Industrial Lighting design is divided into four groups:
- General lighting
- Local lighting
- Mixed lighting
- Zoned general lighting
To determine which one is a necessity, there are four provisions to follow:
- General lighting should be used when mixed lighting is unreasonable for use, or local lighting cannot be installed.
- Certain areas require higher lighting than what general lighting can provide.
- Mixed lighting is ideal for areas with high lighting requirements, with low density in working positions, or when general lighting is unsuitable.
- Local lighting is not suitable for workplaces.
Different Industrial Lighting Types
There are several lighting types available:
- Duty lighting
- Emergency lighting
- Guard lighting
- Normal lighting
- Obstacle lighting.
Emergency lighting can include safety lighting, evacuation lighting, and backup lighting, and the following rules should be followed:
- Equipment lighting should be included where activities can continue if there is a fault with the normal lighting causing it to go out.
- If there is a fault with the standard lighting, safety lighting should be added to places to ensure people stay safe in dangerous places.
- If there is a fault with the standard lighting, evacuation lighting should be made available over passages and exits to make sure everybody can leave safely.
- On-duty lighting should be added to normal lighting but work independently or in conjunction with emergency lighting.
- Install guard lighting near the guard range
- Obstacle lighting installation should strictly adhere to regulations set forth by the transportation or aviation industries.
Environmental Factors for Proper Factory Lighting
When choosing the kind of lights to use based on the environment they’ll be used in, you must factor in the following situation:
- Temperature
- Humidity
- Dust
- Corrosion
- Contamination
- Vibration
- Fire and explosion hazards
There are three environmental conditions to help you choose your lights:
- Normal environments can use recessed lights.
- Dusty locations with no fire risks can use lights that can be used with the amount of dust produced. The air concentration or sedimentation amount calculates how much dust is in the air. In basic dusty environments, lights that are dust-proof (IPSX grade) should be installed. In general dusty areas that have conductive dust and dust-tight lights (IP6X) should be installed.
- In conductive fiber settings, it’s best to install IP65-rated lights, especially if they need to be washed regularly.
One such light to consider is the Lepro LED High Bay Light. It has an IP65 rating and is both waterproof and dust-proof. They come with a corrosion-resistant finish and can pass more than 150 hours of the spray/salt test. The Lepro LED High Bay lights can be used in high salt areas such as the beach or seashore. The die-cast housing and strong PC lens have an IK10 impact-resistant rating.
What is a Clean Room?
This is an area of a factory where the environmental conditions must remain tightly controlled. The key aspect of the lighting is to ensure work activities can be easily seen – safe and efficient for the employees.
Any lighting system installed should not affect the flow of air or the production process and be easily maintainable.
There are specific industries where clean rooms are standard: aviation, computer, electronics, and semiconductor. The food and beverage and pharmaceutical industries also have biological clean rooms.
Industrial Lighting Arrangement
Serious problems can occur when mistakes happen in a clean room, which is why they have stringent higher levels of lighting.
- If no special requirements are necessary, it’s advisable to use high color rendering neutral white light. These requirements are also applicable to local lighting to avoid glare.
- The lighting system of a certain dust level will depend on the requirement for air handling. Fluorescent lights with high color rendering aspects are ideal for these areas.
- In a light source with a wide color temperature range, you can choose the right color temperature.
Clean Room Lighting: Use Thin Wire Cables
- Cleanrooms with strict guidelines must ensure a controlled airflow to ensure the desired environment is maintained. Airflow changes must be avoided.
- Do not use surface or hidden lights.
- Use thin lights, those with a width smaller than the distance between the building’s suspended ceiling brackets.
- Standard fluorescent bulbs can be used for a glare source but are controllable with reflectors inside the light.
With this kind of lighting, the Jurassic Teardrop light fixture with thin wire cable racks and 36W lighting can be used.
This can lead to an increased light efficiency of nearly 15%.
Clean Room Lighting: Use Recessed Lights
- Use recessed light fixtures for clean rooms with a medium level of dust.
- No matter what kind of lighting you are installing (open or closed), be sure that air can pass through the filter.
- Ensure you have a straightforward design that won’t affect the operating system.
- Make sure to choose lights that don’t cause glare and provide ample light.
Remember, when you need lights for your factory, you need to base the decision on the following:
- Environmental condition
- Production and work condition
- Ease of installation and coordination
- Aesthetic appearance
- The economical and technical sense
