Power Protection FEATURED ARTICLE

We all know the story of the New Orleans mega stadium, the Superdome, and its power debacle on the world stage during February’s Super Bowl XLVII. It recently came to light that stadium officials have isolated, and hopefully resolved, the issue, but that’s not stopping some eager advertisers from continuing to cash in on the outage.

A current McDonald’s ad, running not just during sporting events but across a multitude of time slots, features Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco and 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick reenacting the famous game of horse between Larry Bird and Michael Jordan. This time, the game centers on football rather than basketball, and takes place in a stadium that looks suspiciously like the Superdome.

The food (in this case, a new chicken wing rather than a sandwich) is not the only thing that’s changed from the classic ads – the punch line has become the stadium’s faulty power delivery system.

As Flacco and Kaepernick challenge throw after throw, each one a little less believable than the one before, the lights suddenly go dark in the dome, leaving them to wonder if someone has taken their tasty reward for winning the contest.

The requisite McDonald’s jingle plays, everyone laughs, and the Superdome plays the wrong end of the joke – again.

While the commercial is all fun and games, it can be seen as a clear picture of just how lasting an ill-timed power outage can be. We are many months removed from the event, and it is still a topic of conversation in ad agency meeting rooms, on playing fields, and in TV commercials the world over.

The same can happen to any business if a power problem occurs at the wrong time due to faulty power protection measures. Though the influence might not be as far-reaching, it does not take much for a small to medium sized company to feel big effects.

Businesses of all sizes simply must have a properly planned and implemented power protection system, such as that outlined in Minuteman’s Disaster Planning White Paper. Thankfully, in the case of the Superdome, backup systems and contingency plans for fan and employee safety meant that the momentum of the game was the only loss during the outage.

In the end, business owners would be wise to heed the message of the Superdome – protect your vital systems and don’t end up the butt (or wing) of a very costly joke.