Emergency & Standby Generators for Commercial Buildings

U.S. commercial buildings are considered buildings and facilities that constantly experience many visitors throughout the day. A commercial building could be a store with a showroom, retail stores, wholesale warehouses, drugstores and department stores. Since commercial buildings deal with essential services and serve the general population, they have to meet certain general requirements for emergency and standby generators, which fall under the NFPA 110 Standard for Emergency and Standby Power Systems in the United States.

Understanding the importance of large commercial generators for emergencies is essential for any commercial operation. Generators help provide emergency power during unexpected situations, helping to get everyone to safety and reduce downtime.

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Backup Generator Solutions

There are three main types of backup generators for commercial buildings — emergency, required standby and additional standby. Commercial buildings must have emergency and standby generators to remain compliant with the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) 110 standards. These generators are essential for providing your system with backup power during an outage, ensuring your operation remains safe. Each generator plays a key role in ensuring you always have an uninterrupted power supply. Understanding these generator types will help you find the equipment your operation needs to stay safe and compliant.

Emergency Generator Systems

These backup generator systems automatically provide backup power during unexpected outages. The NFPA requires commercial buildings to have emergency generators to protect their systems and occupants. International Building Codes (IBC) Section 2702.1.4 requires many of these systems to provide secondary power within 10 seconds to ensure visitors and building occupants can exit quickly and safely during life-threatening situations. Your commercial emergency generator needs to be able to power your essential lighting, security and life safety systems to help get everyone out safely. Emergency generator systems must also be completely separate and have their own electrical conduits, panels, switches and other components. Investing in the right emergency generator will help you protect everyone in the building while responding faster to emergency problems.

Legally Required Standby Generator Systems

Backup standby generators will also activate during a power outage. IBC gives these generators up to 60 seconds to switch on automatically and provide power. You’ll usually see these generators in buildings where continuous power is essential for public safety or business operations. Facilities like hospitals, factories and data centers will have backup standby generators to keep everything running smoothly when the power goes out.

While these generators are also required by the NFPA code, standby systems don’t always have to be completely separate systems like emergency generator systems. Since standby systems aren’t for powering critical safety functions, they can still be connected to your main system. With both emergency and standby generator systems, you can immediately have emergency safety functions back online and a support power system running everything smoothly soon after.

Additional Standby Commercial Generators

Getting additional standby commercial generators for your facility is not required by code. However, these generators can provide valuable power to key equipment, machinery and systems that you might need to continue your regular operations in the event of a power outage. Since they’re not legally required, you can tailor these generators to your needs, giving you more flexibility. These generator systems can also connect to the same system components as the legally required standby generator systems. You’ll get the convenience of increased backup power capabilities without having to install support for a separate power system.

With additional standby generators, businesses can enjoy an extra layer of protection. These backup generators can help mitigate profit loss and downtime, keeping everything running smoothly during emergencies. Additionally, these generators can help keep heating and cooling systems running, ensuring everyone’s comfort while handling unexpected events.

Get Commercial Backup Generator Systems From Woodstock Power Company

With years of experience, a devotion to customer service and a team of industry experts, Woodstock Power Company has the knowledge and skill to get you the commercial generator sets you need. We’ll work closely with you to ensure you get the generator that meets your needs and legal requirements for a safer, more productive operation. As industry leaders in buying and selling used generators, we’ve got generators that fit the needs of many industries, allowing you to pick the power solution that works for you.

Our experts are ready to assist you with everything, from answering any questions you may have about power generator sets to helping you find the best selection in our inventory based on:

  • Peak and Average Power Requirements
  • Fuel Preference (Natural Gas or Diesel)
  • Portability and Stationary Power
  • Prime and Standby Generator Requirements
  • Available Space and Exhaust Restrictions

We carry only top-rated new, used and surplus power generator sets for sale, providing you with a great value generator that will fit your budget. We also buy used generators of good quality, if you have already upgraded and you’re looking to sell your older model. From buying and selling to renting, make Woodstock Power Company your go-to for all things generators.

Our generators have been thoroughly inspected, serviced and verified, which ensures that you will be buying a quality generator that you can depend on. If a generator is not up to industry standards, we make all necessary repairs or modifications and fully test every generator before we sell. This ensures you get a turnkey generator that’s ready to fire up and go!

Feel free to contact us with any questions, concerns or inquiries to learn more about the Woodstock Power Company experience and the quality level of products and services we provide. Fill out a form online to start your search for the right industrial or commercial generator today!

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