Ensuring your Backup Power is kept up and running

Backup power (UPS) failure could have some serious consequences on critical equipment. Although a battery replacement may be the answer, in a lot of other cases, the entire UPS may need to be replaced. When you have an aging UPS, conditions such as environment, improper maintenance, general wear and tear or a poorly specified UPS, will have an effect on when you will need to start considering what your options are. These options can include buy new, refurbishing (extending the age and performance of the current UPS for a few years) or do nothing (also known as “run-to-fail”).

Weighing up if a UPS needs to be replaced or repaired, we consider the following:

• If service support has come to an end and the UPS is 10 years old or more, the unit may no longer be eligible for a service support. Unavailability of spare parts from the OEM may also make repairs impossible

• As the equipment ages, infrequent maintenance increases the risk of failure leading to higher repair costs

• The critical load that the UPS is supporting is at higher risk

When replacing the UPS, you also need to take into consideration the current and future load requirements, whether this will be removing or adding to your UPS load. A replacement unit may not necessarily need to be a similar size to what is currently in situ.Should you do nothing (run-to-fail)? The UPS’s health should still be regularly monitored as the load could fail without warning. We recommend installing Remote Monitoring software to avoid unnecessary ‘alarm storms’.

Could your UPS be refurbished or repaired?

Sometimes buying a completely new UPS outweighs what it may cost to repair your current one. However a new UPS may be more energy efficient and contribute to your sustainability goals. With a reduced footprint, they may be more compact and take up less space. With up-to-date service technology and remote monitoring software capabilities in newer UPS models, this also allows you to have 24/7 access to monitoring and managing your UPS. This can prevent costly and potentially unnecessary callouts as it provides instant information about the health of your system with smart tool predictions.

Continu are specialist experts on helping you size and specify a backup power system. Our vendor neutral approach and extensive supply chain works to meet your application and budget requirements – contact us today.