Industrialized facilities face a unique suite of issues that potentially reduces the amount of profit that can be generated through the facility. Where other types of businesses will seek methods of increasing profitability that involve cheaper materials or more efficiency in the work process, industrial facilities also face potential losses through equipment damage that happens at far higher rates than other types of businesses. This characteristic can be found in industrialized facilities across all types of business models. This primarily has to do with the modern methods of doing business being technologically advanced, and the necessity to modernize in order to maintain competitiveness. Businesses must utilize expensive computer equipment in order to compete with others who have done the same, and each new piece of technologically advanced equipment that is placed into service increases the risk of losses. This is because industrial types of businesses are far more exposed and impacted by weather conditions than other types of businesses. More specifically, industrial facilities must operate under the constant threat of weather events such as lighting strikes to their exposed areas, destroying the expensive electronic equipment used in the process.
It is difficult to find an industry today that does not have computers or other circuit driven equipment involved in the process. This equipment is directly connected to other pieces of equipment, or to the structure it is housed within. In an industrial plant, the tallest structures in a region, being constructed of materials that can conduct electricity, makes them a prime target for lightning strike, and that strike produces a power surge large enough to destroy the circuitry in even the most robust components. This leads to that component needing to be repaired or replaced, adding to the costs typically associated with routine maintenance. Predictable profits generated through an ongoing process are impacted by these types of events and can potentially be more than a business can withstand. This is why it is so critical for facilities of this type to install the most robust lightning protection and surge interruption devices possible. In this case, profit is increased through damage being decreased. The costs of installing surge protection devices and systems rarely outweighs the costs that a single strike can produce.
Surge protection devices on this level are not the same as the surge strips in your home. They are tasked with protecting equipment and processes worth millions of dollars, and as such they must work on a level far higher than most consumers will ever experience. The modern surge protection devices for industrial use are nearly instantaneous and constructed of materials that allow operation in the most hazardous of circumstances. They are also able to remain functional even after a surge instance, which was unheard of in the past. Through the elimination of potential “second strike” damage to unprotected components once a device is rendered inoperable, profitability within industrial businesses can reach newfound heights. The technology of surge protection is ever-evolving as well, and in the future will do even more.