Wertheim, 17 September 2024 – In developing or emerging countries, blackouts can seriously impact upon the building services of hospitals, schools and public buildings. By launching the Solarhub, Lutz-Jesco is marketing added supply reliability. Among other things, the new solar control cabinet enables the off-grid operation of disinfection systems for safe drinking water.
While blackouts are still rare in Germany, in many developing or emerging countries such as Haiti or Venezuela, they're an everyday occurrence. Fragile mains networks make for regular power failures in hospitals, schools and public buildings. Emergency diesel-powered generators often only provide enough power to keep the most critical building service functions going, such as the lighting in operating theatres. “To mitigate serious situations like this, we've developed a new product called the Solarhub – a solar control cabinet that supplies our pumps and disinfection systems with solar energy independently of the mains network,” explains Heinz Lutz, CEO of Lutz Holding GmbH. This control cabinet is ideal for Lutz-Jesco disinfection systems used in schools, public buildings and hospitals to remove germs and bacteria from piping so that people all around the world can enjoy safe drinking water. “Thanks to the Solarhub, we can ensure the reliability of these health-critical systems even in the case of a blackout – without depending on fossil fuels.”
Plug-and-play solar energy
Lutz-Jesco designed the Solarhub as a plug-and-play product to make using solar energy as easy as possible. “Our control cabinet is supplied fully pre-configured with all the components required for solar operation,” says Lutz. These components include solar panels, a battery charge controller, an inverter and the cabling. “All the components are perfectly aligned so that there's no need for users to get to grips with complex technical information – they can use the control cabinet straight away and depend on its reliability.”
The Solarhub will be available in two variants from spring 2025. The Solarhub 300 has a 110 Ah battery, a power output of 350 W and two MC4 connectors suitable for commonly used solar panels. The larger version – the Solarhub 600 – is equipped with a 165 Ah battery, a power output of 560 W and three MC4 connectors. An adapter can be used to double the number of panel connections on each version. “This allows users to optimise energy generation to suit the amount of sunlight at their location, the desired charging time and their consumption.”
Gel batteries ensure reliability in demanding conditions
Lutz-Jesco has designed the Solarhub so that reliability is ensured even in challenging environments. Gel batteries are used, offering resistance to impacts and vibrations and ensuring that batteries do not leak even if installed at a slant or if the housing is damaged These batteries are robust, temperature-resistant and can last up to four times longer than conventional batteries. They are also maintenance-free, which reduces on-site servicing expenses and lowers operating costs. Lutz: “This allows us to ensure that the Solarhub can be operated reliably and cost-effectively even in challenging conditions in developing or emerging countries.“