LED lights, over time, have gained enormous popularity because of their cost-saving and eco-friendly nature. However, despite these benefits, business owners often wonder whether or not LEDs can replace the lighting products that they have been using for decades. Well, the answer is yes! LED lights, at the moment, are the most versatile lighting products available in the marketplace. Whether looking for panel lights for your office or floodlights for large stadiums, there is an LED lighting solution for all kinds of applications. Large spaces with high ceilings such as manufacturing units warehouses, gyms and large recreational facilities are a few challenging setups where you might need high power lights such as LED High Bays for better visibility. LED High Bay lights help in illuminating large spaces, efficiently and evenly, which in turn increases the productivity of the manpower, as suggested by a study conducted by International Journal of Ergonomics.

Understanding LED High Bay Lights

As discussed earlier, High Bay LED lights are specially designed lights, commonly used in large spaces with ceiling height ranging from 20 to 40 feet. Depending upon your requirement and design of the facility you can either use chains or can directly attach these high bay lights to the ceiling.

Just like other LED lights, High Bays also have a range of options, each one exclusively designed to cater to a different need. Although it might occur as a difficult task to differentiate between them, the following points can help you choose the most suitable one for your commercial or industrial setting.

1.              Analyzing Layout

The first thing that you must do as a smart buyer is - analyze the layout of your setup as your choice of LED High Bay lights will vary depending upon the type of space you own. For example, an LED High Bay with 30 foot-candles of light intensity is usually enough to light up a storage room, however, you might require one with 50 foot-candles to illuminate a warehouse uniformly. Not just that, a retail store might need even brighter lights (about 80 foot-candles) so that all the products within the store are visible. Analyzing the layout plan of your facility, in the beginning, will help you ensure that you buy just the right lights for your commercial or industrial set up and nothing else.

2.      Ascertaining the Watts and Lumens Required

Watt is the measure of the amount of electricity consumed by light while in use, whereas lumens is the measuring unit for the amount of visible light produced by a lighting source. Talking about the two, you must determine both the things, well before making a final buying decision. Moreover, do consider the size and height of your facility before purchasing LED High Bay lights as different watts of lights are considered suitable for different heights. If the height of your space ranges between:

• 10-15 feet, then the bulb needed, must produce 10,000 - 15,000 lumens
• 15-25 feet, then the bulb needed, must produce 16000 - 25,000 lumens
• 30-35 feet, then the bulb needed, must produce more than equal to 36,000 lumens

3.      Deciding the Number of Lights Required

This is the step where preparing a layout and determining the lumens beforehand can prove beneficial. Moreover, almost all reputable lighting brands offer a free photometric layout, which makes it easier for you to decide the number of lights needed at your facility and the distance between each one of them. Additionally, this comprehensive pre-planning will help you avoid unnecessary installation of fixtures, thereby saving you a large chunk of money.

4.      Determining the type of High Bay Lights Required

As mentioned earlier, LED High Bay Lights are available in a variety of designs which is why it is difficult to choose the one that is most suitable for your facility. That being said, depending upon the shape, LED high bay lights are mainly divided into two sub-categories:​​​​​​

• UFO High Bay Lights

Image Source: https://www.ikioledlighting.com/product/superia-ufo-high-bay

• Linear High Bay Lights

Image Source: https://www.ikioledlighting.com/product/superia-linear-high-bay

UFO high bays are round in shape; whereas Linear high bays are long.

Linear high bays, also called panel-style high bays, provide superior light distribution and are also larger in comparison to the UFO fixtures. They are also considered an ideal replacement for traditional fluorescent T5HO and T8 high bays.

UFO high bays on the other hand, are a great choice for large warehouses and are IP rated for wet locations. Moreover, when looking for a direct replacement of traditional metal halides, UFO high bays is the most suitable option. However, if the project you have undertaken is a new build, your choice of LED high bays will vary accordingly. In case the height of the ceiling is more than 35 feet, its best to use UFO high bay lights as they render better light output and beam spread than Linear LED high bays. In addition, the placement of the light fixture on the ceiling also affects your choice of high bay light.

5.      Managing the Voltage of the lights

When looking for lighting options for a commercial and industrial set up you might face an occasional need for high voltage fixtures. Well, with LED high bays there is rarely any need to set the voltage as they can automatically adjust to the incoming voltage. However, you can find LED high bay lights in the following voltage ranges:

• 100 - 277 V
• 277 - 480 V
• 347 - 480 V

6.      Choosing the Color Temperature

Color temperature is a characteristic of light that is measured on the Kelvin scale. Light with a higher number on the Kelvin scale is more warm and yellow, whereas the one with a lower number is cool and blue. Most people consider a color temperature of more than 5500K as harsh which might lead to headaches. This is why, in a home like environment, it is suggested to not exceed 3000K; however, if you are looking to replace a metal halide fixture in your large industrial setup, an LED high bay light with a color temperature more than equal to 5000K is just perfect.

7.      Considering the CRI

Color Rendering Index (CRI) is the ability of a lighting product to reveal the actual colors of different objects. A lighting source with 70+ CRI is deemed as a good option for large industrial setups, however, in the case of manufacturing units where colors might play a vital role; choose a lighting source with a higher CRI (80 - 90).

Since different application areas require different LED High Bay Lights, these recommendations can come in handy in your decision-making process and help you illuminate your spaces appropriately.