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The Department of Science and ICT is carrying out safety checks on batteries utilized in Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) systems within prominent university research laboratories. This action comes after a recent fire at the Daejeon National Information Resources Service (NIRS) involving UPS lithium batteries, with the goal of avoiding similar occurrences. On the 26th, a fire broke out while moving UPS lithium batteries at NIRS in Daejeon, resulting in the destruction of 384 battery units and damage to 740 computer systems.

The Ministry of Science and ICT stated on the 3rd, “We will carry out a survey focusing on around 270 university research labs across the country until the 24th of this month.” The survey requires institutions to check the types of UPS batteries they are using, whether their service life has ended, and if there is any external damage or irregularities, then report the findings. The ministry intends to request immediate replacements if problems are found during the inspection.

According to the survey findings, the ministry plans to carry out on-site inspections by November, targeting facilities where battery management procedures are hard to confirm or where they cannot replace faulty batteries on their own. The inspections will thoroughly evaluate the status of UPS systems and batteries, compliance with replacement schedules, and storage environments.

Hong Soon-jung, head of the Future Talent Policy division, remarked, “Batteries are commonly utilized in research environments, but improper handling can result in serious incidents such as fires.” He further noted, “With this survey, our goal is to encourage research institutions to conduct thorough checks on battery conditions on their own and to enhance initiatives aimed at establishing a more secure research atmosphere.”