Office settings with computers often have black boxes with all kinds of power cords plugged into them. But have you ever thought about what these items are and what they do? Coming in all shapes and sizes ranging from thick power strips to small, “computer-looking” devices, UPS – Uninterruptible Power Supplies – can prevent a lot of employee heartbreak in the event electricity goes out for a short period of time.
It only takes roughly two seconds or less for a computer to reset itself, but you are at high risk for losing all your work if the auto-save function didn’t do its job. The cost of UPS devices ranges from $60 to several thousand, but you can get effective protection in the $60 to $200 range. I’ll bet the cost of losing that work would be a lot more than $200!
Below are some of the key benefits of having an inexpensive UPS device in your workplace or home.
UPS can keep a business going during a power outage
Point-of-Sales devices – such as one used to process card payments – cannot keep operating unless they are powered. Pure and simple. Consider this situation: A car/truck hits a local power pole or a tree limb falls on an electrical line and knocks out electricity in a given area. If a customer is in the middle of a transaction and your systems are out what will happen to that transaction? A customer in the middle of an order may not be able to complete the process, and a small business can find customers walking out the door leaving their purchases (or, rather, potential purchases) sitting on the counter.
How lame would it be to have to tell your customers “Sorry, the system is down” when a simple UPS could have kept the payment process going. Is that point-of-sale device dependent on a computer in your building or a communication point? Should that have a UPS as well? For a few hundred dollars, you can keep transactions going. That’s a small price to pay to keep business going and customers’ happy.
UPS offers a level of protection (such as surge protection during brownouts)
A simple way to look at a UPS device is that it takes electricity from the outlet and puts it in a battery. When the electricity goes outside a certain range, it takes that battery power and passes it through to your device (or whatever is plugged into it). Like a spider that’s ready and waiting to jump on top of a bug, the UPS can switch itself in between the outlet and device when it detects “bad power.”
The effects of lightning, surges and other “noises” that can damage sensitive systems and render a thousand-dollar system to mush in no time can be eliminated by UPS. One could consider this more than “just for protection”. It can be an “asset-saver” for sensitive systems that, if taken down, can leave you without your critical computer systems for several weeks until fully restored. How much would THAT cost?
UPS is generator compatible
In certain situations, you may have access to power provided by a backup-generator. While this can be a relief, it may not always be a good thing. Depending on the configuration and model, generators can produce power that is not “sensitive-component friendly”. Variations in the generator’s output can wreak havoc with a server, point-of-sale device, monitors, televisions, communication systems, to give but a few examples. A UPS system can help smooth these issues out and make a backup power system friendlier to your electronics, allowing them to run on a generator for extended periods.
UPS can warn you about potential problems
While many businesses can benefit from having a UPS system, you need to think a little farther than simply plugging a device into a UPS. Eventually the batteries in a UPS will die and whatever you have plugged into it will cease to operate while power is still out. In some situations, this is simply annoying. But in other cases, this could be as catastrophic as the power failure itself.
While the UPS will allow you to extend your operational time and complete tasks you were in the middle of, they do have limitations you need to prepare for. Some UPS systems come with software applications that can alert the computer system they are tied to that the batteries are running low. This can alert the operator and help a computer to shut down properly, reducing the risk of losing important data and files. If your UPS is powering a server, this can be a critical benefit to have. When considering a UPS system, especially for servers, consider this feature.
UPS is more than just power maintainability
Many UPS systems have extra connections other than just a power cable and outlets. Many are coming with the ability to connect coax cables (for cable television), phone cable connections and even network cable connections. These often-forgotten lines can still carry damaging lightning spikes and surges that connections were not designed to handle. Passing these connections through a UPS that has these features can help reduce the risk of damage through these lines.
Summary
The physical and electrical protection to equipment can be immeasurable not only in not having to replace equipment but also in the effort needed to process paperwork and insurance claims, and in rebuilding systems once actual hardware is received. Could spending a few hundred dollars to prevent such an event be worth it? Do the math!
Griffin Works offers Pawsitive Interactions with Service Dogs During Response Operations©, an audience-customized training that breaks down barriers by offering hands-on handling training and demonstrations with working service dogs for fire departments, EMS agencies, and public safety organizations.
Part of the National Domestic Preparedness Consortium and home to the National Emergency Response and Recovery Training Center, TEEX has been leading homeland security training since 1998. The major TEEX programs include fire and rescue, infrastructure and safety, law enforcement, economic and workforce development, and homeland security. As a member of The Texas A&M University System, TEEX is unique in its ability to access a broad range of emerging research and technical expertise. Beginning with course design and development all the way through hands-on instruction and national certification testing, TEEX delivers comprehensive training through both classroom and hands-on instruction and as online courses.
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) was created by Congress in 2000 as part of the Children’s Health Act to raise the standard of care and increase access to services for children and families who experience or witness traumatic events. This unique network of child-serving professionals, caregivers and young adults, researchers, and national partners is committed to changing the course of children’s lives by improving their care and moving scientific gains quickly into practice across the U.S. The NCTSN is administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and coordinated by the UCLA-Duke University National Center for Child Traumatic Stress (NCCTS).
The Emergency Management Institute (EMI) is part of the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The EMI provides national leadership in developing and delivering training to ensure that individuals and groups having key emergency management responsibilities possess the requisite skills to effectively perform their jobs.
The High Alert Institute maintains a list of reviewed courses provided by governments, universities and professional organizations. This list is geared towards the non-emergency management person who participates in disaster planning, preparedness, response, recovery or mitigation as part of their job responsibilities.
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Koi need forever homes, too! For pond enthusiasts, freshwater exotic and ornamental fish may not be available through pet stores or rescues in their area. The High Alert Institute Aquatic Pet Shelter Rehoming Program will be happy to assist you in stocking your new pond or adding a new finned friend to your school. Coming soon – when you adopt a Koi from the High Alert Institute Aquatic Pet Shelter Rehoming Program, we can arrange for delivery to your door anywhere in the continental United States.
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Dumping of freshwater non-native species and exotic aquatic pets into wild habitats is a man-made disaster that is truly preventable. The Institute’s Aquatic Pet Welfare Partnership works to raise awareness and reduce the impact on healthy ecosystems through education, as well as rescue and rehoming. Joined by champions of animal welfare and environmental stewardship, this association of aquatic pet rescue operations and aquatic pet shelters across the United States aims to save our finned friends and preserve our waterways together.
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Disasters are defined as situations in which needs exceed or overwhelm available resources. Some disasters affect an entire community, while other disasters impact individuals and families. Crises of physical or psychological health can be very personal disasters.
The therapeutic value of pets during illness, trauma, and recovery is well established. And Koi fish may be well suited for people who are not able to provide verbal pet commands or physically care for pets like dogs and cats. Koi ponds are also a source of beauty and peace, providing an ideal setting for quiet reflection or meditation.
We are working to partner with pond installers and aquatic pet rescues/shelters to offer free or reduced-cost ponds with rehomed Koi fish to people seeking this type of pet therapy.
Disasters disrupt life and impact our sense of personal, family, and community safety. Survivors and responders alike often are not aware of the emotional, psychological or spiritual challenges that they may face from disaster onset through recovery. With two decades of experience training responders and communities to prepare for the behavioral health aspects of disasters, we will continue to provide education and a curated list of resources to groups or individuals.
Non-medical factors that impact overall health are termed Social Determinants of Health or SDoH. Noise pollution, poor air quality, and poor water quality are three environmental factors known to have a strong link to overall health. And the same environmental factors that impact humans impact their pets and other animals in their care. We continue to assist in advocacy, education, and technology development to mitigate the impact of SDoH on humans and animals alike.
Our efforts in shelter and rescue are the main focus of our environmental stewardship, reducing the environmental impact of non-native aquatic animals being dumped into public waterways. The High Alert Institute also assists innovators with the design, development, and evaluation of green and renewable energy technologies. Reducing the carbon footprint associated with disaster preparedness, response, and recovery furthers our continued mission to mitigate risk and improve resilience.
We partner with public and private organizations, sharing resources and fostering partnerships to improve disaster preparedness, response, and recovery, and mitigation.
The High Alert Institute team has over a century of combined research experience in medical, nursing, behavioral health, and disaster sciences. Our team provides support to researchers and technology developers through comprehensive literature searches and reviews, as well as failure mode database searches and adjudicated reviews.
When disaster strikes, most aquatic pet owners have limited options to secure the safety of their pets. Sheltering in place may not be possible if there is no power to provide aeration and “pet-friendly” shelters do not include ponds or aquariums. Our goal is to provide an option for aquatic pet owners in need of rescue and shelter for their finned friends.
Our goal is to share our two decades of disaster readiness experience with animal welfare organizations, shelters, caretakers, and pet owners, as they implement contingency plans for natural and manmade disasters.
