Continuing our series on critical power needs beyond the data center, which we typically think of when discussing uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems, this month we are going to focus on government and military applications.
Government facilities have very unique and specific power requirements.
Many government facilities routinely handle and store a wealth of sensitive information. They monitor intelligence, emergency, and security incidents nationwide. An unexpected loss of power could cause a serious breach of privacy or pose a significant threat to national security.
Government office buildings
Government backup power needs span from the seemingly mundane to the hyper critical. UPS systems are needed at office buildings, military bases, and other government facilities.
Although your average office building doesn’t seem necessarily important, the people that work in the building perform vital tasks for the continuous operation of our government. Many of their systems require power to complete their jobs, including:
- Office equipment
- Computers, server systems, and equipment rooms
- Communications systems
- Data centers
- Lighting systems
During outages and emergencies, it is important to ensure that critical systems remain online and emergency communications and lighting are available for your facility to operate fully and safely until grid power is restored.
Military power needs
Power outages also pose a major risk for the military. Backup power systems are necessary to provide a resilient energy system to sustain critical operations during a blackout on bases. Reliable mobile power is also critical in the field.
Military facilities, like other government offices, house a large amount of secure data. Privacy for citizens and protection of national security are put in jeopardy during an outage. It is not only virtual data that is at risk, infrastructure is at risk as well. For example, the U.S. Department of Defense owns 300,000 buildings domestically. That creates a huge infrastructure vulnerability.
Beyond the military’s internal needs and concerns during a power outage, it has become increasingly important to the public that the military is ready to activate domestically during a natural disaster. For example, in 2012, Hurricane Sandy left 8.5 million people without power in seventeen states. The military was brought in to help with rescue and cleanup activities. Without the use of backup power, they would not have been able to fulfill these duties.
UPS systems are a critical infrastructure component in all government and military facilities. Track your battery state-of-health with one of our testing or monitoring products.