The UPS (uninterruptible power supply) is a device that provides backup power to the ICT equipment in case of a power outage or a power quality issue. The UPS should be dedicated to the ICT equipment only, and not to other loads, such as lighting, cooling, or security systems. This is because connecting fluorescent lights to the same UPS as the ICT equipment can cause several problems, such as:
•Reducing the battery runtime of the UPS, which may not be enough to support the ICT equipment until the backup generator kicks in or the utility power is restored.
•Increasing the harmonic distortion of the UPS output, which can affect the performance and reliability of the ICT equipment and the UPS itself.
•Creating electromagnetic interference (EMI) or radio frequency interference (RFI), which can disrupt the communication and data transmission of the ICT equipment.
•Triggering false alarms or tripping the circuit breakers of the UPS, which can cause downtime or data loss.
Therefore, fluorescent lights should not be connected to the same UPS that supports the ICT equipment. Instead, they should be connected to a separate power source, such as the utility power, the backup generator, or a different UPS.
[References:, 1: CDCP Preparation Guide, page 17, section 2.3.1 2: Data Center Lighting Design Considerations3, page 1, section 3 4: Data Center Lighting Solutions5, page 1, section 1 6: Going beyond energy savings in data centers with LEDs7, page 1, section 2, , ]
