Data centers are essential for the daily operation of today’s businesses. However, when there is downtime, the cost is hard to account for. Research shows that in the U.S., the average cost of an unplanned data center outage exceeds over $9,000 per minute — this means just a small outage can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
While some operators prepare for a variety of risks including cyberattacks and equipment failure, one of the highest impact risks that does not get prepared for is the business disruption caused by lightning strikes. Lightning strikes can be silent and horribly devastating as they will disrupt the power supply, and damage cooling systems, which all lead to business disruption and continuity-related loss.
Why Lightning Strikes Are a Top Threat to Data Centers
1. Lightning’s Impact on Power & Cooling Infrastructure
Lightning strikes can significantly impact your systems, including your UPS systems, HVAC systems, and power distribution systems. A single lightning strike can damage transformers, disable cooling, and impact other mission-critical systems, even with planned backups.
2. Data Loss & Business Continuity Risks
Downtime doesn’t just mean systems are offline — it means lost revenue, missed SLAs (service-level agreements), reputational damage, and data loss. For colocation providers and hyperscale operators, penalties from SLAs can rapidly escalate into millions of dollars in clean-up costs.
3. The High Frequency of Lightning in the U.S.
Lightning is not uncommon in the U.S., in fact, the lightning capital of the U.S. Florida; the Midwest; and Texas, are among the most active lightning zones in the world. With lightning strikes occurring hundreds of times each second worldwide, it’s only a matter of time before unprotected data centers will be impacted by lightning.
Protect Your Data Center from Lightning Damage Today
Schedule a certified lightning protection assessment now to prevent costly downtime, safeguard critical systems, and ensure business continuity.
Financial Impact — How Much Downtime Really Costs
Industry Statistics on Downtime Costs
According to Uptime Institute, 60% of the data center outages cost more than $100,000, many even exceed $1 million. The unpredictable and destructive nature of lightning strikes makes them one of the many common causes of outages.
Real-World Case Examples
Insurance data reveals that lightning-related claims for commercial facilities, including data centers, can amount to hundreds of millions annually. A single lightning event that interrupts the cooling process can cause servers to overheat with lost workloads, potential data corruption, and extended recovery times.
ROI of Protection Systems
Investing in a lightning protection system (LPS), surge protection devices (SPDs), and proper grounding solutions is just a fraction of the cost as compared to these catastrophic risks. The return on investment is obvious: downtime prevention saves from revenue loss, trust loss with your clients, and prolonged uptime.
How Lightning Protection Systems Safeguard Uptime
1. Lightning Protection Systems (LPS)
To facilitate a regulated course for lightning to reach the ground safely, we employ air terminals, conductors, and bonding. These systems will mitigate against roof and structure damages, as well as the potential hazards of an electrical room from a direct strike.
2. Grounding Systems for Data Centers
Grounding systems designed correctly will divert the excess electrical energy into the earth. If the grounding system is not properly designed the risk of arcing, equipment fires, and personnel hazards increase.
3. Surge Protection Devices (SPD)
Surge Protection Devices is the last line of defense to keep servers, cooling equipment, and overall IT infrastructure online by providing a block against damaging voltage spikes via lightning. Together these integrated solutions will provide data center uptime protection related to risk from lightning.
Why Choose A/C Lightning Protection for Data Center Lightning Protection?
1. Nationwide Expertise in Data Center Projects
With years of experience, A/C Lightning Protection (ACLP) designs and installs certified lightning protection systems for mission-critical facilities across the U.S. From enterprise data centers to colocation facilities, ACLP’s proven solutions help minimize downtime.
2. Compliance with NFPA, UL, NEC Standards
ACLP adheres to NFPA 780, UL 96A, and NEC codes as part of its solutions in ensuring every lightning protection system is installed according to the highest safety standards, performance criteria, and compliance levels necessary for mission-critical infrastructure.
3. Proven ROI — Protecting Uptime & Assets
By reducing the risk of downtime, A/C Lightning Protection’s solutions create long-term ROI. Clients find reduced insurance claims, longer asset life, and most importantly assured 24/7 uptime.
Protect Your Data Center with Certified Lightning Solutions
Ensure 24/7 uptime and compliance by booking a professional lightning protection assessment with A/C Lightning Protection’s certified experts today.
Frequently Asked Questions About Lightning Protection Solutions for Data Centers
How can data centers face damage and downtime due to lightning strikes?
Downtime and damages to the data center can be caused by lightning as it creates severe surges that can harm power, cooling, and IT systems.
What lightning protection systems are recommended for U.S. data centers?
By implementation of a complete leadership solution; Lightning Protection Systems (LPS), Surge Protection Devices (SPD), and engineered grounding systems.
How much can downtime from lightning cost a data center operator?
The costs can reach very quickly in excess of $9,000 per minute, and many outages result in more than $1,000,000 in losses.
How can a lightning risk assessment help protect my data center?
The assessment will identify weaknesses in the infrastructure of your data center and verify that you have the appropriate protection systems in place.
Which company can provide certified lightning protection solutions for data centers?
A/C Lightning Protection has nationwide expertise in maintaining NFPA/UL/NEC compliance, and have a successful track record of protecting obviously large U.S. data centers.
