Lightning Surge Protection

Read More: https://www.raycap.com/industrial-lightning-protection/

 

The unique elements of industrial facilities and regions makes them especially problematic with regards to lightning-related damage. To fully understand the harm that unprotected industrial setups can undergo when the inevitable lightning strike happens, we must first understand exactly why they are so susceptible to this type of damage. The physical positioning and makeup of the facilities and systems is the issue, with industrial applications almost always possessing both characteristics. The most obvious is the placement itself, because industrial businesses need to be apart and away from other types of development. This is why most regions will zone areas as industrial, because the noise and ongoing business activities make this type of setup undesirable for other businesses or living spaces to be in close proximity to. Because of this isolation, lightning is most likely to strike areas within that facility, as it is attracted to the easiest path to the earth. Simply put, if there is nothing else around to attract the lightning to strike, it has to strike somewhere. This means that the facility itself is the inevitable target when bad weather is present. The second factor that comes into play is the materials from which elements within these types of facilities are constructed. There is nearly always a large amount of metal involved in the components which can conduct electricity, once again drawing the strike towards itself. This combination of factors almost assures that lighting will strike any industrial facility that is in the path of bad weather, creating damage at the point of the strike in the form of fires and explosions. Additional damage is seen as a result of the power surge that follows the strike, sending extreme levels of electricity along any conductive material that is connected or in close proximity to the strike point. If computerized equipment is directly connected, or mounted to the same structures that are struck, the power surge will do additional damage as it overwhelms the circuitry of the components. This exacerbates the amount of damage that is produced by the lighting strike itself.

 

The defense mechanism against lightning-related damage is prevention of the damage that is inevitable. Although there are ways to attempt to divert the strike to areas where damage will not occur, most good business plans will expect strikes to happen to critical equipment. While the strike-point damage is difficult to avoid, the damage that happens downstream to computerized equipment can be prevented. Through the installation of surge protection devices along the pathways electricity can flow, the damage to the circuitry can be effectively prevented or at least minimized. Using technologically advanced devices that do not need resetting or replugging also means that service can be more easily restored to that process. This not only avoids damage but also minimizes the losses that happen when systems are offline. Surge protection for industrial facilities just makes sense as far as protecting the bottom line, and keeping business moving forward. Is your facility fully protected against lightning?