Taking a ‘joined up' approach to factory, plant or utility security can help significantly reduce your risk, explains Bradford H Hegrat, CISSP, CISM, senior principle security consultant, Rockwell Automation

Whether your company is considered part of the UK's ‘critical infrastructure' or not, the consequences of a malicious security breach could reach catastrophic proportions. When investigating the potential repercussions of a successful attack for a cement company we learned a miniscule change to the batch – minor enough in fact for it still to pass two levels of testing - could result in a concrete application that was inherently unusable for its intended application. If this concrete was intended for a large building foundation, for example, the forces involved by the time you reached the fifth floor of construction may be enough to bring the whole lot down.

When selecting cable management solutions for panel building, ensuring elements such as wiring, terminal blocks and all the other components involved have the right level of identification is critically important. Correct and safe maintenance and any future reconfiguration work will depend on this. Here John McGee, product manager for identification and protection at HellermannTyton, examines some of the latest cable identification techniques and how these can be applied to ensure the best result for panel builders

Correct management of cables is something that needs careful consideration when undertaking a panel building project. Clear identification of each cable and component is will ensure the best option both for short and long term use. There are many products and techniques available today that offer a number of solutions for panel builders and those involved in their use.

Surge protection devices (SPDs) play an essential role in protecting sensitive electrical and electronic equipment from damage caused by overvoltages or other electrical power surges or spikes. Alan Reed, low voltage product manager at Cooper Bussmann, takes a look at the latest developments in surge protection for a wide range of applications

Overvoltages, electrical power surges or spikes are fast, short duration electrical transients in an electrical circuit. It is generally thought that up to 80% are generated from internal sources such as inductive load switching and normal equipment operations, while around 20% derive from lightning strike and power utility switching. The result can be cumulative equipment damage and possible premature failure, expensive system resets, downtime and data losses. Lightning strikes can cause catastrophic equipment failure, resulting in longer-term business disruption, plus expensive equipment repair and replacement costs.

As the UK's leading developer of electrical software, Amtech offers a complete electrical design solution for electrical engineers and consultants. 

Riello UPS is proud to protect Sudlows' award-winning data centre with its Multi Sentry Uninterruptible Power Supply system.

Last month the North West based data centre specialist scooped the prestigious Data Centre Solutions' Innovative Data Centre Project of the Year Award 2011 in recognition of Sudlows' unique Data Centre Innovation Pod (DCiP) - one of the most pioneering micro data centre facilities in the UK.

Sudlows has designed and built a fully functional data centre to demonstrate its expertise to both current and potential clients. The 1,000 sq ft facility, costing almost £500,000, was completed back in 2010, and with it, Sudlows has claimed a place as a centre of excellence in the field of data centre design and solutions.

But integral to any successful data centre is the highest quality power protection, and this is where Riello UPS, one of Sudlows' key suppliers, enters the picture.
Sudlows is renowned for advising its clients on the latest in energy and money saving technologies, so with this in mind the company approached Riello UPS to contribute to the project.

Robin Koffler, general manager of Riello UPS (UK), said: "Riello UPS worked closely with Sudlows to organise the many aspects of the UPS installation, commissioning and testing; selecting the100kVA Multi Sentry UPS to illustrate to Sudlows' clients the typical footprint of a UPS.
"The system provides eight minutes of protection when at full load. With Sudlows' usual power requirements using only 20%, the Multi Plus would protect the business for 40 minutes.
"With a continuous supply of conditioned, reliable power ensured by the Riello UPS Multi Sentry, this fully working showroom allows Sudlows' clients to experience state-of-the-art product application and innovation in a functioning data room packed full of the latest technology."
He added: "Riello UPS is pleased to be able to offer an extensive line of environmentally-friendly, energy efficient products that not only meet the most challenging demands of the data centre environment, but also meet the scalability requirements of this growing business sector."

Andy Hirst, projects director for Sudlows, said: "The UPS in a data centre is a critical requirement and one of, if not the most important pieces of kit. "Riello UPS is one of our key preferred suppliers and we have total confidence in their products and services.

"We've always had total support from them throughout all our projects and this is very refreshing. When it comes to UPS products and services, Riello UPS is unbeatable.

"We work with many contractors and suppliers and we are renowned for our quality projects and services. We have to ensure that we work with the best as our reputation in on the line.

"This is why you will see Riello UPS units in the majority of our projects."

The Sudlows and other Riello UPS power protection case studies can be downloaded from the company's dedicated PR website at www.riello-upspr.co.uk/tec-case-studies.

To request a free site survey, book a UPS health check or request a quotation call 0800 269 394.
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Web: www.riello-ups.co.uk

ABB's UniGear 500R compact medium voltage switchgear with removable circuit breaker offers the highest levels of safety and reliability combined with simplicity of installation and ease of use for a wide variety of primary distribution applications