US Coast Guard
US Coast Guard, Juneau, Alaska, USA
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) operates a series of unattended remote monitoring stations along the Alaskan Coast. The existing systems consisted of wide variety of hybrid power configurations, which had proven unreliable and costly to operate. Mechron worked with the USCG to design an upgrade to the existing system by replacing the prime power system with a hybrid system. When combined with the solar array, the hybrid system provides uninterrupted power with the minimum possible fuel consumption. When the solar array is unable to generate sufficient power to keep the station batteries charged, the auto-start generators operate when required to maintain the batteries above a predetermined level of charge. This approach maximizes battery life while minimizing generator set run time. The 17 sites were equipped with SCADA software, which provides complete remote operation, monitoring and data trending.