Rolling power cuts are a real possibility this winter. The UK Government’s latest reasonable worst-case scenario suggests “an energy capacity shortfall of about a sixth of peak demand”.
As an internet service provider looking after businesses across the UK, keeping you online and working is always a priority. Below, we have put together a simple guide to preparing your business for powercuts.
Will your systems be accessible?
If you can’t access your systems and applications, your business can’t operate.
Considerations:
- Can employees and customers can access your systems and services when your servers are offline?
- Can your employees work remotely if your main business site has gone down?
Precaution:
Colocation, moving your servers to an off-site data centre, is an option worth considering. This can improve your network’s reliability, as data centres have redundancy power supplies, and could even bring lower energy costs for your business. For more information on whether you should move your office servers to a data centre, read our recent article.
Consideration:
- How much data would you lose if there was a sudden power cut?
Precaution:
Performing regular backups of systems and databases can help to mitigate the worst impacts of power outages.
Will you be contactable?
Losing access to your phone systems can leave your business isolated. If your ability to make calls is critical, other ways to keep those lines of communication open are worth considering.
Considerations:
- Will customers still be able to contact your business during a power outage?
- Is it key that your teams can communicate effectively while working remotely?
Precaution:
Cloud-hosted phone systems can keep communications intact. VoIP systems like Beaming’s integrate with mobile devices, providing a failsafe if the power goes down. Your phone system should be hosted somewhere with resilient power, such as a data centre; that way – providing you can get an internet connection or mobile signal – you can make calls from anywhere.
Read our full guide on how to make calls if your site goes down
Will your equipment still work afterwards?
Blackouts can damage any electrical hardware, usually at the moment when power comes back on and the network voltage can be too high or too low.
Considerations:
- Think about installing an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) or surge protector to defend critical infrastructure such as on-premise servers or remote desktops.
- Are there specific devices you can turn off at the end of the day to protect against overnight outages?
It can be worth employing a third party to monitor your network proactively and have a plan to manage infrastructure that needs to be constantly online.
Winter is coming, and Beaming can help you prepare for the challenges it brings
If you want to find out how Beaming can keep your business connected, online and operational, please contact us via our website or call 0800 082 2868.