(Updated Feb. 20, 2021)
Think choosing a lighting type for your business means big spending? Think again. Today’s lighting options include technologies that allow you to light your building for less. High-efficiency fluorescents, nLIGHT technology, and LED systems are three options that save you money and provide superior lighting quality. Choose the options best for your business and get ready for a lighting win-win!
Indoor lighting should provide two basic functions – adequate light and an appropriate atmosphere. Whether these are a bank of floodlights in a parking lot, track lighting with low-wattage light bulbs in the lobby, or light strips that help highlight certain products.
The Right Light For The Job
When deciding what kind of light you’ll need for a commercial, industrial, or manufacturing operation, first consider what the light will be used for. High bay lights are used for ceilings that are more than 20 feet, task lights are needed for more precision work, and panel lights allow for softer lighting in office spaces.
Depending on your type of business, the following lighting technologies offer options that not only provide the type of light you want but offer ease of use and affordability necessary to make your lighting goals a reality. Just about any kind of lighting can be placed for optimal performance.
With a wide variety of mount options for commercial spaces, areas can be accentuated with direct light, indirect light, light with different color temperatures, and more. With retrofit kits, existing light can be altered as well. With so many options, especially in fixture design, let’s take a look at the actual light sources to help narrow your options.
LED technology: LEDs, or Light-Emitting Diodes, are semiconductor-based light sources used by businesses in everything from advertising signage to general lighting. Using LED bulbs can save up to 80-95% of costs over other lighting methods. While your initial investment to purchase and install this technology will be higher, power savings will result in a net gain for your business.
Commercial LED lighting is popular for many different situations. From troffer lights that shine the light directly down from the ceiling to desk lights, LED options are plentiful. With increased designs and uses during the past few years, these lights offer a wide variety of lighting applications.
nLIGHT: To compound the benefits of using high-efficiency lighting, many companies are turning to nLIGHT, a digital networking technology that integrates time-based, daylight-based, sensor-based, and manual lighting controls for easy, cost-effective lighting management. Over time, this process learns when light is needed and when it isn’t.
This system cuts energy costs by up to 40% and can make independent decisions about switching and dimming, saving user effort, and minimizing energy output in each room while maintaining appropriate light levels. Lighting that thinks for you? No brainer!
You may be wondering where fluorescent lighting falls on this list for flood lights or outdoor lights. While they were the go-to option for commercial lighting decades ago, the improvements in commercial lighting have made them nearly obsolete. In fact, many public utilities offer rebates for replacing fluorescent ceiling lighting.
If saving power and cutting costs are your business goals, consider implementing energy-saving bulbs and systems, including LED lighting and digital systems such as nLIGHT. Have questions? Consult your trusted electrician on what lighting choices best suit your business.
In addition to commercial lighting, Prairie Electric also offers interior and exterior residential lighting installation, repair, or re-wiring. We’ve worked with large processing plants, education facilities, buried infrastructure, hotels, and other substantial projects. For custom situations, we design and build electrical panels for automation in aerospace, automotive, agriculture, and other industries.
Meet Our Lighting Design Department
When businesses or homeowners are seeking the perfect lighting design to set the mood in an eatery, office, or industrial facility, they contact our engineering team to create 3D lighting models. By creating an exact replica of your space on one of our computers, we can show you exactly how the lighting fixture you are interested in will affect your space.
What does this process involve? How can lighting engineers know exactly how lighting will function in my space before the fixtures are installed?
How 3D Modeling Works
Our 3D modeling technicians take into account every aspect of your indoor or outdoor setting. We have designed appropriate lighting for areas a varied as industrial manufacturing spaces and walking paths, taking into account the textures, colors, reflectivity, and other items in the room or area of focus.
Once we have drawn up the space in terms of width, height, depth, materials, and furniture, we consider the type of atmosphere you are looking for. While a warehouse may require bright lighting, fine dining establishments walk the line between ambience and visibility. We work with you to come up with the perfect lighting level for any situation.
Next, we take into consideration the type of lights that will provide the visibility and glow you seek and the location of those lights within the model we have created. We input mounting heights and factor in light loss, which occurs where there may be dust or dirt built up on a lighting fixture.
Once these measurements and assessments are complete, our engineers run them through two programs: Visual and AGI32. Both programs work together to create a 3D rendering of your space, identical in every detail to the actual room or area based on the details you have provided. Once created, you can zoom in and enter the room to view the lighting design from all angles. From here, we help you assess what lighting type and level best serves your purposes.
Who Do We Work With?
Architects and interior design experts are most likely to contact us to create these illumination models. However, we will work with building managers and business owners as well, or anyone interested in seeing how the lighting they want serves the space they have.
Will My Space Be Bright Enough?
Our most commonly asked question relates to brightness and how much illumination is necessary to create a pleasant, safe, and productive atmosphere. Because no two spaces are exactly alike, what serves your space may not work for another area, and vice versa. Our goal is to help you decide on, design, and install the best possible lighting for your space, and mocking up a 3D representation is a great first step.
Whether you’re experienced in or new to lighting design, our engineering department is happy to provide you with a 3D perspective that improves your ability to complete the look and functionality of your location.
Have more questions on this fascinating and time-saving technique? Contact our experts at Prairie today!
