DG sets: standby power bought as one aggregated requirement

What you are actually buying

An institution buying a DG set is buying an engine and alternator matched to a load profile, and around it an acoustic enclosure, an AMF or changeover panel, a base fuel tank, an exhaust route, a foundation, cabling and commissioning. Quotes diverge on the rating basis, whether it is quoted as prime or standby, the alternator make, the declared sound level at a stated distance, the fuel tank capacity and how much of the civil and electrical work sits inside the scope. The common mistake is sizing from connected load rather than from measured maximum demand with the largest motor start allowed for, which produces a set that runs lightly loaded for its whole life.

Why dg sets suits collective purchasing

DG sets are one of the categories we intend to open first, and the reason is that the specification travels. A kVA band, an enclosure sound rating and an AMF panel describe a hospital, an apartment block, a factory and a college equally well, so a schedule of three or four ratings covers a large group. The buyers are entirely fragmented — each one buys a single set, once, through a local distributor — while the engine side is concentrated in a small number of manufacturers selling through that distribution layer. That shape lets a pooled requirement go to several manufacturers at once, instead of being negotiated one building at a time.

How a pool for this runs

Also pooled under Power & energy