When it comes to the planning and application of a lighting setup for a commercial building in Utah, things can get somewhat complex. This is generally a more detailed job than a residential setup, involving several fixtures and also some important code-related areas, and utilizing the services of a quality electrician to assist you during this process is vital.

At Orange Electric, we’re here to help. Our commercial electricians have assisted numerous business owners or facility managers with lighting setups or upgrades for a huge swath of different commercial buildings, ranging from smaller structures to vast warehouses and many in between. While there are a number of technical factors that go into the setup of any commercial lighting system, and we’ll be happy to go over these with you in detail as they pertain to your structure, there are also some broad themes and variables we recommend thinking about from the 10,000-foot level as you plan things out here. Let’s go over several things for Utah building owners to think about here.

Functionality

First and foremost, for somewhat apparent reasons, the functionality of your lighting system is paramount. We’re not just talking about ensuring you purchase lights that actually work, though this is part of the program as well – we’re also talking about ensuring the location and placement of light fixtures is conducive to space.

Say you’re the owner of an office building where lots of paperwork is regularly passed around, for instance. In these settings, you need enough lighting in all common office areas to ensure staff can easily read and see what they’re doing without straining their eyes – if not, you’re risking major losses in productivity. At the same time, you want your lighting setup to be simple and easy to operate. Combining these two factors is generally the baseline here.

Safety

And while other items on this list are also important for a lighting setup, they all fall under the broad control of the most important aspect here: Safety. No lighting installation or upgrade should be made that risks the safety of building occupants in any way, and we will not perform such an installation.

This is one area where it pays to have professionals like our commercial electricians working with you. Not only are we experts on the safe, straightforward setup of any lighting system, from wiring needs to many other areas, we’re also experts in factors like lighting on staircases or in other potentially hazardous areas. As a business or building owner, limiting potential hazards and resulting liability is a big deal – and proper lighting is one major tool at your disposal here.

Adherence to Code

Another important area here is ensuring your building is meeting all local codes and related requirements that may be in place. These are typically for several areas, with electronic connections being one of them. Again, this is an area where a qualified commercial electrician is a huge asset: We know all the local building codes and can easily confirm you’re in compliance with all of them for any lighting setup.

Aesthetics

While you might think of lighting system aesthetics as a secondary concern, they’re actually very important – especially if you run a customer-facing business where clients or prospective clients are regularly visiting. Lighting aesthetics are actually one of the first things guests to a commercial building notice, and they impact the first impression people have when they walk into your offices.

Not only do you want to light that’s robust and covers the entire facility, but you also want it to look great and give off an impression of professionalism. This is a simple area where through a combination of modern lighting formats and quality fixtures, we’ll ensure your setup both looks and functions optimally.

Efficiency

Operating costs are also an important factor for any building or business owner, and lighting efficiency plays a big role here. There are numerous highly efficient lighting options available today, including LED lights, that offer much better energy usage numbers than prior options.

For this reason, if your lighting system is older, particularly the bulbs or fixtures themselves, it could be time to consider an upgrade. Especially if you’ve noticed recently that your electricity bill is rising, this could be due in part to older light fixtures that aren’t efficient – you might be surprised how much you’ll save in the long run by replacing these with more efficient modern options.

Reliability

Finally, we mention reliability specifically because, while it’s an obvious factor to some, others may gloss over it a bit too much. Some building owners are so laser-focused on the cost of their lighting setup that they get tunnel vision, barely focusing on other elements that are also important.

It’s great if your initial setup costs a bit less, sure, but if you skimped on reliable materials to make this happen, you’re going to pay for it down the line one way or another. Your lights will be less efficient and will raise your energy costs, for one, and will also be more likely to fail far sooner than more reliable options would – meaning you’ll be paying for replacements or an entire system overhaul much sooner than you would be otherwise, and some or all of those initial savings you found will be gone.

For more on the important variables at play when setting up a new commercial lighting system, or to learn about any of our electrician services in Utah, speak to the staff at Orange Electric today.