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A Commercial building generator

Need a Commercial Building Generator? 

A power outage at home is inconvenient, but a power outage at work is lost money.

Workplace power outages can create severe issues for many types of businesses. Power is essential in settings like hospitals, retirement homes, cloud infrastructure providers, and livestock facilities. Your business may exist outside of these examples, but it is crucial to consider the impact of downtime from a power outage on your bottom line.

It isn’t just about money either. Safety, mobility, online data, and systems that protect your property can all become at risk when the power is out. So, in this blog, you will find everything you should know to decide on a commercial generator for your business. We’ll cover the basics of commercial power generators and an understanding of the various cost factors that apply.

How do generators for commercial buildings work?

Commercial building generators work the same as residential standby generators but on a much larger scale. During a power outage, an automatic transfer switch changes the power source to the generator and signals it to run. When power is restored, the transfer switch signals the generator to shut down, and the system switches back to the primary power source. Switching between power sources typically takes less than a few minutes.

A commercial backup generator installation

How much does a commercial backup generator installation cost?

Unfortunately, it is difficult to put a price range on these jobs as they can vary from small businesses to massive industrial facilities. Several factors impact the cost of a commercial backup generator installation.

Type of unit

Industrial generators are available in various options for different needs. Units can range from thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars depending on the size needed. A small business might use less than 50 Kilowatt Hours annually, whereas a large factory that runs at all hours could hit Milliwatt hours. Price correlates with scale. The larger the unit needed to support your business, the higher the cost.

When deciding on sizing, we help our customers determine the best option that balances function and affordability. For smaller businesses, there may be options available that can have all your systems up and running. It is common for large workplaces to have an emergency panel for fundamental systems that are powered by a backup generator. Although it is possible to power your entire workplace back up, it will be incredibly costly.

Placement

Where you place the generator can depend on your building size, climate, ventilation, noise laws, and available space. The cost increases the further away the generator is from the building as more conduit wiring is needed to connect the two. Conduit typically runs through trenches to be safe and out of the way. Alternatively, proper ventilation and space are required to install a generator indoors.

Installation

Installation costs also vary depending on the above factors. One of the best ways to save money with the installation process is to ensure it's done the first time correctly. This complicated job is not worth risking a poorly executed installation. Fortunately, at Kraun, we employ several certified industrial generator installers, which adds peace of mind for our customers.

When is the best time to get a commercial generator?

The best answers to this question are "as soon as possible" and "before it's too late." Generators are a preemptive measure of protection as we can never know when an event will create power issues. The current lead time for large industrial generators sits around the one-year mark, so the question is: "How much longer is it okay to remain unprotected?"

If you think it is close to the right time to make this investment for your business, don't hesitate to contact us through the form below or by phone. We look forward to getting started!

A commercial business backup generator installed outside

Let's start a job together.

Serving the Hamilton and Niagara area.