Kansas Department of Health & Environment’s IT Infrastructure Failure is Recovering
Filed under: Data Center, Notifications, SensorProbes, environmental monitoring
A recent news article reported on an IT infrastructure failure at Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE). The issue was compounded by the fact that it occurred as students were preparing to enter school and needed birth certificates, immunization
records, and other state documents. Because they were no longer electronically accessible, approximately 120,000 of these records had to be retrieved from storage in a central Kansas salt mine, no doubt adding significant man-hours to workers across Kansas.
According to the Healthcare IT News article, the technical problems stemmed from a storage area network (SAN) failure, the hardware which stored agency records. Read more
Ravica Environmental Sensors Are Alternative To “Glass Pavilion”
I recently learned of the existence of a glass house in Montecito, California designed by Los Angeles- based architect Steve Hermann. Considering that this is a glass house in which someone standing outside can see into multiple rooms (including bedrooms and
bathrooms), I question the validity of Mr. Hermann’s statement, “Here I have complete privacy.”
Albeit gorgeous, the home features glass exterior walls, allowing the occupant to be “one with nature.” But it also seems to allow the occupant to be “one with everyone else who is standing outside the house.”
This takes the concept of “neighborhood watch” to a new level. Read more
Ravica’s Motion Sensor Cameras Prevent Tremendous Drain on Networks
Filed under: Intelligent Sensors, Security Monitoring, environmental monitoring, motion detector
It seems the need for preventative monitoring is everywhere.
Last week I noted a discussion with an associate who lost data due to a water leak in a data center. Not long after that discussion, I had a conversation with an IT Manager regarding business structure. During our conversation, he mentioned that his building’s security officers recently called him with complaints of slow internet connectivity. He used his company’s NetFlow monitoring tool to find the source of tremendous internet bandwidth streaming. Through the NetFlow Analyzer, he narrowed the focus to one specific security camera and realized the camera was constantly streaming images of an empty hallway. This streaming was pumping pictures to the network server and causing huge delays.
He further used his Scrutinizer Analyzer Read more
Environmental Monitoring Sensors: More Than Just Fancy Smoke Detectors
Filed under: SensorProbes, environmental monitoring, humidity monitoring, smoke detector, temperature monitoring, water leak monitoring
During a conversation this week, an associate of mine explained that his business is growing exponentially. His operation expanded from 5 locations to 18 locations in just 2 years. Considering the national economy during this last 2 years, I found this to be an astonishing and noble feat. But then he casually mentioned something else: one of his centers recently lost data due to a water leak. He mentioned it almost in passing, as if losses of this nature were to be occasionally expected.
Sadly, this type of water damage is fairly common. Not as common as the Old Spice Guy videos on YouTube, but common nonetheless. Read more
Top 3 advantages of web-based temperature monitoring systems
Filed under: environmental monitoring, humidity monitoring, temperature monitoring
It regularly occurs to me that web-based environmental monitoring systems, whether they be for the home, office, data center, storage closet, you name it, can oftentimes be overkill. Some people just need a thermometer. Others just need a barometer. Sometimes, simple problems call for simple solutions.
However, a web-based system that can monitor for changes in temperature, humidity, airflow, as well as the presence of water, smoke and motion, can be extremely valuable. To demonstrate just how valuable, I thought I would put together a list of the top three reason why a web-based system is more convenient and cost effect for many home and business applications.
Are you optimizing your environmental monitoring system?
Filed under: Intelligent Sensors, environmental monitoring
Here on the Ravica Blog, we talk a lot about temperature and humidity monitoring in data centers, but did you know 
that you can use the same Sensor Probes to create a centralized monitoring system that can provide information on almost any environmental condition? The following is a run-down of some of the other Ravica intelligent sensors that are available. All the sensors are plug & play, SNMP-enabled and easily integrated into the environmental monitoring system of your dreams. Read more
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Environmental Monitoring During the Winter Months
Filed under: General, environmental monitoring, water leak monitoring
Today, we had our first major snow storm of the season. I’m a transplant to the northeast and winter in
Maine is still a jarring experience for me. My hometown of Vancouver, WA basically shuts down at the first sight of snow and doesn’t reopen until all the white stuff has melted away, which in a normal year is sometime before 4 pm on the same day. Around here, you just prepare, plow through and get on with business.
Winter requires some special preparation for the inside of your facility as well. With snow and ice comes the threat of water pipes bursting and power outages. Make sure that your facility is protected by having a back-up generator in place. You should also be sure that the main water pipes and any pipes that are running along uninsulated walls have been winterized. Read more
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Controlling the temperature and humidity in your wine cellar
Filed under: Intelligent Sensors, SensorProbes, environmental monitoring, humidity monitoring, temperature monitoring
Recently, I was watching a home show on television that was all 
about building a wine cellar in your basement. I don’t collect wine myself, but the space was beautiful and I couldn’t help but feel a little vicarious joy as I watched the home owners hold the first tasting party in their private cellar.
If you are a wine aficionado or if you make your living in the wine industry, you know that temperature and humidity control is crucial to storing and aging wines. The optimal temperature for storing wines is a constant 50° – 55°. If it is too cold, the wine won’t mature and will taste flat and lifeless; too warm and the wine will cook and end up tasting off. Read more
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Best practices in temperature monitoring
When considering a commercial grade temperature monitoring solution, which will assist with your environmental monitoring goals, I think the following should be kept in mind when choosing the right temperature sensor.
Let’s take a look at a list of specifications to consider when choosing hardware:
Avoiding water damage during floods
Filed under: environmental monitoring, water leak monitoring
This past weekend, the remnants of tropical storm Ida showed up in Southern Maine as a rain-soaked nor’easter. Fortunately, for us, we didn’t see the wide spread flooding and coastal erosion that other areas experienced further south on the New Jersey and Delaware coasts. 
Seeing all the news footage of flooded streets made me think about how important it is to be prepared for water infiltration due to flooding. According to the Red Cross, floods are among the most frequent and costly natural disasters, causing more than 90% of the damage related to natural disasters. On average, floods cause more than $4 billion in damages worldwide, per year. Proper preparation is equally important for businesses and homeowners.