Revolutionizing Factory Acceptance Testing: Insights from the BESSential Webinar

Arthur Claire
04 februari 2025

In the rapidly evolving energy storage industry, ensuring the quality and reliability of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) is critical. During the recent webinar, BESSential: Bringing Factory Acceptance Testing to the Next Level, industry experts Arthur Claire from Sinovoltaics and Lutz Morawietz from volytica diagnostics, shed light on the limitations of traditional Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) and Site Acceptance Testing (SAT) while introducing BESSential testing as a solution for optimized performance and reduced financial risks. To watch the recording, click here.

Key Challenges with Traditional Testing Methods

Figure 1: Key Challenges with Traditional Testing Methods


The webinar highlighted significant issues in traditional FAT testing:

  1. No FAT being performed: Unfortunately, some big names simply don’t perform FAT, leaving it to the client to find out the issues during site commissioning.
  2. Visual-only inspections – Limited to surface-level evaluations which do not include container battery performance tests.
  3. Sampling shortcuts – Testing only a subset of containers, leaving potential defects undetected. This is not recommended, as BESS manufacturing is a highly manual process. For example, on 25% of projects inspected, at least one fire suppression system did not work.
  4. Limited performance testing – Partial testing that doesn’t reveal full system behavior, as the batteries as not tested at their full potential.


Introducing BESSential: A Next-level Testing Solution

Figure 2: Why to do BESSential?

BESSential offers comprehensive, data-driven testing designed to mitigate these shortcomings:

1. 100% Testing Depth: Every module and subsystem is thoroughly tested.
2. Data Analysis for Insights: Existing performance data is evaluated using advanced algorithms to detect anomalies.
3. Quick Results: Feedback provided within 24-48 hours ensures timely issue resolution and no impact on shipment.

The Cost of Inadequate Testing
Using a real-world case study, the speakers revealed how a defective battery module could have cost more than 600k USD* in financial loss for the developer if BESSential was not implemented. Those results are stemming from accelerated degradation, system shutdowns, downtime, and lengthy claim management processes.

Figure 3: BESS Defects Financial Impact On The Bess Industry

Based on McKinsey's yearly BESS deployments until 2030 and taking a conservative assumption of that 1% defective rate**; between 2023 and 2024 700 defective BESS has been deployed which may grow to 3184 between 2025 to 2030.

*based on the assumption of 130 USD/kWh

** Average container size of 3 MWh in 2024, 6 MWh by 2030

Industry-wide, this translates to 2.3 billion dollars in potential losses if quality control isn't prioritized.

Conclusion
With Sinovoltaics and volytica diagnostics’ BESSential service, we’re taking a giant step forward in ensuring the quality of battery energy storage systems. By combining Sinovoltaics’ in-depth Factory Acceptance Testing and Site Acceptance Testing with volytica’s state-of-the-art battery diagnostics, we’re making energy storage systems more reliable, efficient, and sustainable from start to finish. Consider our recent 50 MWh project. The factory standard FAT passed the system based on discharge capacity and efficiency standards. However, after BESSential was implemented, we identified and resolved critical thermal issues and voltage imbalances that the standard testing missed. Without BESSential, these defects could have posed financial and operational risks to the project’s success. Instead, the system is now operating smoothly, is predicted to last longer, and is delivering superior

performance. And here’s why traditional FAT and SAT protocols are no longer acceptable: Poor BESS quality can cost a fortune. In our 100 MWh case study project, we found that quality issues could lead to losses as high as $650,000. Looking at the bigger picture, the entire energy storage industry could face losses of up to $2.3 billion by 2030 deployments if we don’t address these challenges.

Sinovoltaics and volytica diagnostics are here to help you avoid those pitfalls. When you partner with us, you’re partnering with a team that’s deeply committed to quality and reliability. Make your next BESS project a success. Reach out to us today.

For further details, download the white paper here and make sure to leverage the our BESSential experience and Factory Acceptance Test Checklist. Stay ahead in energy innovation by embracing advanced quality testing with BESSential.