A few lightning protection system facts for you to think about.
Lightning strikes should never be taken lightly. Direct and indirect lightning strikes can put businesses at risk of severe damage to critical electronic equipment and facility downtime, both of which can be quite costly.
Due to the frequency of these weather occurrences and dependent on where the building or facility is located, commercial lightning protection is not required, but may be recommended. To help illustrate this point, we’re going to share with you a few facts about lightning protection systems and equipment, along with a few facts about lightning itself.
No Area Is Safe from Lightning Strikes
All around the planet, thousands of lightning strikes occur every single day. No area exists that is immune from this weather phenomena. In fact, Florida ranks in the top three states in the U.S. for the frequency of lightning strikes. This point definitely makes lightning protection an important topic and why commercial properties and industrial facilities in regions where lightning strikes are more prominent should think about the cost effectiveness of investing in a lightning protection system.
Protect Against Indirect Strikes, Too
There are four basic types of Lightning damage: physical damage, secondary effect damage, electromagnetic effect damage, and damage caused by changes in ground reference potential. A lightning strike mile away from a building or facility can still cause premature wear and damage to facility components and welcome unwanted currents and transients to electrical wires and conductors. Lightning protection systems using structural protection are designed to help protect facilities from direct strikes but adding the proper bonding and grounding and surge suppression can help protect from the much more common indirect strikes that can fry electronic equipment and cause other damage.
A Whole Lot More Than Surge Protection
With the prevalence of electronic devices in our homes and businesses, surge protection has become common. The majority of electronics damage is not caused by direct lightning strikes but is rather the result of transient voltage and current surges on power lines by the strong electromagnetic fields created during a lightning strike. While a lightning protection system does utilize surge protection as a further means of defense, it offers much more effective protection by way of rerouting electrical currents and other methods.
Protection Systems Are Customized
Lightning protection systems definitely don’t work in a one-size-fits-all type of way. Prior to the system being designed, a team of experts will visit your property for a free site survey, or a lightning protection risk assessment can be conducted. Lightning Master will design a lightning protection system per industry standard – NFPA 780/UL96.
Protection Makes Financial Sense
It’s been estimated that lightning strikes cost businesses as a whole anywhere between $8 billion and $10 billion every year. This doesn’t include lost production or additional losses due to required shutdowns while repairs are being done. The installation of a lightning protection system is a low-cost alternative to the potential destruction of a direct or indirect lightning strike. That, along with professional lightning protection services, is a great way to help with financial repercussions as a result of the latest storm that just passed by.
Contact Lightning Master for More Facts About Lightning Protection
Given the frequency of lightning strikes and the severe fallout from damage that may occur, the installation of a lightning protection system is recommended. Lightning Master has years of experience designing and implementing lightning protection for buildings, cooling towers, gas and oil facilities, and other types of industrial facilities. If you want to learn more facts about lightning protection systems and equipment or would like to set up a free, no-obligation lightning protection risk assessment, call us today at (727) 447-6800.
We wrote the book on static solutions and lightning protection!