Application Guides

The vast majority of existing warehouse space in the US is lit with inefficient high intensity discharge or magnetically ballasted T12 fluorescent light fixtures.  Unfortunately, lighting is one of the few areas that is often overlooked when investigating cost reduction opportunities.  Owners and managers blindly budget tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars for utility bills without realizing that switching to more energy efficient warehouse lighting can provide a tremendous opportunity to reduce energy demand and therefore cut utility costs.  Many believe that the only option to lowering the electric bill is to shut off all the lights in the facility which results in an unsafe work environment.  We have had major advances in lighting technology that allow for warehouses lighting systems to be optimized for bulk storage and rack aisle applications.

This application guide outlines warehouse lighting requirements and best practices and gives practical examples you can use as a basis for your warehouse lighting retrofit project.  As with our gymnasium lighting application guide, we will use examples to illustrate these guidelines that are based on typical warehouse layouts.  If you have any questions or need any clarifications, don’t hesitate to contact us.

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For years, the standard method of lighting gymnasiums has been the 400W Metal Halide High Bay. This has led to gyms with deteriorating light levels and poor playing conditions that are expensive to operate. New technologies have allowed lighting designers to specify T5 High Output (T5HO) Fluorescent High Bay Fixtures in place of the more inefficient metal halide fixtures. This shift has reduced the power consumption of gymnasium lighting systems, provided better quality light for all sports activities, and has allowed for a more versatile environment in school or recreational center gyms.

This post provides guidance on how to retrofit a gymnasium with more energy efficient lighting.  We will use a typical high school gym as a base for our energy savings and provide example lighting layouts with point-by-point light levels.

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