For centuries, lightning strikes have caused serious damage and fires to facilities and have also killed the occupants that were struck. Protection of structures from the effects of a lightning strike is more precise today than it was in 1752 at the time of the experiment and the original invention of lightning protection by Benjamin Franklin.
In industry, there is a growing demand for availability of service and operations, and the risk of downtime cost as well; making risk management increasingly important. And lightning strikes will be an increasingly large part of the risk to be managed.
The basic principle in protecting life and property from lightning is to provide a path by which the electrical energy can enter and leave the earth without damaging anything or anyone along the way. However, Over the years, Lightning Eliminators & Consultant Inc. has improved this method.
Our patented Dissipation Array System (DAS) is designed to prevent direct lightning strikes within the protected area by reducing the electrical fields to below lightning collection levels, within the protected area. As a result, DAS helps to prevent downtime and loss of assets while increasing personal safety. Since 1971, the DAS has maintained a success rate of over 99%.
Yet our industry remains vulnerable – only 10% of a new facility constructed each year in the US implements a lightning protection system. Why is it so?
Ignorance and misconceptions are to be blamed.
Due to ignorance on the effectiveness of lightning protection, business owners accept lightning as an unavoidable risk, with their only solution is to seek insurance against business interruptions and damages. But this does not include the billion dollars that are lost due to downtime and liability when businesses are forced to shut down to repair damages.
On the other hand, misconceptions are also rife. For example, lightning protection is assumed to be expensive, complex and poor visual impact.
In fact, the useful life of a lightning protection system from LEC will be close to the useful life of the facility itself. Also, the integration of DAS into the design of the facility before construction allows efficiency to be increased and complexities to be reduced. And finally, when an LPS is taken into consideration at the design stage, it can be incorporated in a way that reduces or eliminates a visual impact.
Lightning protection is available to prevent harm done by lightning strikes and transient currents. Contact us to set up a site evaluation with your construction engineer.