Peace-of-Mind Back-Up Power for At-Risk Utility Customers

“What most impressed us was ALOM’s product expertise to engage with leading OEM’s to source the highest quality, most reliable, and longest lasting portable battery generators to protect our end-users.“

Emergency Resiliency Program Mgr.

Company name withheld due to NDA

Gas and Electric Utility Provider

Challenge

  • Sourcing of specialized use battery products that meet performance, reliability, and power output requirements.
  • Product availability and lead time volatility
  • Cost efficiency while meeting regulated industry compliance requirements

Solution

  • Turnkey procurement, VMI, and fulfillment solution
  • Business intelligence monitored fulfillment status dashboards with KPI monitoring and reporting
  • Safely store and manage serialized inven-tory to align with utility compliance and fire safety protocols
  • OEM charge level monitoring for optimum battery life and storage safety

Benefits

  • Year over year cost savings through supplier negotiation
  • 100% fill rate
  • 1 day order to ship
  • Real-time order tracking and back-end reporting
  • Industry-leading safety Li-ion warehouse heat, and smoke detection fire safety
  • Stakeholder and regulatory body audit review compliance

Portable Battery Program Fulfillment

Purpose-built sourcing, VMI and fulfillment solution delivers rechargeable backup power source to utility customers dependent upon at home medical equipment

Anonymized for confidentiality, this major U.S.-based gas and electric utility provider serves millions of customers across a region increasingly vulnerable to climate-driven wildfires, high winds, and heat-related grid stress.

As part of its Customer Resiliency Solutions initiative, the utility offers a Portable Battery Program to ensure medically vulnerable and access-challenged residential customers have a backup power source readily available during planned Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) events.

To supply and execute this critical community-focused program efficiently, the utility turned to ALOM due to its established battery technology and product domain expertise.

With decades of regulated industry expertise supporting can’t fail utility programs, and with an established fire-marshal designed and rated lithium-ion battery storage infrastructure in place, ALOM provides a full-service fulfillment solution — from sourcing and procurement to storage, VMI, and fulfillment to residential utility customers.

 

Wind, heat, or excessive demand-related PSPS events mitigate risk to life and property but are disruptive and can seriously impact the health of people who depend on electricity to power critical home medical devices and/or equipment.

To mitigate PSPS impact on individuals who depend on electricity to power medical equipment, the utility needed a reliable partner to trust with portable battery backup power unit procurement, safe storage, and accurate fulfillment of orders to high-risk customers.

Portable Battery Power Program Results Achieved

ALOM checked all the boxes for the utility and has since provided stellar service levels across all required areas in support of the rechargeable portable battery power program since 2022.

Most notably, ALOM buyers keep abreast of battery technology advancements, product enhancements, and cost comparisons across a full range of leading manufacturer product configurations.

Very important to ensuring maximum power output and battery life upon delivery to the end user, as well as minimizing fire risk while in transport and stored in ALOM’s warehouse, ALOM works closely with OEMs to set charge levels before products are shipped to an ALOM facility.

Too high of a charge level and the batteries could be more prone to overheating while in transport or in storage. Too little charge and the duration a battery can reach and hold a full charge during its service life is compromised.

Incoming rechargeable Li-ion product inventory is received, inspected, and tested under strictly monitored quality and hazmat safety protocols.

Since the program was launched, ALOM has added additional products to support the customer program including portable solar panels and accessories to charge the battery power units during an extended outage.

Visibility and BI facilitate control and regulatory compliance

ALOM’s technological innovation extends to its business intelligence (BI) tools, which provide the utility customer with maximum visibility, traceability, and back-end stakeholder reporting for inventory, order fulfillment, and shipment metrics.

With this data, the company can monitor its supply chain operations and access key performance metrics in real-time and rapidly adjust to unpredictable, unexpected conditions.

Looking ahead

As PSPS mitigation continues to evolve alongside climate threats, the utility is evaluating future program expansions and cross-agency collaborations. ALOM remains a core execution partner, offering scalable solutions tailored for regulatory resilience and public safety.

“Our goal is to protect our most vulnerable customers, and ALOM has helped us do that — reliably, safely, and cost-effectively.”

Emergency Resiliency Program Manager
Company name withheld due to NDA

“In a program where failure isn’t an option, ALOM helped us engage top-tier OEMs and deliver best-in-class battery safety and performance to our most vulnerable customers.”

U.S.-based Gas and Electric Utility Provider,
Company name withheld due to NDA