However, the cooling systems that support the data center are often backed up by generator power only. Most data centers today incorporate UPS systems into their design that provide uninterruptible power to the IT equipment. The following elements represent some of the critical success factors that come into play when weighing the trade-offs of capital costs and availability: Providing UPS Power to the Critical Loads The UPS system must be properly designed to achieve an optimized balance between capital costs and the availability of uninterruptible electrical power. The UPS is arguably the most important component in any data center and the UPS batteries are arguably the weakest link. Critical Success Factors to Consider for Power Backup

This can cost an organization millions of dollars (depending on the industry) and impact customer satisfaction and/or their brand and reputation. A power interruption of 60 seconds can result in a recovery period of hours or days to restart the IT systems and applications that have been affected.

In a data center environment, for example, any power interruption of more than 20 milliseconds can cause IT systems to crash. Investments in UPS and generator technologies are required because power anomalies, both brief and extended, can disrupt operations. The generator set serves as long-term power backup (typically days) while the UPS systems serve as a bridge (typically minutes) until such time as the generators come online to support the critical load.

In most cases, a tandem of Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS) and generators provides the means for achieving reliable backup power. Given these external factors, commercial businesses, industrial sites and data centers are increasingly reliant on their onsite backup power generation systems. This is largely due to three major factors: 1) utility transmission grids have experienced very few, major infrastructure upgrades 2) the addition of renewable energies to grid networks has made the challenge of maintaining a stable energy delivery environment more complex and 3) an increase in catastrophic extreme weather events has added to the level of power instability and the associated risk to business resilience. Over the last 40 years, the world’s power grids have become more and more unstable.

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