It’s important for warehouse workers to be safe from the moment they clock in to the time they leave at the end of their shift. Many facilities work hard to provide their workers with proper equipment training, creating safety procedures and mandatory certifications for operating machinery. But even the most robust warehouse safety standards can be rendered ineffective by poor lighting.
Proper warehouse lighting solutions are incredibly important for worker safety as well as productivity. Not only does adequate lighting allow workers to see equipment controls and safety signs, it also allows them to move through tasks without having to stop due to visibility issues in dimly lit aisles.
In addition to safety benefits, choosing the right warehouse lighting solutions for your facility can save money and improve a building’s energy efficiency. Find out more about best warehouse lighting practices and the innumerable benefits of equipping warehouse facilities with powerful LED lights.
Cost Effective & Energy Efficient
Warehouses are traditionally large facilities with many overhead costs. One of these major manufacturing support costs is electricity. Until recently, metal halide lamps were primarily used to light a warehouse. But in the interest of keeping overhead costs low and workers safe, alternatives have recently replaced this somewhat dated technology.
One of the major drawbacks of metal halide lamps is lumen depreciation. A 400W metal halide lamp, which is commonly used in high bay fixtures, can initially produce approximately 36,000 lumens. While this initial output is impressive, metal halide lamp lumens depreciate 50% halfway through their life cycle. This means, at a certain point in the fixture’s lifetime, it loses nearly half of its initial brightness. Effective lighting is extremely important for preserving productivity and reducing injury in warehouses and any industrial setting where workers operate heavy machinery.
The LED equivalent of a 400W metal halide lamp is between 120 and 150 watts. A 150W LED produces approximately 28,600 initial lumens. While this lumen output is a bit less than metal halide lamps, LEDs only lose about 20% of their brightness halfway through their impressive 50,000 hour lifespan. The high level of lumen retention and wattage efficiency help cut down on accrued costs from frequent replacements that are often required with more dated warehouse lighting solutions.
Warehouse Lighting Installation & LED Retrofitting
While it’s important to factor lifespan and lumen depreciation into warehouse lighting, it’s also important to consider your facility’s existing lighting solution to fully understand the costs and logistics of how to light a warehouse or prep your facility for a retrofit.
Warehouses are typically lit with either I or V distribution. Type I lighting is the best warehouse lighting orientation for facilities with tall shelving and narrow aisles. Type V lighting, on the other hand, is perfect for facilities with large open spaces. It’s important to understand which orientation your facility will need when preparing for a warehouse lighting installation or retrofit. For a consultation about fixtures and lighting configurations, contact the experts at Imperial lighting, and we’ll assist you through the process.
Due to the fact that many warehouses are large facilities with high ceilings, high bay fixtures are often used in warehouse lighting solutions. LEDs, metal halide lamps, and fluorescent lamps can all be used in high bay fixtures, but it’s wise to use lamps that are not prone to cycling or outages at the end of their life cycle as high bay lights are not easily accessible for regular maintenance.
This frequent use of high bay fixtures in warehouses is another reason LEDs are a better option for warehouse lighting installations or a retrofit of an existing lighting system. As a highly versatile lighting solution, LED lamps and fixtures are adaptable to high bay, low bay, and strip lighting for interiors that use both Type I and Type V orientation. To find out more about LED upgrades, read more here.
Other Benefits of LEDs as the Best Warehouse Lighting Solution
LEDs offer other benefits for large-scale buildings other than reduced costs and lower maintenance. Light-emitting diodes can produce a wide range of colors and temperatures based on measurements on the Kelvin Scale. For example, it’s recommended that restaurants select LEDs at 2700K to create a warm, intimate atmosphere. Offices, on the other hand, should use LEDs at 3500K to create balanced, neutral lighting that promotes productivity.
LEDs at 5000K create bright light similar to sunlight and are considered the correct type of light for warehouses, stadiums, and healthcare facilities. One of the reasons 5000K, specifically, is considered the best warehouse lighting level is due to the fact that it promotes productivity while keeping workers safe.
Once you’ve determined the kind of lighting fixtures you need to use in your warehouse space, the temperature of lighting, as well as the most efficient lighting layout, give the experts at Imperial Lighting a call to get a quote or a lighting audit. We’re here to guide you through the process of how to light a warehouse to create safe, productive working environments for those hard at work in your facility.
