Describe power irregularities: irregularities from power utilities are common and can lead to fluctuations, such as power excesses, power shortages, and power losses. In the United States, we are “fed” 120-volt, 60-cycle power usually through 15-amp and 20-amp circuits.

Explain that voltage levels are subject to a spike (momentary increase), surge (prolonged increase), sag (momentary decrease), brownout (prolonged drop in voltage), fault(momentary complete loss of power) or blackout (a lengthier loss of power).

Emphasize that organizations with dedicated power needs must think of backup solutions such as generators to provide power in the event an outage were to occur. This is especially the case for information technology and security-related systems.

Predict that because sensitive electronic equipment—especially networking equipment, computers, and computer-based systems—is susceptible to fluctuations, controls should be applied to manage power quality.