There is no doubt that industrial installations face challenges to equipment longevity including generalized wear and tear as well as other more catastrophic events. In nearly every industry, an industrial level facility will be located in an area where environmental factors can play a part, and the sheltering of equipment from weather events is often minimal. This is because attempting to shelter large amounts of outdoor industrial equipment is not cost effective, and the repair and replacement of the affected equipment costs less than building facilities in order to provide additional shelter from the elements.
Most industrialized installations will have both exposed industrial equipment and sheltered areas that house more sensitive components like computers and data processing machines. However no matter how physically protected these components may be, they can still be threatened by weather conditions, particularly those that involve lightning and electrical disturbances. This is because the equipment has to be connected to an electrical source via copper electrical cables, or is adjacent to things like supply lines or underground pipes. The job of these more sensitive components is generally to control the exposed equipment or to harvest data from that equipment, making direct connections from one to the other necessary. The threat of damage comes not from direct exposure to an electrical strike, but from the resulting power surge produced by lightning strikes. The surges associated with these events can shorten the expected life spans of circuitry within the components, or completely destroy them if the surge produced is large enough. To counterbalance these types of damages, industrial facilities will usually employ industrial grade electrical protection solutions.
Electrical protection for industrial facilities comes in multiple forms, ranging from grounding devices to overhead protection such as lightning attractants that divert strikes away from important components and to ground. A primary form of electrical protection is the surge protective device or SPD, which is installed either on lines or at crucial junction points within the facility. These SPDs are positioned in the direct path of potential electrical flow from one place to the component that is being protected. When an overflow of electricity is detected, these devices will halt that flow through either a complete break in the connection or a diversion of flow to ground, thus never allowing the flow of electricity beyond a measured amount to reach the protected component. Through the installation of surge protection devices at crucial points throughout the system, the functioning life span of most computer equipment in industrial applications can be extended. With the installation of top level SPDs like those manufactured by Raycap, which offer superior protection through innovative design and more robust materials, equipment can enjoy an even greater level of electrical protection than has been seen ever before in the past. For information on Raycap products and how they can benefit your industrial business, contact our representatives today. The next level of protection is here.
