Pfizer projected 2021 sales of $15 billion for its Covid-19 vaccine. AFP Photo
KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 19): Power conditioning and emergency backup power are two key components that the government must take into consideration when dealing with Covid-19 vaccines which need to be maintained at an ultra-cold temperature as low as minus 80 degrees Celsius.
Power products specialist Arunangshu Chattopadhyay said to maintain such low temperatures, freezers will consume a great deal of power, and if they were compromised, the limited vaccine supply which the country is expected to receive this Sunday might be at risk when it is needed most.
He said the right solution would be to use an intelligent Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) that features online double conversion technology, zero transfer time to batteries, scalable runtime, remote monitoring capabilities as well as easy installation and operation.
“Vaccines represent much-needed hope for the battle against the coronavirus. Precisely controlled temperature freezers, along with the online-double conversion UPS systems that back them up, will play key roles in the effort to put every dose of the vaccine for Covid-19 and other diseases to good use.”
He said this in his article titled ‘Backup Power to Protect Covid-19 Vaccine Storage Facilities’ published in Bernama Thoughts section on Bernama news portal.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced that Malaysia would receive the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine this Sunday and the first phase of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme would begin on Feb 26
Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin was also reported as saying that upon delivery, the vaccines requiring a storage temperature of minus 70 degrees Celsius would be transported immediately to the 55 storage sites nationwide with ultra-low temperature freezers.
Arunangshu said medical and lab equipment require constant availability of power to deliver accurate health services and to ensure the patient is given adequate care.
“Additionally, as hospitals plan for the future, IT network infrastructures must be ready to accommodate new equipment and applications without compromising business continuity, power distribution, or airflow.
“This is why agile and efficient emergency backup power that includes UPS systems needs to be leveraged throughout hospitals and clinics to ensure constant availability,” he said. — Bernama