victoria.kickham@reedbusiness.com

For millions of small businesses, having a backup power system in place is a vital issue. The problem is, few companies have taken steps to implement one—despite The Great Blackout that occurred in the Northeast during the summer of 2003, which put 50 million people in the United States and Canada in the dark and cost the economy an estimated $6 billion in productivity.

A recent survey sponsored by Emerson Electric Co. showed that more than 60 percent of small businesses in the U.S. still have no backup power supply and remain vulnerable to electrical outages. The survey also showed that small businesses understand the need for protection—75 percent say electrical power outages are a threat to their businesses—but only one in five feels prepared to deal with an outage.

Fortunately for companies like Emerson, the survey shows that most small businesses would like to acquire backup power technologies. To address the need, Emerson's Emerson Network Power division is tailoring technologies typically used in large businesses, such as Automatic Transfer Switches and Uninterruptible Power Supplies, to smaller companies.

An ATS automatically detects a power outage, then starts and operates a backup generator within seconds. A UPS shifts small businesses to battery power when an outage occurs to provide uninterruptible power.

The cost to implement these technologies won't put a small business in the poor house, says Emerson spokesman Jack Farmer. The cost of an ATS ranges from $1,000 to $3,500, depending on the complexity of the system. A UPS starts at about $120 to back up a single workstation and can run as high as $3,000 for more complex systems.

Emerson's Small Business Power Poll was conducted by Decision Analyst, Inc. in January 2004, and surveyed more than 400 U.S. small businesses.

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