Emergencies are a year-round concern, as there’s no day, month or season to be caught flat-footed. But if there’s any stretch in the calendar to be particularly attentive, it’s now. New Year budgeting is a perfect time for facility and electrical professionals to bolster emergency preparedness efforts—particularly with winter bearing down.
Extreme weather events such as Nor’easters and blizzards can cause severe and extensive damages. And while they can’t be avoided and their adverse effects often can’t be eliminated completely, they should not sneak up on the people responsible for ensuring the safety and security of commercial buildings and the people within them—particularly when it comes to electrical systems.
From a business perspective, weather events can result in decreased productivity, lost data and reduced efficiency—consequences that businesses cannot afford in today’s increasingly competitive business and consumer economy. Awareness and preparation are the keys to ensuring uptime and business continuity ahead of a snowstorm. The awareness level is much higher today than a decade ago, in part due to the increased frequency and severity of storms and other extreme weather. However, many businesses are still dealing with aging infrastructure and need to make careful preparations.
Facility and construction professionals can take preemptive actions to ensure that people and business (in that order) are best protected. A proper mitigation plan requires a significant amount of preparation, but taking crucial precautionary steps can make a world of difference when unexpected weather strikes. The following steps can maximize readiness for a weather emergency.
Maintaining updated records and employee training
The electrical system should be fully documented, with information that is current and accurate. Where there are multiple stakeholders who should have access, backup copies of this information can be disseminated so there is no bottleneck of information. It’s unreasonable to expect that every employee fully understands the methods and equipment used to transfer power from the utility service to local or temporary power sources—so it’s the responsibility of the trained professionals to educate them. Looking outside the facility, if there’s outdoor equipment that could be impacted by the storm, it’s important to consider how to manage the repair or replacement.
Planning the pre-event to-do list
A quick response is necessary in the event of an unexpected storm event, so any necessary actions must be documented and readily available. Potential actions include gathering system documentation to have on hand, making sure transfer equipment and generators are ready to operate and sufficient fuel is available on site. Construction professionals should double check that the sources of heating for the facility are connected to the system so they will receive power from a generator or temporary power source. Turning off all non-essential system loads to manage generator loading and fuel usage is a good approach. Hazard alarms such as carbon monoxide detection should be verified along with any battery backup supplies.
Creating a team
For an emergency preparedness plan implementation to work, there needs to be a team of personnel with clearly defined roles for preparedness and, especially, response. Disseminating a published list, complete with contact information, to appropriate building personnel—such as the owners and key business managers—is the right step.
Having a communications plan
Some disruption is to be expected following a major storm. Building owners, occupants and employees will be far more understanding if construction and facility personnel communicate regularly about the conditions of the facility as well as expectations for disruption and recovery efforts.
The safety of employees is the first priority for any facility. The storm preparation plan should be communicated before a major storm, but if it has not been, a careful inspection of the work area is absolutely required before allowing workers back in to the facility.
A proper weather mitigation plan can provide the business with the foundation necessary to maintain continuity through the winter months, and ensuring that employees are prepared will allow construction personnel peace of mind. There’s no time to waste.
