FM Generator to help power Alaska’s cell networks
By Canton CitizenSubmitted by FM Generator ~
In the 1980s, FM Generator of Canton began working on design concepts for generators that could operate dependably in harsh, remote environments such as mountaintops in New Hampshire and Maine.
Now the latest line of those generators is about to be placed throughout Alaska to provide primary and backup power for the state’s far-flung cell phone networks.
The first order of fifty 50kw and 60kw generator sets featuring FM’s design concept will be manufactured by MTU Onsite Energy Corp. of Mankato, Minnesota, and shipped to Alaska over the next few months. The 3,500-pound generators will be powered by John Deere engines and will feature internal heaters in the enclosures and fuel heaters to ensure proper temperature ranges for instant starts.
“These generators are designated for areas marked by extreme cold and isolation, so the design challenge was to make them impervious to weather, high altitudes and vandalism,” said Michael Molway, president of FM Generator.
FM Generator’s affiliation with MTU began in the 1980s, when FM’s designers started working with engineers from Katolight Corp. to create a generator concept that could provide reliable starts in areas marked by isolation and severe climate conditions.
The designs evolved through the years, with additions of sound attenuated enclosures, double-walled tanks, fluid containment structures for over-filling and leaks, propylene-based antifreeze systems, and thick deflector scoops to help minimize the effects of vandalism.
In 2002, FM Generator and Katolight entered into an agreement to provide generators on a national basis to a wireless carrier seeking to build the most reliable network in the country. Katolight began to manufacture the generators in high volumes. Over the next decade, FM installed hundreds of the rugged generator sets throughout New England, New York, Texas, and many other states.
Katolight was purchased by MTU in 2007. MTU maintained the design partnership with FM Generator. More than 10,000 generators incorporating FM design features have been sold to date.
“I’m thrilled that the generators that we started designing so many years ago are now advanced to the point that they will become the power-system backbone of the Alaskan phone networks,” said Molway. “This is a proud moment for us and our partners at MTU.”
For more information about FM Generator, go to www.fmgenerator.com.
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=11589
Posted by Canton Citizen
on Feb 15 2012. Filed under Business.
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