Unified Facilitites Guide Specifications

The abbreviation for electrostatic discharge. In layman’s terms: an electrical event that takes place when two conductors with different electrical potential make contact. ESD events occur when people walk across various forms of flooring and then they touch or approach computers and sensitive electronic devices. ESD should not be identified with shocks or zaps. Although shocks and zaps are ESD events, they are the result of at least three thousand five hundred (3500) volt discharges. An ESD event as low as 20 volts can disrupt electronic components. Because of this extremely low voltage, the event can go completely undetected.