Contents:
Permanent backup, Mobile power, Sourcing equipment, Planning in context, Fine-tuning the plan, and Recommended Vendor.
Electricity is never more precious or more scarce than after a disaster.
Lights are out, telephones disabled, businesses shut down. People may need food,
water, heat and medical attention. There can be no real recovery without power,
yet no one can predict when utility service will come back.
Today, backup power plays a critical role in recovery from all manner of
disasters. Permanent backup systems can sustain facilities that safeguard public
health, safety and welfare, even through extended utility outages. On a wider
scale, mobile generators of all sizes can help life return to normal by powering
schools, stores, offices, factories and homes while rebuilding goes forward and
the utility restores the grid.
Especially in the early stages, the speed of recovery depends on how well local
authorities and private enterprises have planned for emergency power. Provision
for electricity should comprise much more than a few sentences in a disaster
management plan. Procedures should be spelled out meticulously and as completely
as possible.
Global supplies of mobile generator sets have roughly quadrupled in the past ten
years. Thus, those who plan effectively can readily secure almost any amount of
short-term emergency power necessary from units suitable for small offices or
homes to 2-megawatt power modules able to supply large buildings.
Planning cannot prepare for every contingency, but it can ensure that emergency
personnel know in advance what essential facilities and services will need
power, how much power, and how to ensure its availability.
Expecting the unpredictable
Emergency response experts advise against trying to plan for a specific
event, such as a wind storm, fire or flood. Instead, they recommend looking at
the common results of any disaster. Significant among these is loss of electric
power.
Extended power failures have many causes, some natural and others manmade, some
predictable and others difficult even to imagine. For example, few could have
foreseen the April 1992 flood that shut down utility power for weeks in the
heart of Chicago, U.S.A. The flood began when construction workers installing
support pillars in the Chicago River bottom punctured the roof of a freight
tunnel beneath the city. Water soon flooded the entire system of tunnels and
made its way into building basements that housed electrical systems.
Similarly, few could have predicted the extended power outages in central
Auckland, New Zealand, that began in February 1998. There, four main power
cables serving the city failed because of overload. The outages affected some
50,000 inner-city workers and 6,000 residents and also threatened butter, meat
and other perishables in thousands of refrigerated containers awaiting shipment
from the city's port at the peak of the export season.
In September 1998, weather forecasters predicted the assault of Hurricane
Georges on Caribbean islands, but not the extent of the destruction. Puerto Rico
and other islands lost all electric power.
Mobile diesel-powered generator sets were essential to recovery from all these
events. In each case, demand for generators overwhelmed local supplies, and
units were shipped in from considerable distances. New Zealand and the Caribbean
islands received units on shipboard and by airlift. In any such instance, the
logistics of supplying power are difficult, but an effective plan makes the
process easier and recovery faster.
Permanent backup
The first imperative in emergency power planning is to outfit essential
facilities with permanent backup power, and to make sure existing backup
equipment is properly sized and in good repair. Essential post-disaster services
include:
At minimum, backup systems should be sized to carry critical loads defined as
the power required to deliver all the facility's necessary public services. Some
facilities, such as wastewater treatment plants and hospitals, are so important
that backup systems sized for full load deserve serious consideration.
All backup systems should be covered by a complete and consistent planned
maintenance program that includes regular inspection and operational testing.
Mobile power
Because a major storm or flood can do severe damage, it is wise to plan
for scenarios in which even backup power systems fail. Such was the case during
the 1992 flood in Chicago, where many backup systems were installed in basements
and sub-basements that filled with water.
Mobile power equipment should be sized in the same manner as permanent backup
power. Other considerations for each facility include:
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Location. Space must be available for parking the generators outside the buildings. If a facility has a large power requirement but lacks space to install a large power module (up to 8 feet wide by 40 feet long), two or more smaller units will perform just as effectively. |
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Accessory requirements. Cable must be provided to connect the generators to the building's electrical system. Transformers, load banks, bus bars, distribution panels, feeder panels, fuses, outlets, load centers and other accessories may also be necessary. |
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Fuel requirements. During an emergency, diesel fuel supplies and delivery may be sporadic. A fuel tank with capacity for at least 24 hours of run time is advisable. |
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Staffing requirements. If on-staff
personnel are not experienced with power-generation equipment, it is
necessary to arrange for professional assistance to install and operate the
mobile units. |
Sourcing
equipment
Once power equipment and staffing needs have been determined, the next
step is to identify and interview suppliers. Often, the same supplier will offer
permanent backup systems for sale or lease, as well as mobile power units for
rent. Supplier selection criteria should include:
Inventory. The
supplier should have all necessary equipment in stock — generator sets and
accessories — or be willing to commit to getting it on demand. Suppliers who
do not have the equipment in-country must have the capability to import it in
an emergency.
Service and support.
The supplier should be willing to deliver the power generating sets and, in
some cases, additional equipment like power cable, transformers, etc. In
addition, suppliers should train local personnel in the equipment operation
or, if necessary, provide staff for operation, service and maintenance.
Location. At minimum,
the supplier should be strategically located to serve major population
centers. The ideal supplier will have multiple locations from which to deliver
equipment and dispatch support staff.
Experience. Longevity
in business can be a good indicator of a supplier's reliability. Suppliers
should be willing to discuss their track record for delivering and installing
equipment under tight deadlines, as well as their experience in emergencies.
Reputable suppliers will provide references.
Terms. When renting
power units for emergencies, it is not always possible to secure an absolute
guarantee of equipment availability. However, some suppliers offer contracts
that provide a "right of first acceptance." In this arrangement, a
party pays the supplier a retainer fee for an allocation of specified
equipment. In return, the supplier agrees to not release that equipment to
another entity without the first party's consent.
Planning
in context
Arranging for equipment is only the first step in emergency power
planning. The true test of a plan is how well it functions in practice. A power
outage alone can create major logistical challenges as public agencies and
businesses rush to provide temporary power. For example, an outage affecting a
large city, such as Auckland or Chicago, can require the shipment of hundreds or
even thousands of mobile generators within days.
The challenges multiply after a natural disaster, as delivery of power must
coordinate with distribution of medical supplies, food, clothing, household
goods and building materials.
An effective plan assigns priorities to all major goods and services and their
delivery. In a world that increasingly depends on electricity, a strong argument
can be made for giving top priority to mobile power. The sooner power is
installed, the more efficiently all other materials and services can be
delivered. Emergency planners must ensure that power for all purposes — public
and private — arrives where it is needed as quickly as possible.
Puerto Rico's experience after Hurricane Georges is instructive. Soon after the
storm, relief efforts were stalled by trees and power lines blocking roads and
preventing movement of people and supplies. In addition, the storm blew down one
of four large cranes in the port at San Juan, creating a bottleneck in
off-loading emergency generators arriving on shipboard.
These experiences suggest that plans carefully address the mechanics of power
delivery, especially when equipment must come from outside the country. For
example, provision should be made for staging areas for generators at airports
and seaports. On-the-spot decisions may need to be made about whether to ship
units from overseas on containerized ships (lower cost), or roll-on roll-off
ships (able to be unloaded even if port lifting equipment has been damaged).
Not all barriers are physical. Slowdowns in customs can significantly delay
delivery of power. Planners should consider proposing special legislation to
allow generators to be imported in emergencies. Provisions allowing temporary,
duty-free imports of equipment can greatly expedite delivery. Contacts
established with freight companies during the planning phase may increase
availability of ships or air transports when a disaster occurs.
Finances are another stumbling block to be avoided. As part of planning,
emergency management agencies should agree on payment terms with mobile power
suppliers. This may include issuing a letter of credit from a financial
institution or budgeting the necessary funds.
Fine-tuning the plan
An emergency plan is a living document — it should be revisited and
updated periodically. The plan should also be tested through simulation drills.
In one common drill, participants are presented with a specific scenario and
asked to respond to it according to the procedures outlined in the plan.
It can be useful to involve the local electric utility in drills. During an
actual emergency, coordination between utility staff and emergency personnel can
improve the utilization of mobile equipment. For example, if emergency personnel
know when utility power is about to be restored in a given sector, they can plan
to release mobile power units to other areas where they are needed.
Disasters are by definition unpredictable — even the best plan will not
eliminate the need for good judgment and resourcefulness. However, a plan
immediately moves disaster recovery several steps forward. It makes critical
actions nearly automatic and provides a basis for sound decision making as the
event unfolds.
John Swanson is International Rental Manager within the Electric Power
Generation Product Group of Caterpillar, Inc., based in Mossville, Illinois,
USA. He oversees and coordinates a global network of Caterpillar dealers
supplying mobile generator sets, accessories and technical support for emergency
power restoration.
(A special thanks to Cat Rental Power for letting us
reprint this article.)
Engine Products
Division
P.O. Box 610
Mossville, IL 61552-0610
U.S.A.
AFE St. Louis Recommended Vendor
For emergency and backup electrical power generation sales and service.