Guidance

Supercharging MOD’s Power Quality Management: Market Exploration Document

Published 8 July 2021

1. Background

Power quality is a subject that has not been investigated in depth across the MOD estate. MOD is aware of some of the potential benefits that power quality management may bring, and the associated data capture that may be possible. MOD wishes to better understand the market capability to address power quality, power factor, and harmonic distortion and how the existing or developing technologies could improve power efficiency across its estate and ships. MOD is also keen to understand its capacity to take on distributed energy resources (DERs) such as solar and EV fast charging, especially when multiples are stacked on the same local grid or site.

MOD seeks to identify solutions at TRL 4 or above which address these inefficiencies and the associated benefits. MOD is also keen to be made aware of any solutions below TRL 4 that are likely to mature within a year. Through this market exploration MOD seeks to better understand the capability.

2. What we want

MOD would like to gain an understanding of the products and tools available and an assessment of their key benefits in the following areas:

• Efficiency claims including the conclusions of any independently verified tests
• Holistic power quality management – including AC waveform reconstruction or maintenance on loaded circuits
• System phase balancing
• Reaction to external fault events (e.g. voltage, current, phase, frequency, earth and neutral leakage)
• Ability to maintain benefits in a dynamic power network and the associated response speeds
• Grid stability impact, including ability to support installation and operation of stacked DERs
• Any restrictions on type or mix of loads – adaptability without modification
• Harmonic (including supra) suppression and installation planning requirements
• Size, Weight, Power, Cooling requirements and any known infrastructure impact
• Data capture and reporting capabilities

3. What we don’t want

We are not interested in DC solutions, energy storage, power sources, literature reviews, paper-based studies, consultancy, non-technical solutions or marginal improvements to existing capabilities.

This is not a competition and therefore we are not asking for costed proposals at this stage. This is a market engagement request for information exercise and we do not commit to subsequently launch a formal DASA competition.

4. How to submit a Market Exploration Submission to DASA

Responses to this Market Exploration must be submitted via the DASA submission service, for which you will need to register. We recommend you use a Google Chrome browser to access the DASA submission service.

You will be asked for a title and short summary of your innovation, along with questions related to your organisation, your idea and technology maturity. We are seeking to understand what and how much further development is required for a complete solution to meet requirements, or whether a combination of separate solutions is required. The information you provide will assist in developing a statement of requirements for potential future activities.

Submissions must be submitted by Midday on 19 August. Unfortunately we are unable to accept any submissions after this point.

Please provide details of only one product/capability per submission. If you have a number of potential solutions, then please submit multiple forms.

If you have any questions then please email accelerator@dstl.gov.uk with “Supercharging MOD’s Power Quality Management” in the subject line.

5. How we use your information

Information you provide to us in a Market Exploration Submission, that is not already available to us from other sources, will be handled in-confidence. By submitting a Market Exploration Submission you are giving us permission to keep and use the information for our internal purposes, and to provide the information onwards, in-confidence, within UK Government. The Defence and Security Accelerator will not use or disclose the information for any other purpose, without first requesting permission to do so.