ELECTRICAL RESILIENCE
IPS and UPS: the power couple maintaining safety
Allan Jackson, Southern Healthcare manager at Power Control, takes a look at the vital role of isolated and uninterruptible power supplies in hospitals and other healthcare facilities, and discusses some of the most important steps to maintaining them for optimal, reliable operation.
An isolated power supply (IPS) and an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) are both important components of a hospital’s electrical infrastructure, and although they serve different purposes, together they ensure patient safety and continuity of care, protect expensive and sensitive medical equipment, maintain the IT infrastructure, and comply with regulations and standards. An isolated power supply is used to
provide electrical power to critical medical equipment in a hospital. This equipment often requires a specific type of electrical power, such as a clean, constant voltage and frequency, to function properly. An isolated power supply is typically used in conjunction with a transformer to isolate the incoming power in a medical location for safety and performance purposes. Used to increase resilience wherever there is a need for higher availability from the power supply, an IPS ATS (automatic transfer switch) monitors the two AC systems for voltages and frequencies that exceed the limits. When either the voltage or frequency exceed the limits, the device will switch to the reserve AC line, ensuring that the critical equipment can continue to operate without interruption.
A back-up power source The UPS, on the other hand, is a back-up power source that provides temporary power to the hospital’s electrical systems in the event of a power outage. This is critical in a hospital setting, as an interruption of power can have severe consequences for patients, such as interrupting life-sustaining equipment within medical locations. The UPS is required as a tertiary back-up system, is typically powered by batteries, and can provide power to required locations for up to 60 minutes. In reality, a UPS backs up the hospital’s electrical systems for a short period of time (often several minutes) until the back-up generators or secondary power systems kick in. The UPS is also important for ensuring that the hospital’s
24 Health Estate Journal April 2023
Medical equipment is often expensive and sensitive to power fluctuations. An IPS helps protect the equipment from damage caused by power fluctuations, and a UPS from damage resulting from power outages.
computer systems remain up and running during a power outage, as losing access to patient records and other critical data can have profound consequences.
Maintaining reliability Both the isolated power supply and the UPS play a critical role in ensuring the reliability and safety of a hospital’s electrical infrastructure. The isolated power supply ensures that critical medical equipment receives the power it needs to function properly, while the UPS provides a back-up power source to keep the hospital’s electrical systems running in case of a power outage. Together, these two components help to keep patients safe, and provide continuity of care, even in the event of a power interruption.
Interconnected and integrated It is also worth mentioning that both isolated power supply and UPS are also interconnected and integrated to provide complete protection and redundancy of the power supply. The UPS systems are connected to the main utility power, and act as a filter for the power supply to protect the equipment and, at the same time, provide temporary power in the event of a power outage. An isolated
power supply – on the other hand – is connected to the UPS to provide a clean and stable power supply to the equipment. In many cases UPS and IPS systems are integrated together to provide monitoring for local BMS (Battery Management System) equipment and / or theatre panels.
Why healthcare estates need these interconnected power systems Hospitals need an IPS and UPS for several reasons: n Patient safety: Medical equipment, such as surgical equipment and life support systems, are critical for patient care and safety. An isolated power supply provides a stable power source for this equipment, which helps to prevent damage, and ensures that the equipment is always in a safe state. A UPS provides a back-up power source during power outages so that critical equipment can continue operating without interruption.
n Equipment protection: Medical equipment is often expensive and sensitive to power fluctuations. An isolated power supply helps to protect this equipment from damage caused by power fluctuations, and a UPS helps
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