Black & White Facilities / Service brief
Battery Storage
Assess battery storage against the duty your site actually needs, from shifting demand to working alongside solar generation. Keep stored energy, delivery power and backup requirements separate in the brief, because a capacity figure alone cannot define a suitable arrangement.
Overview
Explain the operational result sought from storage, alongside the issue driving the enquiry. Identify the premises, users affected and any changed demand or use, so assessment of the battery arrangement starts from the estate team’s current requirement.
Our full service catalogue, including every individual service, is available across every listed sector and location. For one site or several, we agree the scope, access and programme around the buildings concerned.
What the service can include
The storage instruction brings together consumption and generation data, siting, electrical connections, controls and the intended operating approach. It sets out installation and commissioning work alongside monitoring and upkeep. Connection arrangements and fire safety must relate to the selected equipment in its proposed position.
What to consider
Do not assume a battery will supply the building when mains power fails: that requires a deliberately designed backup arrangement for defined loads. Keep financial assumptions explicit, including demand, tariffs, energy losses and degradation, because these determine outcomes rather than a promised saving.
The storage proposal states what our instruction covers and what the site team must arrange. Give related repairs and specialist activities their own scope, with responsibilities and the expected handover records clear to everyone involved.
Before we visit
Gather electrical drawings, interval consumption and generation data, together with the intended storage duty. Confirm access, critical loads and responsibility for energy controls. Set the scenarios to be compared during feasibility before assessing the alternatives.
How we help
We use the intended battery duty and site records to establish options and the interfaces each needs. The chosen instruction covers the applicable connection steps and commissioning. Operating restrictions, available modes, maintenance duties and ownership form part of the handover.
For storage across several properties, reporting and escalation can follow agreed common arrangements. Keep site contacts and operating needs visible, assign actions to their building or service area, and identify who handles decisions affecting the wider estate.
What affects cost and timing
The budget depends on storage capacity, output, siting, electrical alterations and control connections. Include network-related work and continuing support when comparing options. Maintenance and eventual replacement also belong in the assessment, using clearly stated operating assumptions.
Flag the hours the site operates, critical business periods and activities that cannot stop. The delivery programme and cost should account for those constraints, including phased work, special access arrangements and reports required by the operations team.
Sector applications
Plan battery work around the people and activities at each site. Staff and visitors shape arrangements in Offices, while trading and deliveries matter in Retail. In Hospitality, consider guest areas and food operations; in education, organise access around teaching. The full service and project offering covers all sectors, with local activity reflected in the brief.
Local coverage
We cover battery-storage requirements in Berwick-upon-Tweed, Alnwick, Morpeth, Hexham, Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland, Durham, Darlington, Hartlepool, Stockton-on-Tees and Middlesbrough, across Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, County Durham and Tees Valley. Use View all locations when identifying the premises to include in your enquiry.
Include a named local contact and restrictions on working for every proposed battery location. A common instruction needs to preserve the differences between premises that affect how work can proceed.
Frequently asked questions
Will any battery keep the building running in a power cut?
No. To run specified loads during an outage, the installation needs a designed backup function with clear operating limits.
Is battery capacity the same as output power?
No. Stored energy is the capacity; output power is how quickly that energy can be supplied.
Are savings guaranteed?
No. Tariffs, on-site generation, consumption and the performance of the equipment all influence the assessment.
Can storage support several site priorities?
Set an order of priorities within the controls and make compromises explicit; simultaneous delivery of every objective cannot be assumed.
Knowledge and guidance
For a storage brief, start with planning an energy improvement project and consider the background in building management systems explained. Follow Official guidance for the relevant service context, or visit the Knowledge Centre for further material.
Related services and your next step
Storage work may connect with Energy and Renewable Technologies and Solar PV. Continuing care and smaller work are described in maintenance and Minor Works. The services and projects directories show the full offering.
To scope storage work, send the site details, available records and operating objective when you Contact Black & White Facilities. Explain the working constraints as well as the result required so the next step can be defined.
Discuss the scope
Tell us what needs attention.
Share the site, the issue and any access requirements so we can discuss the next step.