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Ofgem's statement late last year revealed wide spread power cuts could be expected within the next four years, returning the UK to the three-day weeks not seen since 1970s. Combine this stern warning with The National Grid's decision to cut off industrial users on interruptible gas contracts, to give priority to domestic supply, and it is clear harder times could already be upon us.

Last week saw big companies such as British Sugar and Vauxhall's car plant at Ellesmere Port cut off, forcing them to turn to oil-fired generators. This and other recent examples of the fragility of the National Grid demonstrates the potential problems facing UK business, as David Bond, UPSL's managing director, explains: The clear message to come out of these statements and events is that businesses must take their own precautions when it comes to power protection and safeguarding their critical applications. The alternative is to be prepared for a fluctuating supply as well as potential blackouts, brownouts and disconnection rotas.

While renewable energy is developing at an increasing rate, UK investment has been slow, especially when compared with other European nations. This means until a viable and consensual energy plan emerges, trusting that the 'generation gap' will be bridged remains a high risk strategy.
The recent debate over the UK's gas storage has already seen Energy Secretary Ed Miliband concede that the UK needs more gas storage space, amid claims that the country currently has just 15 days. This leaves the UK with far greater exposure to disruptions than France or Germany, who reportedly hold 99 and 122 days respectively. These worrying revelations come at the worst possible time for the government, after it announced that for the first time, the UK was importing more gas from Europe than it draws from its North Sea gasfields.

The issue of gas supplies is also not the end of the matter. The UK's aging power stations are also undoubtedly a cause for concern, with faults and safety issues leading to partial or complete shutdowns, nuclear reactors forced to run at less than full power, and others nearing or already at the end of their service life. Combined with inadequacies in the distribution infrastructure, thousands of firms every year already endure power cuts and fluctuations, causing loss of business and adversely affecting sensitive IT systems and electronic equipment. Variety

We're in a situation where many businesses are requiring more energy to power their business critical applications than ever before, at a time where supply is becoming less reliable. This conflict puts UPS and standby generators at the frontline of business continuity, asserted Bond. We regularly hear from companies tired of power failures affecting their businesses. Power failures can be catastrophic, particularly in a recession when businesses can least afford revenue losses through system downtime. This is why it is so important to implement a robust and flexible power protection strategy, one which can cope with deteriorating supply, more frequent interruptions, and longer term power cuts.
While the need for UPS and standby generators is well established, continued growth of power-hungry servers means that the level of protection provided by legacy systems has in many cases been outstripped, leaving them incorrectly sized for increased loads and all the more vulnerable to mains failures.

Legacy systems which do offer adequate protection are still potentially costing organisations more than is necessary. Modern modular UPS systems offer the redundancy and flexible growth needed to enable businesses to meet changing power needs and provide scalable protection, which is significantly more energy efficient than UPS systems installed a decade or more ago. In fact, the potential cost savings achievable by switching to a modular system, means capital expenditure on new UPS equipment would, in many cases, be recouped by reduced energy consumption and maintenance costs.

In addition, with the prospect of more lengthy mains disruptions standby power is an increasingly essential requirement, providing continuity until the utility supply is restored. We are also seeing double digit growth in our range of standby generators, as businesses opt for a complete solution, with fully matched UPS and standby generators ensuring a 'no-break' solution in the event of a power failure and enable firms to keep critical applications running around the clock. concluded Bond.