Technology: Hot, Hot, Hot And Cold!

During last week's freak heatwave, I wrote about the importance of maintenance. Not just for us as humans but the much-required maintenance of technology that we now rely upon day in, day out ...

Our Laptops, PCs, Servers, Switches, Phone Systems, VoIP equipment, mobile smartphones, Wi-Fi and EPOS equipment (to name, but a few) are at risk of overheating and specifically 'static' equipment such as in Plant/Server/Comms Rooms.

"There are two main things to check this week!"

Firstly, did the Air Conditioning Units hold up and keep the room to the optimum temperature and secondly, we now need to check our UPS units to ensure that the batteries are in range and have not been fried in the heat.

We had an incident in a data centre last week, whereby one of the main power units failed and it took down some servers and clients could not access the data for about two hours. Even with all the precautions that data centres take in ensuring 24/7/365 uptime, there is no way of predicting what effects this type of extreme climate has on electronics.

"My local supermarket had a meltdown too. Their freezer went faulty and they had to clear all the frozen stock before it melted away!"

Climate change is nothing new. As mentioned last week, my brother was talking about it forty years ago. People need to change their habits and governments need to stop talking and start doing. No good flying around the world holding conferences and summits. Roll up your sleeves and lead by example is my motto.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand: the humble Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS). The UPS is invaluable for two reasons. It smooths out any power spikes in the event of power surges and protects vital IT and Telecoms equipment and in the event of a power cut, the UPS allows time for all equipment to be functional for a short time, also allowing the equipment to be shut down correctly rather than abruptly so again, protecting those vital servers and switches.

There is now a massive choice in UPS devices, ranging from small units that can protect one piece of equipment, right the way up to data centre versions that can protect entire racks of equipment.

Now is the time to start planning for the extreme changes in climate, not just hot weather, but the possibility of severe cold weather too. So, make sure those AC units can blow out heat as well!

With extreme weather events a regular occurrence now, our electronic equipment is going to be put through some major temperature fluctuations, all be it periodically, but now is the time to consider the best and safest locations within your businesses to ensure it all works as required.

If in doubt, consult your technology partner for the best advice.

If you feel inspired to find out more then do call me on 07555 807700 or leave a comment below and I'll be in touch as soon as I can.