UPS Testing

Is EC.02.05.07 EP3- SEPSS (UPS) testing required if they are connected to emergency power (generator)?

The first paragraph of EC.02.05.07 EP3 does not apply to UPS’s that get their power from a generator because these UPS’s are not SEPSS’s.  Only UPS’s that get their power solely from utility power are SEPSS’s.  The first paragraph of EP3 and Notes 2 & 3 of EP3 refer to SEPSS’s

UPS’s that get their power from the load side of an ATS (thus from a generator) are not SEPSS’s.  They are commonly referred to now (even by TJC) as “bridging devices” whose purpose is to bridge the 10-sec gap between loss of normal power and ATS transfer to the generator.  The second paragraph of EP3 refers to these bridging devices, although not with that terminology.  Any UPS’s that are bridging devices and not SEPSS’s must be tested and maintained in accordance with the UPS manufacturer’s instructions.  I always recommend that hospitals have documentation of the UPS manufacturer’s recommendation (such as from the O&M manual) and can show that these recommendations are being followed if those UPS’s are listed in the critical equipment inventory.