Warehouse Lighting Tips

When it comes to commercial and warehouse lighting, choosing the correct light fittings for the right location is key. Generally, this area of application is about getting an even spread of light within the minimum disruption to the customer. The long time of LED is perfect for this as maintenance isn’t such a problem. Depending on what is carried out in the application depends on the level of light, generally, mounting heights can be quite high so we need to look at beam angles and light output to create a good level of light in accordance with CIBSE guidelines.

Avoid Glare

Glare can cause accidents, such as with forklift drivers, so it’s important to keep in mind when choosing lights. Reflectors and shades on the fittings can provide a solution to this problem.

Think about colour temperature

It’s important to think about colour temperature because it can and will make a huge impact on visibility and productivity. Colour temperatures between 4000K and 5000K are the best choice for warehouses. These colour temperatures will give a comfortable white colour, which is a good option for spaces where staff are working for long periods of time under artificial light. Think of the CRI (Colour Rending Index), a high CRI of 85 or above is good for a warehouse environment.

Use of control options

Controls such as presence sensors and daylight harvesting can cut down on overall costs by reducing the amount of light being wasted. Lighting controls are becoming a regular feature for warehouse lighting schemes. If there is no one in an aisle/area, then the lighting will automatically drop to a lower level or turn off completely.

Position of the fittings

The spacing of your light fittings is essential as you could end up over or under illuminating your space. If they are positioned too close together, you’ll experience hot spots and/or glare where the light from one fixture overlaps with the next. On the other hand, if they are positioned too far apart, you’ll get dark areas.

Think emergency

Having emergency lighting in warehouses and industrial environments is a legal requirement.

Beware of the stroboscopic effect

When using lighting over moving machinery in a workshop, warehouse etc, you need to have flicker free lighting, as if not this can make moving parts on the machinery look like they are off. The stroboscopic effect causes moving objects to appear stationary when viewed in discrete series of short or instantaneous samples as distinct from a continuous view.