Of all the variables that as business leaders tend to overlook, it’s mother nature. When she knocks on our door, she’s usually not best pleased. Businesses find it very difficult to predict when there will be a floor, tornado or earthquake disaster, but that’s no excuse for not preparing for such an event. One of the more unfortunately popular reasons for this is because we don’t really know if it will happen. In theory, if you’re preparing for a disaster contingency plan you stand a high chance of wasting resources, manpower and money. Yet you must bow your head to the term ‘better safe than sorry’ and get on with funding your plan anyway. Just like you would prepare for your home to be hit by mother nature, your business must too be seen in the same light. In fact, protecting a business and keeping it running when utilities themselves are scarce is the largest challenge of all. So how do you go about it?
A solid continuation
Ask any farmer out in the countryside what they would do if the power suddenly went out. They would simply reveal the multiple backup generators they keep so that they may continue on with their daily business. This can be implemented by any small business no matter what size. However it’s more likely you’ll be able to fit your generator if you have bought the property from which you do business. This way the generator can be hooked to the mains and electricity be stored efficiently. There are a range of backup generators you can by specifically designed for businesses. They have different storage capacities, various voltage settings and different designs. The weight of the generator is something to first consider as this will determine whether it will be fitted to the roof or on the ground.
Draining the office
Those that work on the ground floor and are based near flowing water should be concerned about the effects of flooding. You never know when a flash flood is going to strike. Entering into work one day, you might be met with a water level that is waist high. Using a system that has PVC Valves you can drain the water from your place of work out and away from it. This is usually used for factories that are in the countryside and are prone to being flooded. This system triggers after a certain level of water has been detected. It begins lowering the water level automatically and the water can be pumped out via an exit pipe.
At home tasks
If there’s a tornado on the horizon or a cyclone like the one that recently hit Puerto Rico and you’re in it’s path, ies best to tell your workers to stay at home. As long as they have internet access, give them tasks to do at home. These will almost always be minor tasks such as finishing a report and checking over the spelling and grammar. On the other hand it could also be communicating with clients and maintaining B2B relationships via email and phone calls.
There are many threats out there that could hurt your business. But don’t overlook mother nature and her wrath either. Make solid contingency plans so your office has power at least for a couple of days.
