Utilities, including electricity, gas, nuclear power and water treatment, are the most critical industries in the world, according to a new ranking from Vertiv, formerly Emerson Network Power.
Mass transit—specifically rail and air transportation—ranked second on the list, followed by telecommunications, upstream oil and gas activity and cloud and colocation, according to Vertiv’s ranking of World’s Most Critical Industries.
The panel set criteria encompassing the range of potential impacts from the loss of availability of critical systems and weighted them based on the severity of the impact. These criteria then were used to create a criticality rubric the panel used to score the industries, which then were ranked by their average scores.
Clean power and water are fundamental needs in a developed society and underpin most other industries and services, making utilities a clear choice as the most critical industry, Vertiv said.
Mass transit ranked second, with panelists citing not just the safety of travelers, but the massive impact delays and disruptions can have across multiple businesses, markets and the world. The No. 3 ranking for telecommunications reflects the importance of communications and connectivity in personal and business activities and emergency situations.
Financial services topped the list of industries ranking highest in terms of financial impact of unplanned downtime. E-commerce was second, followed by cloud and colocation.
Cloud and colocation also ranked fifth overall in the list of most critical industries due to the increased dependence on those platforms across multiple businesses. The panel also identified cloud and colocation as one of several rapidly emerging industries that are becoming increasingly critical.