Plug In To More Revenue With Power Protection

In any infrastructure project, power is the foundation — without clean, reliable, well-regulated electricity fueling your IT installation, all your other careful planning is a moot point. In fact, Frost & Sullivan research shows that power is the leading cause of business disruption, according to nearly 40% of the businesses surveyed. In terms of dollars, those power interruptions cost companies between $26 billion to $50 billion each year. Yes, I said billion.

Last month, Bill Allen, director of marketing for Minuteman Power Technologies, stopped by the Business Solutions office to talk about trends in uninterruptible power supply (UPS) technology. Texas vendor Para Systems has been producing power protection solutions under the Minuteman brand for more than 25 years. Allen walked us through some of the trends expected in the UPS market and the revenue opportunities in this $8.1 billion market for VARs who may not be selling UPS now.

While many consider power protection a mature technology, the opportunity for sales remains strong, with Frost & Sullivan projecting an 8.8% growth rate in 2009. The need for clean power will not fade away, and, as Allen points out, as our electric power grid infrastructure ages, the chances of brownouts, blackouts, and power surging and ebbing through your IT infrastructure only increases. All of that reinforces the need for UPS in businesses of all sizes. Allen adds that other drivers in the power protection market include data center construction, expanding storage needs due to explosive data growth, and IT growth in telecom, education, and healthcare verticals.

What does that mean for you? VARs need to start considering power protection as part of their solution proposals. Providing power protection is another value proposition you can offer your customers to enhance performance and protect their IT investments long term. Remember that billion-dollar figure? Don't let your customers be among those calculating losses from power interruption. Adding power protection to your technology set is simple, but Allen recommends learning the basics. For instance, know the difference between standby, line interactive, and online UPS before you try to sell, and partner with a vendor who can support you with tools such as power monitoring software or an online power calculator (for an example, visit sizemyups.com).

If you are a VAR, you can not only provide more reliable solutions to your customers by recommending the appropriate UPS, you can help protect them from the downtime and the damage to equipment. Plus, why miss the chance to add one more revenue stream to your invoice? It is a winning solution for both customers and VARs.