Buildings normally house a number of basic supply and disposal networks that therefore serve as a foundation for all business processes in an organisation, including its IT. Examples of such supply networks include the following:
electrical power
telephone
cooling
heating and ventilation
water and waste water
fire-fighting water supply
gas
alarm and control systems (e.g. for intrusion, fire, building management)
intercom systems
Amongst other things, the failure or malfunction of a supply network can mean that people can no longer work in the building or that IT operations and thus information processing are impaired.
The networks are mutually dependent to varying degrees, which means that operational disruptions in any of the individual networks will also affect the other networks.
Examples:
A failure of the heating or ventilation may mean that all employees have to leave the affected buildings. Under certain circumstances this can result in high damages.
A power failure will not only have a direct impact on the IT, but also on all other networks and systems equipped with electrically operated monitoring and control technology. There may even be electric lifting pumps installed in the sewage pipes under certain circumstances.
A failure of the water supply may eventually affect the operation of air conditioning systems.