EARTHING + LIGHTNING PROTECTION
D
espite Eskom’s pronouncement that ‘load-shedding is a thing
of the past’ most electricity users continue to experience
regular power outages. Now under the banner of ‘grid main-
tenance’, these outages continue to plague businesses.
In order for a standby system – such as a battery-powered un-
interruptible power supply (UPS) system – to take over the load on
demand, the importance of regular inspections, service and mainte-
nance regimes cannot be overstated.
UPS systems are constantly on standby, powering silently in the
background. Imperceptibly, they face a number of threats to their
wellbeing on a daily basis.
If a UPS system fails it is almost certainly to be at an inopportune
moment - when a power outage occurs. In such instances, the com-
puter system the malfunctioning UPS supports will shut down and
valuable data could be corrupted or lost. The cost to the company in
terms of downtime will be significant.
Probably the number one cause of UPS malfunctions is battery
failure. Battery life is influenced by many factors including storage
conditions, ambient temperature, battery chemistry issues and shelf-
life. As a rule of thumb, a UPS battery has a life cycle of between
three and six years.
UPS systems:
Threats,
maintenance,
management and
winning designs
Jack Ward, Powermode
Call them what you will …
regular power outages still plague businesses.
Electricity+Control
October ‘16
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