UPSs OPTIMIZE UPTIME IN AN E-BUSINESS WORLD
Achieving Power Management & Protection Without Wasting Resources

By Darrick Finan

In today's era of razor-thin profit margins and ever-increasing global competition, tightly managing costs becomes more important than ever. Network protection is subject to these cost pressures and dwindling budgets. Large firms with full-time applications can lose as much as $108,000 per minute of downtime (Contingency Planning Research, Inc.). In this environment, the challenge of guarding against lost business time and revenue, while maintaining strict budgets, is difficult. The e-revolution requires organizations to be efficient and productive 24x7; business downtime is intolerable. Power protection becomes a necessity. Carefully examine your power protection needs, and who supplies management solutions to get the best value for your investment.

POWER PROBLEMS
The quality of power supplied by your local utility company can be deceiving. One assumes that utility power is a steady, consistent stream feeding all electrical devices. That is not always the case. Unfortunately, the quality of power varies, shortening the life span of system components and creating problems affecting the availability and integrity of data. Unconditioned power from the utility company may be adequate for many electronic devices, but it is not always suitable for sophisticated electronics, such as computer equipment, telecommunication systems, or other digital technology.

Many fluctuations go unnoticed everyday - power surges, high voltage spikes, and power sags. Other, more visible power problems include blackouts and brownouts. Whether easily detectable or not, fluctuations can cause costly computer downtime and data loss. Annually $26 Billion of lost time and revenue can be attributed to power related problems (Business Week). The U.S. Bureau of Labor reports that 93 percent of companies that suffer a significant data loss are out of business within five years. It is more costly than ever to be without proper power protection.

POWER AUDIT
While several options are available to help determine an organization's total power needs, the best and safest is a professional power audit. A power audit is a physical inspection of your brick-and-mortar site by a trained power engineer. The engineer, using power measurement tools, can analyze key areas in your system detecting potential or ongoing problems. The data collected from the inspection aids the engineer in selecting appropriate levels of power protection for the facility. Without an audit, you might purchase more protection than necessary, incurring unnecessary expense. Or worse, purchase less protection than your system requires, leaving critical equipment and data vulnerable to unexpected power problems.

STRATEGIC POWER SOLUTIONS
Once your power management needs are clearly defined, the next challenge is to find an uninterruptible power system (UPS) provider offering solutions tailored to your specific needs. UPS providers taking a "solutions" approach having the capacity to offer a variety of products and services can closely match your exact needs. In some cases, for example, a centralized UPS might be more appropriate than several smaller, distributed systems. Strategic UPS solutions involve far more than a "box of batteries" designed only to react when power problems occur. Strategic power management involves a broad range of products, technologies, and services.

HARDWARE
There are three main types of UPS technologies: stand-by, line-interactive and on-line.

Stand-by UPS
Standby UPSs are the best solution for less critical applications requiring minimal battery back-up, such as a single desktop. Power voltage and frequency changes are not regulated by a stand-by UPS. Therefore, these inconsistencies pass through your system. Standby UPSs offer only limited protection against power sags, frequency variations, and brownouts. Only in the case of power failure does a stand-by UPS offer complete protection. Thus, it is the least expensive of the three types.

Line-Interactive UPS
Line-interactive UPSs provide basic power needs, with a degree of added protection. These designs offer simple voltage regulation by using a transformer to step-up or step-down the utility voltage during brownout and over-voltage conditions. Some line-interactive designs use the internal UPS batteries to provide power during transformer switching, reducing the useful life of the battery. It is important to select a line-interactive product that minimizes use of the battery in normal, day-to-day utility voltage corrections. Line-interactive designs frequently provide a higher level of communications support than stand-by products, a good choice for protecting applications such as workstations and LAN servers less tolerant of utility voltage swings that benefit from the use of power management software for power monitoring and automatic graceful system shutdown.

On-line UPS
On-line UPSs provide the most comprehensive power protection and often the most robust communications and network support. This technology actually replaces the utility as the primary source of power by converting the utility AC voltage to tightly regulated DC voltage then electronically "synthesizing" continuous, clean AC power. This topology eliminates AC power disturbances and transients from reaching your critical systems and provides steady, continuous power regardless of the condition of the utility voltage. On-line designs often have wider tolerance for utility voltage changes and can compensate electronically for most sags and over-voltages without using the internal UPS batteries. This, in turn, extends the useful life of the batteries, reducing the number of battery replacements necessary.

On-line UPS products are the correct choice for applications where availability and long-term reliability are key concerns. Sine wave output systems, like on-line designs, are the best option when computer systems have power factor corrected (PFC) power supplies. Be aware that not all UPS manufacturers have on-line systems and may attempt to sell another topology instead. When protecting highly sensitive or highly critical equipment, the only proper solution is a true on-line UPS. The initial purchase price of an on-line UPS may be slightly higher than other topologies, but the added functionality and protection prevents you from having to buy additional equipment such as line conditioners. Purchasing one UPS to serve all your needs is more cost-efficient than buying several smaller, less functional systems.

SOFTWARE
Today's network power management software products provide graceful shutdown of your operating system. They also provide configurable shutdown parameters which allow you to select how much time to spend on the battery prior to the shutdown process, in most cases, turning the UPS off to prevent complete discharge of the battery. Advanced power management software allows you to program automatic shutdown and start-up of your system. Some enterprises may want to shut systems down to conserve energy. Others may need to do so out of necessity, especially in places where power is periodically suspended on predetermined schedules.

Advanced network power management software packages provide a log of power events that have occurred during a specific period of time. Using this data, an analysis can be performed to spot trends and resolve chronic power problems. Advanced packages also contain battery testing, real-time meters, and/or power waveform graphs. Network managers should carefully consider power problems they have faced and select a software solution which not only meets today's needs but also anticipates future issues. Helpful features might include using diagnostic tools and standard communication protocol.

Network managers are expected to effectively manage increasingly complex networks without proportional increases in resources. Advanced power management software with remote monitoring capabilities can assist network managers administering large numbers of computers or network devices geographically dispersed. Remote monitoring and other advance features, such as e-mail and pager notification for Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) messages, allow network managers to monitor enterprise-wide power from a single workstation. Higher-end software packages offer remote retrieval of battery information, making UPS maintenance planning much easier and cost-effective.

SERVICE
An often overlooked, but very important component for controlling power management expense is service. The concept of UPS service has evolved with technology and products to the point of becoming proactive. Leading-edge customer service is a technologically based discipline, going far beyond correcting malfunctions. Typically, service packages provide warranties, installation, maintenance, repairs, training and consulting.

When selecting a UPS vendor, and trying to keep costs to a minimum, you need backing and support, depot repair services, and 24-hour access to in-field service technicians. One point of contact saves both time and money.

While plug-and-play is an important functionality consideration, so is access to the technical capabilities of trained technicians and power engineers. The service team needs to have in-depth understanding of UPS technologies and other power components, experience in power analysis, system-wide installations, diagnostics, and repairs.

INFORMATION AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
Finally, in this fast-paced technologically advanced environment, it is imperative to have access to a UPS manufacturer's Web site. Presence on the Internet contributes to cost savings through features such as timely access to software upgrades, technical support, product configurations, and on-line ordering. Just as a good service package should provide one telephone number for a range of support, a good UPS Web site should offer a broad range of helpful information in an easy to use format. Optimizing expenses involves keeping an eye on the future and learning about new trends and technologies.

THE ANSWER
Understanding your needs and knowing what you're purchasing are the two most important factors when selecting power management solutions. In an effort to reduce expenses, you might be tempted to purchase a low-cost power management solution to protect your systems or network. This is not always advisable. Power protection must not be viewed as merely an expense, rather an investment in availability assurance. The cost of losing critical data or replacing systems is far greater than the investment you'll make in any UPS solution.

Strategic power management takes all variables into account, addressing them with advanced technologies, a full range of hardware and software product options, responsive service, and strategic partnerships. Carefully planned UPS solutions provide necessary protection without wasting resources. With strategic power management, your enterprise will enjoy higher systems availability, lower service costs and improved network user satisfaction.

About the Author
Darrick Finan is director of marketing at Powerware Corporation, headquartered in Raleigh, NC. For more information on this topic visit www.powerware.com or call toll free 1-877-PWRWARE (U.S. and Canada).