, and demonstration of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies for transportation and electricity generation. The Program also seeks to advance the use of hydrogen fuel cells in key early markets including emergency backup power, specialty vehicles such as material handling equipment, and primary power for critical loads. For more information, please see
hydrogen.energy.gov.

About the ERDC-CERL
The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) is the premier research and development facility for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. It consists of seven laboratories –including the Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL) — at four geographical sites, with over 2,000 employees, $1.2 billion in facilities, and an annual research program exceeding $700 million. ERDC conducts research in both military and civil works mission areas for the Department of Defense and the nation.

About Fort Jackson
Fort Jackson is the largest and most active Initial Entry Training Center in the U.S. Army, training 50 percent of all Soldiers and 70 percent of the women entering the Army each year. The post’s primary mission is providing the Army with trained, disciplined, motivated and physically fit warriors who espouse the Army’s core values and are focused on teamwork. Accomplishing that mission means training in excess of 50,000 basic training and advanced individual training Soldiers every year.

About SCRA
SCRA is a global leader in applied research and commercialization services with offices in Anderson, Charleston and Columbia. SCRA collaborates to advance technology. SCRA provides technology-based solutions with assured outcomes on behalf of industry, government, and research universities like Clemson University, the University of South Carolina and the Medical University of South Carolina. scra.org.

About the Advanced Technology Institute
The Advanced Technology Institute builds international consortia to develop and implement innovative solutions for manufacturing, aerospace, automotive, maritime, metals, energy and healthcare industries. ATI-led collaborations attract world-class talent from premier companies, universities and government agencies. A private, non-profit research corporation with principal operations in Charleston, SC, ATI is an affiliate of SCRA. For more information, please visit aticorp.org .

About Logan Energy
LOGANEnergy is a recognized world leader providing fuel cell solutions that target customer desires for clean energy services. Their professional staff has over 90 years experience with fuel cell product development and deployment specializing in planning, applications engineering and design, site construction, installation, commissioning, start-up and after market services. LOGAN’s team has installed more than 125 commercial and small-scale fuel cell projects totaling over 10 megawatts of power. LOGAN’s role in this project is to design, install, commission and provide technical support services for the ten fuel cell units to be deployed at Ft. Jackson, SC.