What is
“Dirty Power?” 
Utilities have generated and distributed electrical power the same way for decades. Unfortunately, this unconditioned electrical power can provide abnormalities in the electricity that runs in your facility. This is commonly referred to as “dirty power.” But until the advent of sensitive electronic equipment, “clean power” was never an issue.
In today’s world, almost every business depends on relatively fragile
In fact, downtime and damage caused by dirty power cost North American companies an estimated $26 billion a year.
Today’s industries are looking for cost- effective ways to intercept transients, provide clean power in their facilities, and safeguard their businesses from the astronomical, and unnecessary, cost of dirty power. That’s why Liebert designed the LM Series.
The causes of dirty power are as varied as the names used to describe it — dirty power, electronic rust, surge, spike, transient, fluctuation, interruption or noise. Fortunately, abnormalities typically fall into one of two categories — external or internal.
Hidden Problems Created
By Dirty Power
■Unexplained system disruptions.
■Errors and shutdowns of data transmission, or scrambled and unreadable data.
■Numerous, unexplained server shutdowns and
■Component failure, often well ahead of projected life span.
Causes Outside Your Facility
Lightning, natural disasters and inclement weather can cause high- transient power line voltages that can adversely affect your power supply. Utility switching and faults on the utility’s distribution system can adversely affect the quality of your power before it even reaches your facility. Why? Many utility systems are aging and few power plants
have been built over the last decade. With increased demand for power, their supply margins are dipping dangerously low. The farther away from the source of power, the greater the risk of power quality problems.
Causes Inside Your Facility
According to some studies, 3/4 of all power disturbances are caused by equipment inside your building. If your facility is more then a decade old, chances are the wiring was not designed to support the intensive use of electronic equipment. In industrial facilities, these problems are even more complex. In fact, any device that runs in cycles can create a drain or a surge when it switches on or off. The more power the equipment uses, the bigger the affect. Even something as small as a copier or a laser printer can cause problems in sensitive equipment that share the same line.
The Complete Protection Experts
Of course, you can’t control how power is distributed. But you can protect the equipment in your facility from power surges and transients by installing equipment such as surge suppressors and filters. The issues affecting each industry are varied. In addition to the LM Series we offer a complete array of power conditioning solutions to meet a wide range of applications, locations, and budgets.
Influencing the Industry
Liebert has received the UL 1449 Second Edition rating for the LM Series. The fact that we’re one of the first in the industry to receive this rating is proof that Liebert is leading the way with our engineering designs and over 30 years of experience.
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