Power Reliability

Abstract

Reliable electrical power is required for safety, security, financial,
and many other business reasons. This article will discuss the levels of
power continuity, and various methods for making sure that reliable
power is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The cost of power
continuity is directly related to increased availability, and reliability. The
cost of downtime can be measured by the loss of human life, product,
equipment, revenue and inconvenience. Uptime cost must be weighed
against the cost of providing additional equipment, which can include
on-site generation, redundant services, and UPS systems. Equally im-
portant for obtaining power reliability are proper design, redundancy,
and elimination of single points of failure; training, testing and mainte-
nance.