Managing a Battery-Powered Workplace

Managing a successful implementation of the Respond! power system is more than a technical issue. Leadership matters. Policy matters. User training matters. Technical support matters.

What do you need to know to effectively manage an organization for the change to Respond! battery-powered office systems furniture and equipment? What are your policies? What does your Tech Services function need to know? What do workstation users need to know?

This post is intended to give you suggestions about implementing a DC-powered office system knowing what we know about the technical capabilities of the Respond! power system.

What we don’t know are your exact organizational circumstances. Nevertheless, our suggestions may at least give you some issues to consider.

Leadership Matters

Implementing a battery-powered workplace may have numerous benefits, but that does not mean every person in your organization will get on board with the concept. Many of the benefits accrue to the benefit of your organization, not necessarily to individuals in your organization.

The first step is honesty with yourself about your own commitment. You can act committed but usually, people are able to sense your real level of commitment from your word choice, tone, and body language. Said another way, leaders are always on stage and the audience is always watching.

To buttress your own commitment, you should be conversant with all the benefits. For example:

• Layout flexibility

• Cultural improvements; users can work from a desk, a table, a lounge area, or outdoors

• Health and well-being

• Recruiting competitive advantage

• Reduced installation and rearrangement costs

• Reduced construction costs

• Adaptability to the uncertainties regarding hybrid work practices

• Cleaner offices; no cord tangles on floors

• Social good; sustainability, less stress on the grid

For nearly everyone that works in your organization, this will be a new way to function in the office and completely unfamiliar. DC-powered flexible workstations may also be just one facet of the bigger picture in your plan for hybrid work, co-working spaces, and remote teams.

Worse yet, some people may resist and work to undermine your efforts or repeatedly complain. What can you do to manage for success?

Let your team know that this is what you want. If you are passive about the issue or communicate hesitancy, the nay-sayers will sense the opportunity. The right approach is to let people know that it matters to you, you demonstrate this repeatedly, and you provide unwavering support to those to whom you delegate related authority.

Change-makers are well aware of the 80/20 rule. In a bigger organization, there may be locations or teams where implementation is successful, the 80%. In the 20% where success is less than satisfactory, there will be a strong correlation between the lack of leadership demonstrated by the top manager and the success of implementation.

This rule-of-thumb is not unique to the efforts for sustainability-friendly DC-powered workplaces. It applies to any issue where management wants to make a change in their organization.

Policy Matters

There are a few policy decisions you may wish to consider before you implement a battery-powered workplace.

1. Do you let anyone use any QikPac Carry? The advantage of random usage is that some users may only require a second battery occasionally. Another advantage is that if your team works from home frequently, you can align your QikPac Carry supply with the planned number of office occupants you have rather than the total number of individuals that work in your teams.

2. Or do you assign QikPac Carrys to individuals like you do computers or laptops? To assist your recordkeeping, there is a unique five-digit serial number on the bottom of every battery. It is visible without removal from the QikPac Carry. The advantages of the assignment approach are that you can associate an orphaned QikPac Carry with its assigned user, detect when someone has misappropriated a QikPac Carry from another user, or identify a user that abuses their equipment. To assist with easy identification on a QikPac Charging Center, you could consider providing or allowing luggage tags or attaching labels specific to each user.

3. Can people travel with their QikPac Carry on a business trip? Importantly, you should know that the QikPac Carry CAN NOT be taken on an airline either as a carry-on or in luggage. The security team at the airport will take it away. The batteries in the QikPack have a gross capability of 240Wh, the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) limits the transport of batteries to those less than 100Wh. Don’t test the system.

4. Can people take their QikPac Carry Home? Or to a coffee shop or restaurant? Or outdoors to a patio work area? Is your policy they stay on the premises of your company?

5. Can you ship a QikPac Carry with FedEx, UPS, or the US Postal Service? No, you CAN NOT, unless you use special packaging and trained people to prepare shipments. Find a different workaround if you are considering shipping a QikPac Carry.

6. Who is responsible to ensure QikPak Carrys are recharged? Are individual users responsible for their QikPac Carry or is recharging a service provided by someone else?

7. Who has the authority to approve computer equipment or special configurations? As outlined in this post, there are limits to the system and you may wish to avoid power-hungry equipment.

User Training Matters

Users need to be aware of the fundamentals of the everyday operation of the Respond! power system.

More complex or technical issues should be supported by someone in your organization that has additional training and accumulates experience dealing with issues. This might be a technical service or maintenance professional.

Here are some suggestions for user training topics:

• How to turn the battery on and turn it off.

• How to dock the QikPac Carry into a Console Desk.

• How to dock the QikPac Carry into a Charging Center.

• How to detect the approximate power remaining while in use.

• How to detect the charging status while on the charging center.

• How to recover when the battery shuts itself down for too much heat (sunlight).

• Who to call or text when there is an unusual event not listed above.

Technical Service Matters

If it can happen, it will happen.

Not every user needs to be trained to deal with issues that are out of the ordinary. Your technical services or maintenance personnel should be trained to know how to solve many of the infrequent issues. If an issue goes past their experience, they should call us immediately for advice.

The Technical Services team must be aware of the proper procedures for the disposal of Lithium-ion batteries. HERE is a link to a site hosted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that gives proper advice.

There may also be situations where there is mechanical damage to the QikPac Carry, such as if it was crushed under a car, truck, or anything else that is heavy. Any time there is mechanical damage, the unit should be taken out of service.

There are minor repairs that can be accomplished onsite. Batteries are replaceable as is the USB-C/USB-A module. There may be cables in the Console Desk or Charging Center that could disconnect or be damaged. These are easy field repairs.

The people that lead technical services might also be good candidates to provide user training. Over the course of time, they will develop an understanding of the challenges in training or operation.