The devastation left in the wake of Hurricane Matthew served as a powerful reminder of the importance of evaluating how resilient your business is when faced with the threat of a natural disaster. While planning for natural disasters is easy to avoid, it’s a strategic component of a robust business operating philosophy.
Florida Public Utilities Company is proud to serve as a resource for business owners and facility managers, offering natural gas options to ensure continued operations during power outages caused by natural disasters, including hurricanes.
The following are two strategic directions business owners and facility managers can take when leveraging natural gas as a means for increasing a facility’s resiliency to hurricanes:
Supply Instant Power with a Natural Gas Generator
Your first option is to install a traditional natural gas generator that would automatically and instantly supply power should electricity from the power grid be disrupted. This is a particularly good option for restaurants and grocery stores that are seeking to protect their businesses from power interruptions and wish to increase their ability to readily recover use of their assets.
Generate Electricity and Hot Water with a Combined Heat and Power System
Your second option is to install a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) system that would continuously generate electricity and simultaneously produce hot water at all times, not only during periods of power grid disruptions. Installing a CHP system negates the need for an emergency generator, and can also lower energy-related operating costs while providing the flexibility of operating independent of the electric power grid.
There are several types of CHP technologies and systems that are available, including Reciprocating Engines, Microturbines and even Fuel Cells — all of which use natural gas as the primary fuel input, and can be engineered to satisfy the specific electric and hot water needs of any commercial facility.
Contact the Energy Experts at Florida Public Utilities today to learn more about the ways we can help protect your business from power disruptions.
