The telecommunications market has become a major consumer of power.

The Internet of Things reached an astounding 5 billion “things” in 2015.

With so much growth, service continuity continues to be a must. That is why telecom base stations are equipped with uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems to provide backup power when utility power becomes unavailable.

Why it’s important

As technology gives rise to more and more telecom devices in the market, people and products are able to connect globally. Look around you and see how many people are tapping away on their smart phones or other devices. We, as a society, have become incredibly dependent on our telecommunication networks to be up and operating at all times of the day (and night!).

The times when telecom networks are most likely to go down – during natural and other disasters – are the times when we need access to our communication devices most. They are our first point of access to getting help in an emergency, so it is critical that lines are protected from these disturbances with adequate backup power.

Telecommunications are also vital to businesses. An outage could mean lost business, lost employee productivity, and costly repairs.

What you can do

Because 24/7 access to telecom networks is so important, providers and subscribers have zero tolerance for outages and service interruptions. It is vital that the batteries in base station UPS systems are maintained. This can be done through a number of strategies.

Monitoring and testing of equipment can ensure battery state-of-health.

Instead of following recommended battery replacement schedules, trending batteries via testing will allow you to replace them when it is most cost-effective. This prevents replacing batteries before their life-cycle has ended and they are still good or after it is too late and they are no longer effective.

By implementing battery monitoring hardware and management software, employee time is reserved for more urgent tasks. These Software as a Service (SaaS) options include automated monitoring and analysis of backup battery systems and facilities operations.

Whatever strategy you chose to employ, the most important factor is ensuring your UPS system is ready to kick it at a moment’s notice to keep your telecommunications network up and running.