Three Ways to Renovate Your Commercial Property to Make It More Accessible

Owning or managing commercial real estate is a full-time job. There are a lot of different competing factors fighting for your time, effort, and money, especially if your industry has stiff competition. The best way to focus on your core business and services is to use third-party experts whenever possible. Having a professional inspector check your building for zoning violations and burgeoning failures is a perfect example. The inspector should check for ADA compliance, not just local regulations, and focus on these three key areas if the inspector doesn’t bring them up:

1. Are your entry and exit points up to par?

If potential customers can’t easily get into your place of business, you’re going to lose business. Even worse, someone may make a claim or suit against your business for discrimination and failure to comply with ADA building compliance. So ask about the sidewalk leading up to your front doors, any need for a ramp, and if the doors are accessible to all potential traffic. Depending on the building type and your area, you may also be responsible for the parking lot, the exits, and maintenance of universally accessible emergencies exits, even in shared areas between properties.

2. Do you have sufficiently wide walkways and restrooms?

Your hallways, spaces between permanent structures (like walls, bars, and tables), and doorways need to be sufficiently wide for patrons in wheelchairs. Your restrooms also need to be universally accessible and, if possible, have above the bare minimum of space. Making your building better than minimally compliant will be noticed by visitors with disabilities, and that’s good for business.

3. Is your electrical wiring right for the lights you have?

ADA compliance includes having sufficient lighting and signage for visitors with visual impairments. If you or your property manager were previously aware of this, you may have already updated the fixtures. But double-check that old wiring can handle more powerful lighting and greater numbers of electronic devices so that your building stays safe.

Good lighting makes it easier to navigate through your building. It makes it more inviting and reduces the risk of injuries. Contact us to discuss the lighting you need to make your store more accessible.

Making The Most Of Your Capital Budget

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Capital budgeting is the planning process used to determine whether an organization’s long term investments such as new machinery, replacement of machinery, new plants, new products, and research development projects are worth the funding of cash through the firm’s capitalization structure.

How To Prioritize Projects

Capital budgeting is a difficult task for any business. Prioritizing projects is challenging and an upgrade could benefit any part of a building structure.  If you own a large building, it’s crucial to have adequate lighting for the safety, aesthetic and efficiency of your building. When it comes to prioritizing your next upgrade consider lighting as one of your options.

When To Start Planning

Planning can start when you feel comfortable with your budget and have a good idea of what you want the results to be. Once you have selected an area you wish to upgrade you can set a price point, look at contractors and look at different materials needed for your project.

Evaluating Quotes

When evaluating quotes, keep in mind that these are just estimates and can be too low or too high. Be cautious of quotes that seem too high or too low. Saving money is always great, but cutting corners to save costs could result in fees to fix the mistakes later on. Have a good idea of what the price should be at so you don’t get overcharged.

Choosing The Right Contractor

When it comes to choosing a contractor, you want to make sure they have a good reputation and customer reviews. You want to select someone easy to communicate with and who is open with you throughout the process.  It’s also essential to choose a contractor who has expertise working in the area you are trying to upgrade.

Relumination is committed to reducing overhead costs, saving electricity, minimizing facilities management expenses, and helping decrease environmental footprints. Consider us for your next interior or exterior lighting upgrade. Contact us to start planning for next year’s budgets.

Best Practices for Hospitality Lighting

Hospitality lighting is meant to create a warm and inviting environment for your guests to enjoy, whether they are on a work trip or on vacation with family. You want your space to feel effortlessly designed, even after hours of planning the layout. In addition to overall lighting design, hotel and restaurant managers must also consider the costs and energy usage and how best to reduce their consumption.

Why Upgrade Hotel Lighting?

When considering upgrading the lighting in your hotel or restaurant, there are several factors that will influence the direction you choose to go.

  • Aesthetics: You can create a beautiful space through decorative sconces, cascading chandeliers, and impressive lamps.
  • Safety: Ensure your spaces are properly lit and include safety signs to direct guests where to go in case of an emergency.
  • Energy Savings: Use lower energy LED bulbs to save on energy costs and replace your bulbs less often.

Areas to Upgrade

The Lobby and Bar

In spaces like the lobby and bar, it is important to ensure both comfort and sense of safety in the space. You can accomplish this with the use of LED lights to create well lit spaces, then add light layering or unique pieces to add visual interest.

Hallways

Throughout your hotel, you will have numerous hallways guests will be roaming in order to find their rooms. It is your job to ensure the way it lit sufficiently so no one is struggling along the way. Consider installing attractive energy-efficient fixtures throughout your hallways that are lit 24/7.

Guest Rooms

Depending on the theme of your hotel, you may find you want to include lighting to evoke a certain mood in your guest rooms. Take special attention to the lighting layout of the room and give your guests the opportunity to control the ambience to a certain extent.

Choose Relumination for your Hotel Lighting Upgrades

Are you in need a lighting upgrade for your hotel? Now is a great time to get started. Contact the Relumination team today for a free estimate and more information on how to get started.

How To Use IoT Controls To Aid Social Distancing In Your Facility

A major issue that businesses and workplaces are facing today is encouraging its workers to abide by social distancing guidelines. In larger facilities, this is not always easy to monitor and can be overwhelming. However, an LED lighting system that utilizes IoT (Internet of Things) technology can put this task at your fingertips and eliminate the need to tour your facility. This technology monitors the people and assets in your facility and reports back to you in real time, and also allows for LED lighting adjustments for worker safety. IoT controls can also make it easier for your employees to meet social distancing guidelines and stay safe.

Social Distancing Controls

Employee Location Monitoring – IoT applications are able to track the location of people in your facility and uses an advanced algorithm to provide accurate data by the room. Employees and others wear tags for tracking purposes which are detected by smart sensors. You can also use these applications to replay data and see where people have been in the past, and whether they have broken any social distancing guidelines. Searches and alerts are also available.

Occupancy Tracking – Other IoT applications make use of location tracking to calculate the occupancy of a specific room or area in your facility. Sensor networks are able to track the movement of your employees and provide accurate views of occupancy in real-time, highlighting problem areas where social distancing isn’t (or cannot be) practiced. These IoT applications can also show where employees tend to congregate over time.

Facility Insight – The ability to sense the lighting levels and occupancy for an entire facility will reveal hidden problem areas and reduce human error. Real-time and historical data is made available in one central location. Monitoring the environment in your facility, or multiple facilities is vital to understanding worker behavior. HVAC failures and other equipment failures can cause workers to abandon social distancing and congregate in more comfortable areas, and alarms can be used to alert you to potential problems before this occurs.

Safety Controls

Advanced Lighting Controls – A wireless IoT system will allow you to easily adjust lighting levels by room and area not only to enhance worker comfort and safety but to encourage workers to practice social distancing in problem areas. Different lighting profiles, made by collecting data on employee movement and occupancy, can be configured by area throughout an entire Smart Building and adjusted accordingly throughout the day.

Fine Tuning – Other IoT apps can allow for occupancy sensing and adjust light levels automatically, and can be used to program the lighting system to dim a problem area progressively during high-occupancy times. These functions can be customized room by room for easy management of social distancing and can be done from virtually any mobile device.

Conclusion

The current health crisis is one that large facilities have never seen before and innovative solutions are needed to protect worker safety, health, and productivity. Using an IoT system with your LED lighting will make monitoring social distancing manageable and offer innovative solutions for enforcing worker safety. If you have questions or need more information on how an IoT system can help you, be sure to contact us.

Top 3 Reasons to Upgrade Your Lighting

Business owners and building managers alike have been waging a war against lower-efficiency facility lighting for generations. Now, with LED lighting more accessible and affordable than ever, facility managers are faced with the question not only of replacing their out-of-date lighting systems, but the question of why they haven’t pulled the trigger on the energy-saving solution yet. With cost-saving effects, lower rates of failure and therefore lower maintenance costs, and better working conditions, business owners are going to want to strongly consider upgrading to energy-efficient LED lighting sooner rather than later.

Save Money on Utility Bills

It’s a well-known fact that LED light bulbs use considerably less energy than their fluorescent counterparts. These energy savings, when spread over an entire facility’s lighting system, could save thousands of dollars over the course of a year. Not only do these lamps save on the utility bill, but utility companies offer rebates simply for switching to LED systems. Business owners would be wise to consider these utility rebates in addition to energy bill savings.

Lower Rate of Failure

Not only do LED lights offer the obvious energy-efficient savings on utility bills, but they also offer energy efficient savings in terms of lower maintenance costs and labor requirements. LED lights last on average, years longer than traditional lighting and therefore present fewer needs for maintenance, replacement, and quality-control measures.

High Quality Lighting Equals Good Working Conditions

Lighting conditions and quality of work go hand-in-hand when it comes to commercial facilities. Business owners and building managers are wise to consider the best and most energy-efficient lighting solutions possible in order to provide safe and productive working conditions for their team. LED lights provide quiet, consistent lighting solutions, allowing employees to focus on the task at hand.

Overall, the energy-efficient benefits of LED have long outweighed their traditional lighting predecessors. So, as a business owner or building manager, the next question isn’t whether to make the switch but rather when is the best time? Contact us to make the switch today!

Choosing Quality LED Fixtures for Your Business

As with many business decisions, selecting the best LED fixtures for your business requires a careful weighing of cost against quality, value, and functionality. The wealth of choices and options available can seem overwhelming, and the decision hard to make without expertise in lighting. Here are some suggestions for examining your options.

How to Evaluate LED Fixtures

What should you look for when selecting LED fixtures? Keeping the lights on is, of course, essential, and is a significant cost of running your business, so you’ll want to know how to evaluate available options. Some aspects of LED fixtures to consider include:

  • Maintenance – LED fixtures have a dramatically longer lifespan than traditional incandescent or fluorescent lighting, at up to 250,000 hours. They also do not require ballasts, so you will see savings in the frequency of replacing bulbs as well as in not having to replace worn out ballasts. In addition, because LED lighting doesn’t “burn out” in the traditional sense, you won’t see sudden outages, but can schedule bulb replacement more flexibly.
  • Energy Consumption & Efficiency – It’s no secret that LED fixtures consume far less energy than traditional lighting. Understanding comparative energy consumption of traditional versus LED lighting can clarify potential savings.
  • Lighting Controls – Integrated lighting controls can be a key driver in lowering lighting expenses with features such as automated dimming and daylight and activity sensors. Lighting controls can provide substantial additional value in safety, ambience, and in employee and customer satisfaction.
  • Environmental Considerations – Do you have special environmental considerations for LED lighting? These could include high- or low-temperature spaces, indoor or outdoor settings, or moisture exposure. LED lighting, for example, is not cold-sensitive as fluorescent lighting can be.

What to Look for in Quality LED Fixtures

When you’re evaluating LED lighting solutions, here are some important specifications to note.

  • Lumens per Watt – Lumens measure how bright a bulb is, while watts show the power consumption of a bulb.  The measure of lumens per watt, indicates how efficient a bulb is.    Lumens per watt will vary depending on how a bulb makes light (incandescent, fluorescent, LED, etc.), the quality of materials used to make it, and how much energy is wasted as heat rather than light output. With traditional lighting, more watts = brighter light, so more electricity is needed to create brighter light. With LED lighting, the correlation is less direct. As an example, a 100w incandescent bulb has an efficiency of 16 lumens per watt, a 26w CFL bulb rates 61 lumens per watt, and a 22w LED bulb is most efficient at 73 lumens per watt.
  • Warranty – As with any smart business decision, be sure to consider warranties on parts and labor so you’re not left in the lurch if a problem arises.
  • L70 (LED Lifetime) Ratings – With traditional lighting, bulbs either emit light or don’t (they burn out). LED lighting will very slowly decrease in brightness over time. In general, it’s best to replace LED lighting when it has lost 30% of its brightness — that is, when it’s producing 70% of its original lumens. That 70% level is the L70 rating of an LED bulb.  For example, an LED bulb with an L70 or LED Lifetime rating of 50,000 hours means that it can be on for a minimum of 50,000 hours before it will have lost 30% of its brightness.
  • Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) – The visual temperature of lighting, measured in Kelvins,  indicates where the color of the light falls between cool, bluish-white and warm, golden light. Bright, cool light will generally be better suited to a warehouse or outdoor situation while warmer light will usually work best in a restaurant, hotel, or office.  Areas within a facility may also require different temperatures of light.
  • Motion Sensors – Motion sensors allow you to automate whether lights are on, and even how bright they are, depending on activity. You may want to have lighting that comes on automatically when someone enters a conference room or a particular warehouse area, for example. Because LED lighting doesn’t require warm-up time to come to full brightness, lights can come on quickly, as needed.
  • Dimming – Dimmable fixtures can be very useful in situations where constant light is needed but only active areas require the brightest light. Automatic and even manual dimming can dramatically reduce lighting costs by lowering usage in unneeded spaces.
  • Advanced Controls – various capabilities of a lighting control systems including, but not limited to, daylight harvesting, scheduling, task tuning, energy usage reporting, humidity/temperature monitoring. Advanced controls allow a broad or granular bird’s eye view allowing more specific controls for needs of the space.
  • Type of Fixture – The types of LED lighting fixtures available are nearly endless, and can be chosen and mounted to suit any need and environmental considerations. High bay lights can illuminate large warehouse areas, linear lighting can work well in aisles, troffer lights are common in offices and schools.

How to Compare Competitor Products

With so many options to consider when evaluating LED lighting choices, you will need to compare options carefully.

  • Credibility and Experience – Are the fixtures produced by a company with experience in the field and a solid reputation?
  • Value – The upfront cost should not be your only consideration. Cheaper LED lighting will often fail to achieve its stated L70 rating.
  • Up to Date – If you want to take advantage of the latest advances in integrated lighting control and automation, you’ll need to select compatible products.
  • Compliance – The Federal Energy Management Program has efficiency requirements for some commercial and industrial LED lighting. Other regulations may also be applicable. Ensure your lighting and contractor are knowledgeable and in compliance with such requirements.

The experienced team at Relumination is ready to help you choose the best LED lighting for your business, and apply our years of expertise and high standard of service from needs analysis through project completion, service, and support. Contact us today to see how we can work together for a brighter future for your business.

Reasons to Upgrade Facility Lighting

As a decision maker, you know that every decision you make for your business requires a thoughtful consideration of the costs and benefits involved. Here we will show that not only is a retrofit eco-friendly, safe, and cost effective in the long term, it is a great way to present a bright, clean, and contemporary look to everyone who enters your space.

Retrofitting will Save You Money

While the upfront cost of a retrofit may seem overwhelming, in the long term you will keep more of the profits you make because your overhead (lighting) will cost less. A cost benefit analysis of switching from fluorescent lighting to LED was done at Southwestern Oklahoma State University. They found that switching to LED would save them over $930,000 cumulatively over the course of 10 years.  The analysis shows that the savings in energy costs far outweighs the higher expense of the fixtures themselves. They also note that because LED generates far less heat, during warmer months and in warmer climates the cost of cooling is lowered.

Retrofitting Makes Your Space Safer

LED is solid state, which means there are no harmful gases to worry about. And because they are constructed from plastic, they won’t shatter into sharp shards of glass. And as previously stated they produce very little heat, so handling them after use will not burn bare skin. In addition, the light produced by LED is easier on the eyes and creates less lighting fatigue than fluorescent lights. As noted in the SWOSU analysis, this is due to their low emission of infrared light and zero emission of ultraviolet light.  All this adds up to a safer environment for your employees and customers.

Retrofitting is Better for the Environment

Less electricity used means less fossil fuels burned which means less carbon emissions. We all want to lower our carbon footprint and slow the rate of global climate change. While retrofitting your lighting may not be the most drastic green action you can make, it is among the lowest cost-of-entry steps you can take into a more carbon-neutral footprint.

Modern Fixtures for a Modern World

LEDs are bright, rich in color variety and send a message that your business is forward-thinking and environmentally conscious. When someone steps into your space, they should feel welcomed and safe. Bright, warm lighting is an excellent way to make your business more inviting. Cooler lights show a product’s true colors when on display. There are attractive solutions available for every need and purpose your business has.  And a well lit space makes people feel safer; they can see who they are with, what they are doing, and where they are more clearly.

In short, LED lighting technology is an easy win for everyone.

For more information on how to retrofit the lighting in your business contact us.

 

How to Use Lights to Encourage Social Distancing

One of the challenges that facilities face during the COVID-19 pandemic is how to monitor the health and safety of their employees. One of the biggest prevention measures for combating COVID-19 is the act of social distancing and wearing proper protective equipment. An advanced network lighting control system can help you control and monitor social distancing for your employees. This can be done by using a variety of methods from setting up lighting schedules for specific zones to monitoring auxiliary spaces.

Encouraging social distancing

People generally want to do the right thing when it comes to social distancing but they also need a little guidance on how best to accomplish that. By using what you have on hand you can set guidelines and boundaries for employees to clearly follow. For example, you can set the lights in a pattern that sets employees apart. This way they know that as long as they’re in a lighted area, they are practicing proper social distancing.

This may also mean switching things around on the warehouse floor to accommodate but your employee’s health and wellness during these times are worth it.

Controls for Safety

Task Tuning – With the proper lighting system the ability to customize and manage precise lighting parameters on individual fixtures, or override entire groups quickly and easily through the mobile and web applications. The ability to set up schedules and zones can be used to identify areas that may be restricted during certain times throughout the day.

Event-Based Alerts – Configure value-based thresholds for any single variable (such as temperature, relative humidity, etc.), and receive alerts via email, push notification, or SMS. The potential to monitor temperatures throughout facility can be a valuable asset to maintain a safe environment.

Monitor Auxiliary Spaces – Gain insight into intervening spaces or unmonitored auxiliary areas to proactively identify high traffic areas. Keeping a close eye on where employees gather is vital in determining the appropriate processes to encourage social distancing.

Protect Product Quality – Monitor critical production or storage areas to ensure that optimal and/or required environmental conditions are met and maintained, and product quality isn’t compromised. During these times promoting safety and quality is more important than ever, having sensor based controls can enhance current processes and help to determine necessary improvements.

Conclusion

COVID-19 is forcing a lot of people to think outside the box when it comes to preventing the spread of the virus. The best thing to do is to encourage social distancing with what you have on hand. Using your localized lighting management system can be a great way to accomplish this. If you need more information or need a light system that accomplishes this task, then check us out here to get the process started.

A Commercial Retrofit Is a Long Term Investment; Plan Carefully

Since most high-quality LED fixtures are rated for 250,000 hours or 20+ years of continuous 24 hour use, building owners considering a commercial lighting retrofit should realize that they are investing for the long-term.  A properly done LED retrofit requiring minimal or no maintenance will stay in place more than a decade.  Rather than relying only on the initial cost of fixtures and installation to evaluate return on investment, owners and managers should calculate the cost of ownership over the entire life of the project.

Of course, payback periods differ depending on what you are retrofitting.  For instance, changing from incandescent lighting to LED fixtures can result in a payback period less than a year.  On the other hand, retrofitting fluorescent tube fixtures with LED tubes takes a two-year payback while switching from fluorescent fixtures to LED tubes may provide a three-year payback.  Rebates and other incentives can lessen these payback periods.

Likewise, the quality of the site visit, the proposed layout, installation and customer service plan are more significant for LED retrofits than for metal halide or fluorescent retrofits requiring maintenance every 2-3 years.  While an LED retrofit doesn’t last forever, it comes close and deserves the extra care.

Considering LED’s longevity, it’s important to identify the right LED product for the project, such as LED color which varies from a very bright blue suitable for parking lots to a medium blue for an office setting and perhaps a warmer range for break areas.

Although return on investment accelerates when companies capitalize on funding opportunities, the funding process is often complex with many requirements including submitting the correct form at the right time and specific inspection criteria.  Choosing a company experienced in working with utilities and other funding agencies, really streamlines the funding process.  In addition, utilities often require that a participating contractor be in the loop to obtain funding for a building retrofit.

To optimize the return on a commercial lighting retrofit, building owners and managers should work with a partner who stays up-to-date with the latest advances in LED products and who is proficient in sourcing rebates. We’d like to share our expertise with you.  Please contact us for more information.

 

Reduce your Carbon Footprint with LED Lighting

With this winter’s extreme weather, it’s becoming more and more clear that we have to act fast to address the issue of climate change. As a business owner, you’re in a very special position when it comes to reducing your carbon footprint. Not only can this help save the environment, it will also save you money.

Here are some ways investing in LED lighting can help you reduce your carbon footprint and your business expenses:

LED lighting is 50-90% more efficient than conventional bulbs: LED lights use half as much to as little as only a tenth of the amount of energy that conventional lighting uses. This translates directly to a 50-90% saving on your energy expenditures. Not only is this a huge amount of money that very quickly allows your investment to pay for itself, less power needs to be generated for the same amount of lighting, resulting in lowered carbon emissions.

LED lighting lasts up to 15x longer than conventional lighting: How annoying is it when a light bulbs burns out? Not only are you paying for the time to fix it, but also for the tools/equipment need to fix it or the down time for the area that it may affect. LED lights last up to 250,000 hours – that’s 15x longer than the average HID bulb or fluorescent lamp. That’s 250,000 hours, 342 months, 20+ years that you can go without having to worry about lighting maintenance. By removing old technology and replacing with LED, this directly translates to lower carbon emissions not to mention better light, improve productivity and incredible energy savings.

LED lights turn on and off instantly: Unlike older technologies like HID or fluorescent, LED lights are instant on/off. With LED we no longer have any long warm-up or cool-down times. Nor do we need our HVAC to work as hard as it once was with these older technologies because LED does not emit any heat. We also now have the ability to implement more advanced lighting controls to not only maximize energy savings, but also to ensure the facility is running at optimal levels.

No matter what size your business is, improving your energy savings is a great investment, both in your company’s competitiveness and in the environment. Contact us today for a free estimate.