When purchasing lights for any commercial or industrial space, one of the key questions that arise is how many luminaires will be needed to aptly illuminate an area. Whether you need lighting solutions for a new build, to upgrade your lighting system to LED, or to improve an existing lighting layout for your changing needs, knowing how many fixtures to use and where will immensely benefit you. 

In this blog, we will be covering everything you need to know when deciding on light levels for your commercial or industrial space, so that you can make a sound decision and make the most of your purchase! 

Where to Start From?

Of course, the first thing that you will do is to look for references! You will find the Handbook published by Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) useful, as it talks about the ideal light levels in various commercial and industrial spaces, such as retail stores, warehouses,  auto shops & parking areas. The handbook is the perfect start for anyone who wants to be informed on the best lighting practices to meet visual and aesthetic lighting needs in an area — it is, after all, “. . . an accredited Standards Development Organization (SDO) under American National Standards Institute (ANSI) approved procedures.” 

The Basic Light Level Recommendations!

Here’s a list of the IES recommended lighting levels for the most common industrial and commercial spaces. The light levels have been measured in Lux (lumens per square meter) and Foot-candles (lumens per square foot) and give you an idea of how much light can make it onto a surface for each of these areas. 

Note: The above light levels have been pulled from IES Lighting Handbook and may vary with any latest update.

As you can see in the list above, different areas require different footcandles. We can understand this with an example: an office ideally needs an average of 40 foot-candles or 40 lumens per square foot. However, it is not necessary that the office has to implement 40 foot-candles across every inch. 40 foot-candles is the average estimate: there will be areas where foot-candles can be kept higher than 40 and areas where foot-candles can be kept lower than 40. A well-thought-out plan will include a combination of fixtures that results in 40 lumens of light per square foot. The end goal is to get a uniformly lit area. 

Deciding on the Right Number of Fixtures

This can be done through an Illumination Diagram. You can see the beam distance covered by light. Beam intensity remains the brightest in the center and slowly fades as the light spreads outward. Beam angles are also decided based on the surface/wall reflectivity.

One must also keep the ceiling height in mind when placing fixtures, as only then will it emit the amount of light you need. Once you understand the capability of the fixture, it’s time to do some critical thinking and take a sensible approach to design your lighting placement.

Let’s take an example of an auto shop to understand this better. Suppose it’s 50-by-64 feet wide (3,200 square feet) and has a 16′ ceiling. Following the foot-candles recommendation given in the IES chart, we know that an auto shop must have an average of 50 foot-candles. To figure out how many fixtures would be best for this kind of facility, we have to do simple calculations using the light specifications, so that we meet the desired foot-candle goal.

While IKIO offers a range of high bay lights, we will be using our 250 W Rodella UFO LED High Bay in the auto shop to meet the 50-foot-candle suggestion. This can be done by multiplying the area’s square footage by the suggested foot-candle requirement, which can then be divided by the fixture’s lumen output. What you will get as a result is the total number of fixtures ideal for the auto facility. The formula implemented is: 3,200 x 50 = 160,000; 160,000/35,735 = 4.4. 

Now, this is where your thinking comes in. If you add 4 luminaires (per the formula) to a 3,200-square-foot shop, the light will spread and get dimmer the farther away it is from its source. While directly under the fixture, the light will be the brightest. So the requirement of 50 foot-candle might not be met in the outlying areas. Now the question is, are 4 fixtures enough to give you uniform light and achieve an ideal, symmetrical layout? Will all the areas be properly lit? You will most likely find that 4 lights are not enough for this size and type of space.

To ensure that lights are evenly illuminating your space, we will now try to double the number of fixtures and see what happens. Now we have laid out 8 lights in a way that delivers the best illumination. The desired footcandles have been achieved!

Result: You will need Eight 250 W Rodella High Bay fixtures to illuminate a 3,200 square feet area with exceptional efficacy of 142.9 lm/W. In fact, with IKIO’s High Bay, you get increased footcandles (52). 

Remember, by understanding the lighting requirements of a space and the product to be installed, you can determine the best way to light it. Keep in mind that there are some factors like the color of walls and floor and light lost over time that also affect the overall illumination.

Contact IKIO for Photometrics, Customization & More!

At IKIO LED Lighting, we have experts with decades of knowledge under their belt. Our team can help you with everything from Photometrics to Product Prototyping to the Customization of the product! They will accurately estimate the number of lights you’ll need and go a bit more in-depth with you to consider different factors that might affect your overall lighting.

Hope this blog helped you understand the light levels better! If you want to explore more of our products, you can find the relevant links below:

Industrial Lighting Range

Commercial Lighting Range

Hazardous Lighting Range

Controls & Sensors

Source: https://www.superbrightleds.com/blog/industrial-commercial-recommended-lighting-levels.html