Transient Voltage Surge Suppression Devices
Most “industrial style” businesses will need to involve the use of methods to suppress power surges in some way. Any setup of equipment in the field is going to expose it to a potential for damage, and in order to remain profitable, businesses must take steps toward minimizing this damage. This involves precautionary installations of devices which can prevent the most common types of damage, because it is not but a matter of time until they will happen. Lightning strikes and power surges from internal equipment switching are some of the most costly occurrences that produce damage that is able to be minimized through technology, but in order to be effective most surge protective devices must be either replugged or replaced after they protect from an incident. If they are not, they leave the system open to future surge damage.
The integration of transient voltage surge suppression devices is critical to minimizing equipment repair costs, but is also one of the most frustrating aspects of equipment setup. This is due to the fact that surge suppression devices have a single function which is to prevent a power surge, caused by any reason, from coming into contact with equipment outfitted with electronic circuitry that cannot handle that level of power flow. “Electrical transients” are disturbances in the constant flow levels of electricity, the levels that equipment that is powered by this flow are designed to be able to operate within. The tolerances of the equipment are less than the tolerances of the power lines themselves, which can manage a far larger flow. The job of cutting the flow when it exceeds a certain level so as to protect the circuitry of the equipment attached is bestowed upon surge protection devices. The voltages that equipment can operate under are generally defined through the plugging mechanisms that attach the equipment to the power lines, however even though the flow of electricity is nearly always regulated within the safe zone, lightning strikes around these lines will easily allow the surplus power to enter lines and flow freely. Without the precautionary devices installed onto the lines that will cut the flow by diverting it to ground, this excess will easily reach any equipment attached, thus damaging or destroying it in an instant. The surge protection devices simply sit in a dormant state for nearly their entire existence, waiting for that single moment when power surges beyond the tolerances that are specified in order to cut off the flow beyond them.
Surge protection devices have grown increasingly technological, moving far beyond the simple circuit breakers or cutoff switches of the past. While these devices are still used globally, expensive equipment is generally protected by technologically advanced devices that can ultimately remain functional through the surge, and beyond it. While traditional surge protection technology allows for only a single use before the tripped circuit needs to be reset or replaced, new technology can provide protection even after the surge instance. While lightning rarely strikes twice, simple switching errors cause surges that can happen every time systems are powered up or powered down. Modern surge suppression devices are capable of reducing these transients to managed levels, and then continuing operations afterward. If surge protection devices remain un-noticed in the modern world, then they are performing their job.
