All You Need to Know About Lightning Protection Systems

Lightning is an inevitable natural phenomenon. The magnitude of one lightning strike is a significant amount of energy that can cause major loss of life and destruction of property. The site, elevation, and formation of a structure play an important role in ascertaining if a lightning protection system is necessary. It is essential to perform a risk assessment to measure the potential risks due to lightning strikes for a structure. This will help you to decide on the most effective lightning protection systems to be implemented for protecting your structure from lightning strikes.

The traditional lightning protection systems consist of a capturing device, down conductors and earth leads. These outdated systems rely on strike collection as the first and only line of defense. It can cause significant destruction, loss of product and downtime for large companies. Lightning Eliminators and Consultants, Inc. developed a new approach and engineered a system to prevent lightning from striking inside of a protected area. This technology, based on ideologies of engineering and physics, is called the charge transfer system (CTS).

Types of lightning protection systems under charge transfer technology are:

1. Dissipation Array® System (DAS®): It prevents direct lightning strikes including fires, destroyed electronics, and downtime within a protected area. It is available in a range of configurations to suit any type of structure.
2. Spine Ball Ionizer® (SBI®): It is a modular lightning protection concept designed to provide multiple layers of protection for important applications. It is used to supplement Dissipation Array installations.
3. Spine Ball Terminal® (SBT®): It is a superior alternative to air terminals for new or existing lightning protection systems.
4. Ion Plasma Generator® (IPG®): It is the most effective air terminal engineered to special structures like wind turbines and T&D systems. The IPGis used to produce an ideal assembly point in circumstances where strike prevention is less feasible.

Many insurance companies often require lightning protection systems to be installed properly on a property before issuing the home insurance policy. Some insurance companies even offer a discount on insurance premiums if an effective lightning protection system is installed.

If you are looking for a specific type of lightning protection design, contact Lightning Eliminators & Consultants, Inc. (LEC). They are the leaders in providing integrated lightning protection solutions and services worldwide.