Delta Electronics, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of power supplies, organised a seminar on ‘Power Supply Efficiency Technologies’ at Delhi and Bangalore, recently. On the occasion, Dr. Milan Jovanovic, CTO, Power Systems Business Group, Delta Electronics Inc, holder of 31 US patents and a fellow of IEEE, and Dalip Sharma, MD, Delta India, spoke to Jesus Milton Rousseau S. on the efficiency of green power supplies and Delta’s future plans in India.
Friday, February 18, 2009:
EB: What steps India needs to take to dominate the power electronics field in R&D and manufacturing? What is the role of the government?
Milan M. Jovanovic: Thanks to the excellent power electronics programmes being undertaken at a number of universities and the availability of well-educated engineers, India is well positioned to be one of the dominant players in power electronics R&D and manufacturing in the foreseeable future. However, to make this happen, it is necessary to have a critical mass of world’s leading electronics companies and their original equipment manufacturer (OEM) suppliers to establish their presence in India through the opening of R&D centres and manufacturing sites. The government certainly can play a significant role in bringing these companies to India by pursuing a policy that is attractive for foreign business investments. In addition, the government could also help by allocating more funding for power electronics programmes at universities and R&D institutions to further raise the competence and skills of Indian power electronic engineers.
EB: What is the latest research work happening in the field of power electronics at Delta R&D labs?
Milan M. Jovanovic: Currently, major R&D activities are focused on the development of technologies and design optimisation tools for pushing the efficiency of power supplies beyond the gold-level specifications. In this broad R&D effort, we are trying to address important aspects of power supply design, including power converter topology improvements, new packaging and thermal management techniques and power management issues. In addition, we are also actively involved in exploring opportunities for efficiency improvements in power systems for datacom equipment by changing their architecture. Specifically, we are evaluating the feasibility replacing the current AC-distribution power system with high-voltage DC-distribution system.
Recently, significant R&D resources have been dedicated to the development of power conversion and management circuits for alternative energy sources, specifically, for the development of next generation solar inverters with improved efficiency and power density. Finally, significant research activities at Delta are related to the development of power conversion technologies for various light emitting diode lighting applications.
EB: Which is the best power conversion technology and what are its advantages?
Milan M. Jovanovic: Questions about the best power conversion technology can only be addressed in the context of a specific application since there is no one single panacea technology that offers optimal performance in all applications. Even for a specific application there may be a variety of technologies and techniques available that can meet the specifications. In that case, the technology that offers the desired performance with a minimum cost is the one that is considered the best.
EB: What are the future power supply technologies?
Milan M. Jovanovic: The future power supply technologies will need to bring further improvements in power conversion efficiencies and power densities in a cost-effective manner. The focus will be on the improvement of characteristics of semiconductors and magnetic materials and components, development of advanced packaging and thermal management techniques, functional and physical integration of components and power management. For e.g., today’s power supplies used in the computer servers have efficiencies in the low 90 per cent range and power densities in the 20-30 W/in3 range. In three to five years from now, it is expected that these power supplies will reach efficiencies in the 94-95 per cent range and power densities in the 30-40W/in3 range.
EB: What is the efficiency of green power supplies?
Milan M. Jovanovic: There is no official definition on what constitutes a green power supply with respect to its efficiency or, for that matter, any other performance figure. However, with the societal focus on energy conservation, it is implied that ‘green’ power supplies are those that offer the highest efficiency for a given application. In fact, in the US, the environmental concerns have already prompted introduction of programmes and initiatives aimed at reducing energy waste in power supplies for data-processing equipment by challenging power-supply manufacturers to improve efficiencies of their products. For e.g., the 80 plus incentive programmes, Climate Saver Computing Initiative (CSCI) and Energy Star programme define different tiers of efficiencies for desktop, workstation and server power supplies. For e.g., for the highest tier, i.e., the gold level, an AC/DC server power supply with a 12V output must have a minimum efficiency of 88 per cent, 92 per cent and 88 per cent at load power levels of 100 per cent, 50 per cent and 20 per cent, respectively. Since these efforts to improve efficiency of power supplies are in a perfect alignment with Delta’s mission “to provide innovative, clean and efficient energy solutions for a better tomorrow,” Delta is strongly committed to finding solutions to meeting these challenging efficiency requirements by focusing its R&D activities in this area.
Beside exhibiting high efficiencies, ‘green’ power supplies are also expected to be designed, tested and manufactured employing environmental-friendly materials and processes. For e.g., compliance with the RoHS (restriction of hazardous substances) directive aimed at reducing the amount of hazardous material in power supplies and electronics equipment in general, is mandatory. As a strong believer in and a practitioner of corporate social and environmental responsibility, Delta has been in the forefront of building green manufacturing plants. The last one was opened a few months ago in Rudrapur.
EB: What is the present scenario of power supplies and power conversions in India?
Dalip Sharma: Utility power line condition still remains bad in India. The grid is quite unstable with loadshedding for several hours depending on the location. The surges, transients, voltage fluctuations and floating neutral or neutral break are quite common in India.
Hence, power supplies in India need to be very rugged to withstand the harsh environment. The demand is quite strong in the local market, hence, there are several local and global companies that are investing on designs which are more suitable to Indian market and other developing countries.
EB: What is the growth rate of the Indian power market?
Dalip Sharma: Indian power market has several segmentations, such as DC power, mainly applicable to telecom, railways, etc and uninterruptible power supply (UPS), which is applicable to a host of industry verticals. Power supplies are also used for other applications such as IT, white goods, etc. Different segments have different growth rates. However, if we estimate an average growth rate of Indian power conversion, power conditioning and power supplies market, then the growth rate is still very strong at 29 per cent in 2009 as compared to 2008.
EB: How do you foresee the future of the Indian power market?
The future of Indian power market is very bright for the upcoming years. The growth is predominantly coming from two main factors—the domestic market size and its growing middle class and the infrastructure in India that needs to have power back-up, power storage and power conditioning. The Indian power market will continue to enjoy a double digit growth for the next several years.
EB: Can you tell us about Delta’s success and business in India?
Dalip Sharma: Delta has achieved success in India over the years. One of the main reasons for its success is its leadership in power conversion technology and the market that needs right solution at the right time. So, I guess Delta was in the right place at the right time with the right solution.
Delta has grown its business in India from $6 million in 2004 to $170 million in 2008. This is a phenomenal growth that leads Delta to the market leadership position in telecom power area with an estimated market share of 60 per cent in India. The UPS business in India is also doing quite well with more than 100 per cent growth year-on-year since its introduction in the Indian market.
EB: What is Delta’s future plan in India?
Dalip Sharma: Delta will continue to invest in India to expand its offerings, capacities and capabilities. India has a huge potential market for Delta.
Delta recently launched its first green factory in India in Rudrapur (Uttaranchal) and will invest another $45-50 million for its R&D centre/factory in Gurgaon and another factory in south India.
Electronics Bazaar, South Asia’s No.1 Electronics B2B magazine
