Laser Facilities keeps clients going through power crisis

The current power issues due to load-shedding by Eskom are having serious ramifications on business continuity. Organisations which have had the foresight to pre-empt the problem are not scrambling to install backup generators and underground diesel tanks - projects that can take months to wrap up.

One of those which cannot afford downtime and has accordingly planned for it is Laser Facilities, South Africa's leading provider of outsourced printing and bulk mailing services.

"We supply a critical service," says Konni Hoferichter, GM of Laser Facilities. "Our customers can suffer serious financially adverse consequences if statements and invoices don't go out on time, but our business continuity systems keep their financial wheels turning."

Companies such as MTN, Vodacom, Cell C and Autopage cannot afford to lose valuable work hours to power blackouts such as those currently plaguing South Africa. Like many other organisations, Laser Facilities and its customers are dependent on electricity 24-hours a day to keep invoices, statements and other critical customer communications moving.

Interrupting those could seriously jeopardise their revenue streams and disrupt cash flow, even putting the entire business at risk.

But Laser Facilities' backup generators automatically kick in when the national power provider's supply fails and the business never misses a beat - unlike many others.

"Maintaining these systems when the national power grid is fully functional is an expensive and often onerous task," says Hoferichter. "But if you don't have them when you need them then, you often stand to lose far more from your organisation's reputation to more immediate cash flow interruptions."

Many businesses are losing in excess of four hours of productive time each day and the situation looks set to continue for some time. Most estimates put the supply at "uncertain" for the next five years, a situation that makes most shareholders, investors and company executives nervous.

Eskom does have almost R100 billion worth of projects in place to return the national power reserve supply to 25% by 2012, far ahead of the international 15% norm, but five years of uncertain supply could cripple many organisations.

"But, organisations that don't have the time and available capital to install their own backup facilities aren't in the dark," says Hoferichter. "Outsource partners with a great deal of experience and the right infrastructure to service these unexpected and urgent needs in the local market can pick up much of the slack."