Lighting maintenance should be treated the same as maintaining something like a car – it’s better to be proactive than reactive. In most cases, the approach – especially in commercial spaces – takes on the latter. Light fixtures are left to build up dirt and dust instead of being regularly cleaned to allow for better light, and defective parts are only replaced after they break. This lack of maintenance results in extra labor, energy, and time costs – and if you add that up for an entire building or office space, it can end up being rather significant.
Deciding to schedule it for your commercial space means you can make sure you’re looking after your lighting system, and optimizing your lighting performance throughout the entire building. Let’s take a deeper look into the basics of lighting maintenance, why it’s important, and what plan you should have in place.
What Is Lighting Maintenance?
The basic definition of lighting maintenance is the general upkeep, replacement, or updating of your lighting system. This includes having a checklist and maintaining things such as: cleaning fixtures and lamps, replacing bulbs and lenses, as well as cleaning and repainting rooms to allow for better light reflection.
Why Is It So Important?
Scheduled or regular lighting maintenance is so important as it plays a major role in reducing energy usage. Recent statistics released by The U.S. Department of Energy stated that lighting accounts for at least 20% of the total energy usage in commercial spaces.
In addition to this, poor lighting maintenance can have an effect on employees and can result in:
- Reduced worker productivity amongst employees
- Visual impairment
- Headaches
- Contributes to overall higher energy costs.
The fact is that all lighting systems will experience a performance deterioration over time, and so ongoing maintenance is needed. As the amount of useful light that is distributed by your lighting system decreases, the wattage is staying the same, which results in energy being wasted. Having regular and scheduled lighting maintenance for your commercial space is an effective way to make sure your lighting system is performing optimally and there is minimal energy being wasted.
The Benefits Of A Lighting Maintenance Plan
An effective lighting maintenance plan can often include things such as: scheduling, inventory control, and policies.
Routine Actions To Expect:
- Group lighting replacement: replace all bulbs in a lighting system at the same time which is beneficial and cost-effective as it saves labor time, and keeps all lights working optimally.
- Cleaning of fixtures
- Bulb inspection and troubleshooting
- Spot replacement of lenses if they look yellow in color
- Deep cleaning or repainting rooms so that they can reflect the maximum amount of light
In addition to a maintenance schedule, many plans include a policy that serve as a guideline to optimize your lighting system throughout the year, in-between scheduled maintenance visits.
Effective Lighting Maintenance Policies Include:
- Blueprints of your commercial space
- Lighting control schedule
- Utility contacts for spot replacements
- Fixture cleaning and group relamping schedule
- Relamping and fixture cleaning procedure
- Procedure for proper lamp disposal
Benefits:
- Group relamping and cleaning can reduce labor costs by up to 70%
- Buying bulbs in bulk and less frequently saves you time and money in the long-run
- Regular cleaning and replacement will produce higher light levels
- Regular maintenance provides more opportunities to replace bulbs with newer, energy-saving alternatives
- Regular maintenance and replacement saves on energy costs over time
- Planned cleaning can ensure less dust will build up over time, providing less health risks for employees
Hiring The Right Lighting Maintenance Team For Your Commercial Space
At Art Plumbing, AC & Electric, our seasoned electricians, with over 30 years of experience, would be happy to discuss and evaluate your lighting maintenance needs. Our experts can share their industry experience and knowledge to educate you on the opportunities to reduce your energy costs and provide the optimal lighting system experience.
Give us a call today at 1-800-475-1504 to discuss your lighting needs and check out our Facebook page to see some verified customer reviews.
