It seems like every week brings news of a devastating fire caused by e-bike or other micromobility batteries. CellBlock saw an urgent need to allow people living and working in apartment buildings, bike shops, or other places where multiple micromobility batteries are charged, to do so in a safe and space-efficient manner.
Our Safe Charge Battery Rack allows multiple micromobility batteries to safely charge at once and is, like all our products, engineered and tested beyond compliance. So much so that it's the only charging system that FDNY has allowed to bypass NYC fire code 309.3 (which requires two feet of separation between charging batteries in every direction.)
“Until now, even a fortified 10×10 battery fire area would be spatially inadequate for 50kWh of stored energy. Our Safe Charge Rack system is not only the safest charging system, it requires 1/12th the space of other systems” said Dylan Vandemark, CellBlock's CTO and Founder. “Our team is excited to not just offer safety in storage, but also passive fire suppression. The space efficiencies and property protection realized with this system result in measurable cost savings, which is possibly the most impressive added benefit.”
Saving Lives, Saving Property – and Saving Space
Safe Charge modular charging racks were designed with micro-mobility batteries in mind and address the need for separation between each battery. The racks offer up to five levels of storage and never-before-seen safety features to mitigate thermal runaway risk.
“The CellSafe Battery Rack grew out of an idea that was born after meeting with a customer on 35th street”, said Eric Frederickson, Managing Director, Operations for Call2Recycle, who partnered with CellBlock on the Safe Charge initiative. “Their battery charging procedure was really a problem, and not only a code issue, but also a safety issue. As part of NYC's fire code, e-bike or e-scooter batteries must be kept at least two feet apart in every direction while being charged. However, no one in New York has the space to do this. And even if you do have the space, you’re not protected if a battery fire occurs while charging. After a lot of engineering, testing, and working with City code officials, the Safe Charge Battery Rack solves all these issues. Call2Recycle is thrilled that New York businesses can now safely and compliantly charge micro-mobility batteries.”
Fire Suppression Powered by CellBlockEX Technology
Beyond individual battery containment, the battery racks contain our proprietary battery fire suppressant CellBlockEX. CellBlockEX is deployed when fire is detected – and in a recent third-party test, it suppressed a thermal runaway in only three seconds.
Mitigation of thermal runaway risk is on everyone’s mind, especially in New York City, where micromobility is everywhere and space is at a premium. For more details, go to https://cellblockfcs.com/cellblock-battery-charging-racks/