When chancellor Jeremy Hunt released his autumn statement on the 17th of November 2022, he told the nation to expect an economic decline of 1.4 per cent in 2023 and the dreaded R word was floated.  

This is another blow to UK businesses after warnings of scheduled ‘blackouts’ during January and February to ration energy was proposed earlier in the year. It is possible that premises may see power being cut for as little as three hours a day but may also experience up to a 24 hour total shutdown.  

The first barrier against outages for premises is the critical power infrastructure and more specifically its uninterruptible power supply (UPS). Many will be relying on an already installed solution but consideration needs to be given as to just how old this solution is. An ageing UPS or one that is no longer sized to meet the demand may give a false sense of security and be unreliable. 

With a recession looming and premises being faced with multiple blackouts, it’s understandable that business owners, facility managers and estate managers may feel as though they are in a damned-if-you-do and damned-if-you-don’t situation. 

On the one hand, postponing the upgrade or replacement of existing UPS will delay Capital Expenditure (CAPEX), however, this runs the risk of encountering high maintenance costs and sudden UPS failure. 

The recent global supply chain problems are also adding to ‘the perfect storm’. Material shortages, parts, and batteries are all on longer lead times than previously. These lead times may result in repair or replacement works taking longer than expected leaving sites vulnerable to unplanned downtime.  

Ever heard the saying prevention is better than cure? The same applies to critical power infrastructures.  

The cost of business downtime, equipment damage and lost revenue far outweighs the cost of replacing a legacy UPS system now. 

 

1. Reduce OPEX (Operational Expenditure)  

While maintaining UPS systems will prolong their lifespan and keep them working at their optimum, all electro-mechanical systems have parts that eventually ware down.  

As UPS systems age, their OPEX increases. This is due to increased maintenance costs with the need for replacement parts, shorter maintenance intervals and a higher frequency of adhoc repairs to systems that are no longer under warranty.  

 

2. Legacy parts becoming harder to source 

Manufacturers will only produce replacement parts for a discontinued UPS for a certain amount of time after the UPS is no longer available. The availability varies between manufacturers but throw into the mix the supply chain disruption currently faced by the UK and finding legacy parts may be even more difficult.  

If a part suddenly fails and a replacement cannot be sourced, the premises may be without protection until a new unit can be installed. It is better to upgrade a system before this becomes a possibility.

  

3. Achieve higher efficiencies  

Efficiency is high on the agenda for many and with the price of energy continuing to soar, the operating efficiency of an older UPS system will be causing an impact on the company’s utility bills.  

Upgrading an old UPS that may be operating at 90% efficiency to a modern one operating at 95% efficiency could give an annual saving of over £10,000. Over the average lifespan of a UPS, the savings would add up to over £100,000.  

Many older UPS systems operate at less than 90% efficiency and some modern UPS achieve over 95% efficiency so the savings made would be even greater. 

 

4. Save on space  

As with a lot of modern technology, UPS systems are becoming smaller and lighter. Replacing an old UPS may help to free up some space within the premises. 

 

5. Premises expansion 

Typically, premises will expand from when a UPS solution was installed on day one. Unless this was considered at the time of installation and a flexible modular UPS was purchased with space to grow, it is recommended that the site is re-assessed to determine whether the current UPS size is still suitable.  

Upgrading to a larger power monolithic solution may be needed or if a premises plans to expand again in the future, a modular solution may want to be considered.  

Whatever the reason is for considering replacing or upgrading a UPS system, Power Control recommends a free health check is carried out on existing equipment. This will determine the state of the existing infrastructure and enable the experienced engineer to make recommendations on what action to take. As part of the health check, the environment in which the UPS is will also be assessed to ensure it is conducive to a ‘healthy’ uninterruptible power supply. 

Request a free UPS health check by calling 01246 431431 or emailing power@powercontrol.co.uk. For more information on our preventative UPS maintenance contracts visit our UPS maintenance page