Kohler Uncut, a podcast dedicated to the vast topic of energy, debuted this year. It gives customers a new way to learn more about Kohler and energy, and hear from Kohler’s experienced employees. The first episode, featuring Nicole Dierksheide, director of Kohler’s generator categories for 600kW and above, focuses on the energy crisis, climate change, and the need for more sustainable solutions.
Listen to the inaugural episode here or keep reading for the highlights!
The episode begins by covering the general state of the global energy crisis. Dierksheide explains that population growth naturally increases the demand for energy. In recent years, smart devices that require cloud services to support them are taking demand to new levels. Data centers, which by nature consume a large amount of energy, are at the center of this data transmission. These two factors in tandem are placing added stress on traditional utility providers to keep up with demand. Paired with events that disrupt the global energy market, like natural disasters and global conflict, price can fluctuate as well.
After outlining the factors creating challenges on the energy market, Dierksheide presented some emerging technologies making strides toward providing reliable energy solutions that are more sustainable.
“One of the most frequent requests we receive is around hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) in place of diesel,” comments Dierksheide. “HVO has a net carbon emission reduction of up to 90% compared to diesel. It removes reliance on fossil fuels and the reliance on certain countries who control the fossil fuels.”
To learn more about Kohler’s HVO solutions, check out the resources here.
In addition to HVO, Dierksheide outlines renewable energy sources that are becoming more viable over time, like solar, batteries and hydrogen. While each has its advantages, there’s not a one-size-fits-all solution, and it’s prudent to consider the problem a data center is trying to solve to determine the best solution. In many cases, it could be a combination.
No matter what, Dierksheide explains that backup generators are the backbone of any resilient energy system to guarantee continued access to power.
“If you use solar and batteries only, you won’t get that resiliency, but if you pair them with a generator, you can take advantage of those newer technologies and still have that generator as the backbone of the system,” says Dierksheide.
Listen to Dierksheide explain the benefits and setbacks of solar, batteries and hydrogen at the 9:30 mark.
Kohler has a rigorous process of developing and testing new, more sustainable technologies and taking them to market. They rely on a field testing model before introducing new solutions to customers. Hear more about the field testing process—and how Kohler used it to perfect its KD series engines that debuted in 2016—in the podcast.
To hear more great episodes of Kohler Uncut, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.