LED High Bay Metal Halide Replacements for Warehouses

It is easy to think of warehouses simply as big rooms. But the industrial nature of warehouses means that storage can get complicated. What you store, how you store it and how you look for it seem like easy concepts from the outside, but can become complicated very quickly. Finding the right lighting for the warehouse environment can help make all other aspects more manageable. In the past these lighting needs were met by high intensity discharge bulbs (HIDs) such as the metal halide. Here's why the future is brighter by replacing them with LED lighting.

High Bay Has Its Challenges

Warehouses need high ceilings. To fit the many different types of items and stored objects, the space needs to be vast. But it isn't simply tall walls which create spacial issues for efficient lighting. The open plan nature of warehouses means an empty one needs its entire volume to be filled with light. Once the shelves, crates and whatever else might be housed within are factored into the equation, then the lighting needs change.

High bay lighting is designed specifically to meet the needs of tall buildings (anything over 20' or 6 m high). Unfortunately, metal halide and other HIDs are not designed to meet these specific needs efficiently.

As metal halide bulbs work by passing electricity between electrodes, the arc which creates the light is by nature omnidirectional. This means not all of the light is going to be directed in the area where it is needed, i.e. much of the light energy gets directed away from the space below the ceiling.

LED lighting does not work in the same way. LEDs harness the light energy and emit it in a given direction. Electricity is, therefore, not used to power light energy which is going to waste. Bulbs like the OEO EZ LED 1K ULTRAseries are also specially designed for indoor, vertical, open fixtures which make lighting large spaces easy. They also offer a 95° beam angle which is perfect for high bay as it directs the light where you need it. This means it fills up both vertical and horizontal space in an efficient manner.
 



Filling Up Space Takes Energy

Filling large industrial spaces such as warehouses with light uses a lot of energy. The 1K ULTRA is a direct replacement bulb for bulbs with a 1000W equivalence. This means they provide as much light as a corresponding bulb would do using 1000 watts of electricity. It doesn't mean they use 1000W of electricity to do it.

LED lighting provides light which is tailored to the needs of the industrial space. They use phosphorous coatings on the bulbs to create and incredible white light which meets the needs of many industries, including the strength and clarity required for warehouses. It does this by saving up to 62% on energy costs per bulbs.

The savings this creates on energy bills are significant when it comes to warehouse lighting. Not only this, but LED lighting is safer for workers as it provides a better quality of light which doesn't interrupt their circadian rhythms.

LED lighting saves in so many ways and it is important to note that once prohibitive pricing no longer applies. With incentives, ever lowering initial costs and direct replacement/ballast bypass bulbs being more readily available, warehouses are better off with LED.