238 UL 3030 for Drone Safety

The UL 3030 certification standard for small commercial drones that use lithium-ion batteries. UL is a global safety consulting and certification company that was established in 1894. Previously a non-profit organization known as Underwriters Laboratories, the company transformed in 2012 into UL LLC, a for-profit company. UL has been developing a new certification called UL 3030 to help prevent safety incidents involving lithium-ion batteries in drones. We talk with two UL experts about the development of UL 3030 and what it means for the industry. We consider the safety issues with lithium-ion batteries in drones, the current state of the drone and lithium-ion battery markets, and how manufacturers can help mitigate the risks. Guests Ken Boyce is Principal Engineer Director, Energy & Power Technologies at UL LLC. Ken has decades of experience in safety engineering across many sectors. Most recently he has served as UL’s technical leader for the energy and power sectors, overseeing global standards development and technical operations for renewable energy technologies, batteries and energy storage systems, advanced technology grid infrastructure, electric vehicle systems, power distribution, factory automation, and related equipment. Ken is very active in the standards and code development community and serves as the Chairman of National Electrical Code Panel 1. He represents UL in numerous global energy initiatives such as the IEC Renewable Energy Scheme and serves as the Chairman of UL’s Renewable Energy Council. He works closely with US National Laboratories and academic institutions to advance scientific knowledge in the energy sector, including leading a number of significant renewable energy research projects. Ken holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology and is a Registered Professional Engineer in Illinois. Ken is a Corporate Fellow in the William Henry Merrill Society at UL. eIbrahim Jilani is a UL Business Development Manager with over 12 years of experience running high-value projects in battery and energy storage technology. He leads UL globally in technical services for OEMs and system integrators for stationary battery and energy storage systems. Ibrahim serves UL’s mission and the market’s needs by addressing global industry matters, such as advisory, due diligence, evaluation, testing, and certification. He represents UL in a variety of industry trade groups (i.e. Energy Storage Association, National Alliance for Advanced Transportation Batteries, and India Energy Storage Association) and product segments, including batteries, chargers, and energy storage. Previously, Ibrahim launched and supported accreditation of UL’s safety standards – most notably UL 9540 for Energy Storage Systems & Equipment, which is now adopted as the United States’ and Canada’s national standard for ESS safety. He has also been a certified as a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt since 2009 and holds a Master’s Degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Illinois at Chicago.