Power protection is a serious issue for today's business. It's rare for many companies to be able to function without power, even for a few hours, and network outages can be absolutely crippling for firms that rely on online sales. In fact, in 2012, the US Department of Energy estimated that power outages cost businesses nearly $80 Billion per year. Hurricane Sandy ended up costing more than $50 billion due to power outages alone.
Benefits of Power Protection
The Enormous Costs Of Network Power Interruptions
Just as one specific business example, Sears had some power trouble with its network a few years ago. Even though both outages only lasted a few hours each, Sears ultimately lost more than $2 million in sales, and spent another $2 mil fixing the problems. Granted, we'd all like to have Sears' revenue stream, but the fact is that even short-term power-related network outages cost real money. It's generally at least hundreds of dollars per hour for all but the smallest companies.
Arguably, maintaining the power to your network today is even more important than powering the rest of your building.
What's worse is, that's actually only the start to the troubles that can occur with improper power protection. For possibly the most extreme case, take a look at the recent troubles at the NSA data collection center in Utah. Due to insufficient protection, their equipment is literally melting due to huge arcs, with explosions even being reported.
While, fortunately, explosions are unlikely in most offices, meltdown due to power surges is a very real threat. Most servers generally require precise power and temperature conditions. Without protection, a power overload can easily blow out delicate equipment. Even standard PCs and laptops can get burned out from a large enough surge.
There simply is no protection against power supply issues besides a quality Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) that's backed up with a battery that's able to meet your business's needs.
A Good UPS Provides Two-Way Protection
In short, there are two major ways power protection can save your business money, and a solid UPS provides both.
First are the power surges – a UPS is designed to handle and dissipate large surges without allowing them to pass on to the connected devices. Surges are especially associated with power outages. Rather than merely being cut, a power outage sends a pulse of electricity onwards, almost like a rubber band snapping, flooding systems ahead of the outage itself.
This initial surge is what generally does physical damage during outages, so you need a UPS to
provide a shield against it.
The other way a UPS protects you is, of course, the battery backup. Depending on your needs, budget, and existing power consumption, there are batteries available that can maintain power anywhere from a few minutes, to a few hours. Some of the better UPS manufacturers, such as Tripp Lite, also allow multiple batteries to be connected, further extending coverage.
These systems have split-second sensors that immediately detect a power outage and switch over to backup battery power before there's any interruption at all. That's important, considering that backup generators usually take at least a few minutes to turn the lights on.
Any unexpected network outage can cause data loss, and even a few minutes' down time will ultimately cost you in the long run. So, even if you have a backup generator, a battery system is a solid investment.
The Protection That Pays For Itself
Fundamentally, if your firm is worried about the cost of a UPS battery backup system, just know that it will likely pay for itself fully the first time it has to be used. Between the loss of revenue from the outage itself, and the potential cost of hardware damage, it's an insurance policy that simply makes sense.
And if you're currently running without power protection, just let us know, and we'll ensure your network is fully protected ASAP.
