Electrical Surge Protection: August 2020

Friday, August 28, 2020

The Need For Industrial Surge Protection

Microprocessors and other forms of sensitive electronic equipment is depended upon fine much of today’s industrial and professional systems in place within industrial businesses. This means that nearly every aspect of our lives are more dependent upon have been higher levels of protection from electrical surges than ever. The logic controls and embedded microprocessors, as well as computers and other devices all utilized electronic circuitry in the automation process. Motor speed and machine programming as well as tool changes within the sophisticated manufacturing systems of today’s industrial businesses are especially vulnerable to these types of mishaps. Power surges wreak have a on processes high cost and interruptions and catastrophic failures, as well as creating premature aging of computer equipment. Through the use of industrial surge protection devices, industrial processes and manufacturers can mitigate the ongoing problems and disruptions caused by surge events.

There are multiple types a surge events which are externally generated, ranging from grid switching to lightning strikes. These problems present themselves at random times over and above the damage that is caused by internally generated surges. Overvoltage events they are created by the utilities themselves as well as power fluctuations which are created by machinery operating in other areas of the same facility will all have an adverse effect on both the machinery and processes themselves as well as the productivity. Facility-wide surge protection must be in place at home of the stages of the electrical distribution system, ranging from single-phase loads all the way to the electrical service entrance. Only industrial grade surge protection devices are acceptable solutions to mitigating the issues created by these surge events.

Lightning strikes can happens either directly to the equipment or locally to the power lines which are connected to the equipment operating inside of the facility. The direct strike is a rare occurrence but will cause extensive damage if not properly protected against. Direct lightning strikes on high voltage lines as well as other metallic structures are mitigated through the use of grounding air terminals and shielding above the structures. This type of protection does not remove the risks associated with lightning damage which happens down line, nor does it helped to reduce the severity of damage when it does happen. Local strikes damage equipment by creating the massive power surge which utilizes power lines enter into buildings in order to overwhelm equipment downstream. Equipment damage of this type can happen as a result of lightning strikes that occurred not only outside of the facility but miles away. This is why surge protection devices should be installed as close to the equipment as possible for optimal operation. There are many different types of events which can create power surges, all having the same types of damaging effects on the systems that are relied upon within any businesses. Through the installation of technologically advanced surge protection devices which are manufactured to handle industrial grade loads, business can maintain a more stable schedule as well as seeing them are wards of equipment life span extension.

Industrial Surge Protection Is More Important Than Ever

As our lives become more technologically driven, we are more reliant upon industrial processes to not only manufacture the goods that utilize, but also to provide the connectivity and safety that we rely upon. Most things ranging from the clothing that we wear to the cell phones in our hands are reliant on the industrial process in order to make our lives more convenient. Industrial facilities having evolved over time to be far more technologically advanced than they ever have been in the past. Advanced computer equipment and microprocessors as well as other circuit driven equipment are now found in almost every manufacturing process, and the costs that we pay as consumers are direct reflections of the improvements in speed and efficiency of these processes that has been caused by the integration of technologically advanced equipment. Aspects of the process which are impacted in a negative way, or shut down completely will ultimately result in consumers’ needing to pay more for goods and services, or except a lower standard from the connectivity wear safety we have come to grow used to. Many of these negative impacts on industrial processes come from the natural events like lightning strikes. The direct strike to the equipment used industrial facilities is rare, but will generally cost significant amount of damage both at the strike point and as a result of the subsequent power surge. The way that direct strikes are protected against our through the installation of overhead shielding and grounding equipment. Strikes that happen to the power and connectivity lines which run outside of the facility are less rare and more problematic. The power generated by the lightning strike travels along these lines effectively. This causes massive amounts of electricity to come into direct contact with the equipment which is utilized in the process, ultimately damaging the circuitry needed to keep these processes online. The chain of events which happens as when equipment piece is affected and then the next can create the catastrophic event where the equipment is so damaged than it needs to be replaced completely. These types of events take the process is offline and ultimately create slowdowns which will increase customer prices. Through the integration of surge protection devices in a redundant format and installed as close to the equipment as possible, these types overvoltage events can be mitigated if not avoided altogether. This allows for industrial facilities to continue to maintain operations in a more effective manner and for longer periods of time, allowing prices to remain low for the consumers. The industrial processes that result in connectivity also are able to remain online for longer timeframes, translating into the larger ability four people to be productive themselves. In this way, our own personal lives rely upon industrial surge protection directly. From the clothes we wear to the computers that we use and the internet we connect to in order to provide our own additions to productivity, we are depending on industrial surge protection more than ever.

Surge Protection Keeps You Productive

One of the most interesting developments over the course of the last 20 years has been the evolution of the cellular phone, and the reliance upon it by the general public. Just two decades ago, a cellular phone was a new type of device that gave you the ability to receive or make a phone call without being connected to a line. This functionality was provided by towers which were installed in a position that would provide an uninterrupted line between the cellular device and the top of the tower. The signals that were being sent and received from the device to the tower top were then processed and sent through the network to that person on the receiving end of the call. This type of setup has evolved technologically in order to provide more enhanced services for the person using the cellular phone, but both the generalized makeup of the process as well as the potential pitfalls of it have remained in place. Cellular phones themselves have become more enhanced with the ability to transfer larger amounts of data using the same network. This is how cellular calls ultimately became the ability to access the internet, stream video and send pictures. Only through the ability to transfer larger packets of data were any of these processes able to become a reality, and only through the upgrading of the equipment involved in the process were these things able to manifest themselves. The stakes became higher as the need for more technologically advanced and robust equipment presented itself, all costing more to both put in place and keep operational. At the same time as these advanced services have become more commonplace, costs associated with operating the network has been driven down, allowing customers to become used to low prices and advanced services all at once. Because cost cutting through a reduction of service would ultimately lose customers in today’s landscape, the only way to continually drive the rise in operational costs down is to improve the process. This involves creating ways to extend the operational life span of the equipment used, or improve the maintenance and replacement of that equipment. One of the best ways that this is being accomplished is through the installation of more advanced surge protection devices, which minimize the amount of damage created by natural events like lightning strikes. The lightning strike produces an electrical transients which can overwhelm any equipment between the top of the tower and the network, as it travels along connectivity lines as well as power lines. These surges, only produce outages that reduce the ability for customers to connect as well as send or receive data. As more effective prevention measures are developed which will reduce the amount of cost associated with lightning strike damage even more, we will see cellular providers able to provide even better services at lower costs than we do today. Surge protection devices are able to keep us online and productive in today’s connected world.

Protection Of Equipment In Cell Towers Keeps You Online

Just a few years ago it would be unthinkable that you would not use your computer for the majority of your daily life. Only two decades ago your cell phone was just a novelty that allowed you to receive and make phone calls without having to be connected to a cord, but few could ever envisioned what would ultimately become a total dominance of the internet space by cellular phones. This has led to a near total replacement of that connected computer sitting on your desk with your phone. It evolved from being able to create clearer calls and better connectivity through an upgrade of the equipment involved in the process to actually transmitting larger packets of data across the network. Once it was realized that this could be possible, the integration of internet connections was the next logical step. Once you were able to make calls, connect to the internet and stream video to a variety of platforms, the cellular phone has become the way that people remain productive in innumerable ways. It also creates the issue of total reliance upon that connection in order to have so many aspects of your life remain functional. If your phone cannot connect to the towers around it, your life almost stops completely as far as productivity goes. Most people do not have a backup phone line to rely upon, and fewer every year have another source of internet connectivity. This results in a simple problem in between that our closest to your phone and the network resulting in you having almost no ability to do the things that are necessary for you to do throughout your day. As a result of the magnitude of this issue, cellular providers have invested heavily in surge protection devices for their towers and equipment in the field.

Because of the general makeup of a cellular tower, they are magnets for lightning strikes. Being the tallest structure in a region is necessary in order to provide uninterrupted signals to the users on the ground, but this physical characteristic also makes the tower the prime target for lightning strikes. The materials with which the tower is constructed also play a role in the attraction of lightning. The damage as a result of a lightning strike to the tower itself is seen as not only the damage that occurs at the strike point but also the damage that occurs as a result of both network outages and equipment overload. Lightning strikes produce a massive power surge which will damage the circuitry of the equipment which is used at the top of the tower to receive your signal as well as the bottom of the tower which sends that information to the network. Equipment at these positions are connected through both power lines as well as data transfer coaxial cables, both of which provide a perfect pathway for the electrical surge which damages that equipment. Only through heavy investment into surge protection devices are cellular providers able to keep your calls connected and your internet and functional.