Lighting efficiency is the practice of using less power to deliver the same (or better) amount of light in the right place, at the right time, and in the right way.
For businesses, lighting efficiency is about reducing monthly expenses, improving comfort and safety, meeting regulations, and supporting sustainability—without sacrificing visibility or aesthetics.
In this article, we’ll walk through what lighting efficiency really means, why it’s so important for your business, the key benefits, the technologies and options available (especially modern LEDs and smart controls), and practical steps you can take.
Along the way, we’ll also share how Relumination helps companies design and implement efficient lighting systems that pay for themselves.
What is lighting efficiency?
At its core, lighting efficiency is about keeping overall lighting wattage low while still delivering the necessary amount of illumination to an area.
In simple terms:
Efficient lighting uses fewer watts to produce the same (or more) lumens.
You can think of it as “miles per gallon,” but for light instead of fuel: more light output (lumens) per unit of power (watts).
Energy-efficient lighting aims to:
- Reduce wasted energy (especially as heat)
- Provide the right amount of light where it’s actually needed
- Use smarter controls so lights aren’t on when they don’t need to be
This can be accomplished in several ways:
- Upgrading technology – for example, switching from incandescent or metal halide to LEDs
- Redesigning layouts – repositioning fixtures so you get better coverage with fewer lights
- Adding controls – using sensors, timers, and automation so lights don’t run unnecessarily
- Maximizing daylight – getting more out of windows and skylights so you need less artificial light
How different technologies affect efficiency?
Understanding why some lighting technologies are more efficient than others helps clarify where the big gains come from.
Incandescent bulbs
Traditional incandescent bulbs are simple but extremely inefficient:
- They work by heating a piece of metal (a filament) to a high temperature so it glows white hot.
- Nearly 90% of the electricity they use is wasted as heat instead of being converted into visible light.
- Typical incandescent bulbs produce around 15 lumens per watt.
That wasted energy shows up on your bill and in your HVAC load, since your cooling system has to remove that extra heat.
Fluorescent and compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs)
Fluorescent bulbs are more efficient but still have limitations:
- Electricity runs through mercury vapor, which emits ultraviolet (UV) light.
- A coating inside the tube absorbs the UV and re-emits visible light (this is the fluorescence).
- This two-step process is more efficient than heating a filament, but each step has losses.
Fluorescents:
- Use far less energy than incandescent bulbs
- Still generate some heat
- Contain mercury, a hazardous material that must be disposed of properly
LEDs: why they’re more efficient
LED stands for light-emitting diode. The diode is the tiny physical object that emits light.
LED lighting is fundamentally different:
- The material at the heart of an LED is a semiconductor.
- This material can directly absorb electrical energy and emit light in a single step.
- Because there’s no need to heat anything up and no messy two-stage process, much less energy is wasted.
Typical conventional LED strip or tube lighting is around 100 lumens per watt, already a huge leap over incandescent and a solid improvement over fluorescents. Research and development keeps pushing that boundary:
Philips has demonstrated a tube-shaped LED prototype capable of 200 lumens per watt, double the 100 lumens per watt typical for conventional strip lighting. Compared to incandescent bulbs at roughly 15 lumens per watt, that’s an improvement of more than 1,200 percent.
On top of that:
- LEDs have an average lifespan of 50,000 hours, and in some applications 100,000 hours or more.
- They produce very little heat.
- They don’t contain mercury and are often recyclable.
That’s why modern lighting efficiency conversations almost always involve LEDs.
Why lighting efficiency is important for businesses?
As with any business, the more money you spend, the less profit you see. Most businesses want to maximize their profits as it is crucial to grow and stay in business, and investing in methods that maximize the efficiency of your business is a smart decision.
Lighting touches almost every part of your operation:
- Every office, aisle, aisle, production line, stairwell, lobby, and parking lot needs it.
- It’s often one of the largest line items on your electric bill—up to 30% of facility electricity in many cases.
- Poor lighting placement or quality can hurt productivity, safety, and customer experience.
That means lighting efficiency is not just a “nice to have”—it’s a lever you can pull to immediately reduce overhead and improve how your space works.
Financial pressure and regulation
Many businesses are feeling pressure from both sides:
- Operating costs keep climbing.
- Regulations and standards are pushing away from inefficient technologies.
A good example is California’s early adoption of new light bulb efficiency standards. The state required:
- Traditional 100-watt bulbs to use 72 watts or less
- 75-watt bulbs to use 53 watts or less
- 60-watt bulbs to use 43 watts or less
- 40-watt bulbs to be reduced to 29 watts or less
These changes, aligned with federal laws phasing out inefficient incandescent bulbs, help reduce:
- Air pollution from power plants
- Dependence on fossil fuels
- Emission of polluting greenhouse gases
- The need to build new power plants
CFLs stepped in first, but LEDs are even better, converting the most energy into light while creating the least amount of heat. As the market and regulations evolve, efficient lighting isn’t optional—it’s the new baseline.
What are the key benefits of lighting efficiency?
Lighting efficiency pays off in several interconnected ways.
1. Lower energy and operating costs
Minimizing business expenses is one way to increase profits, along with bringing in more business. With lighting, you’re in direct control of a large slice of your electric bill.
Efficient lighting:
- Uses fewer watts for the same brightness
- Creates less heat, which reduces cooling loads
- Allows you to cut fixtures or lamps while maintaining required light levels
An LED lighting system can generate the same or better luminosity as traditional systems while consuming less than half the electrical energy—often much less. In many industrial, manufacturing, and commercial sites, the cost of retrofitting from metal halide or high-pressure sodium to LEDs is recouped in 12 to 18 months solely from reduced energy use.
2. Long-lasting, low-maintenance systems
Having to worry about lights going out every week or month can be troublesome and disruptive to your business, which makes long-lasting lights an excellent solution.
LEDs:
- Commonly last 50,000 hours, and in some applications even more
- Maintain their brightness better than older LED generations thanks to improved heat-sink technology
- Reduce the number of times you need a lift, electrician, or after-hours crew just to change bulbs
Avoiding situations where you lose potential business because of non-working lights—or reduce the efficiency of your operation because you need to spend so much time replacing them—is a major hidden benefit of efficient lighting.
3. Better comfort, safety, and productivity
Lighting placement has a huge impact on how effectively lighting is used within a building or outdoor space. Poor placement and glare can create dim or uneven conditions, which:
- Make tasks harder to perform
- Increase the risk of accidents
- Strain eyes and contribute to fatigue
Efficient lighting isn’t only about lower watts; it’s about the right watts, in the right fixtures, in the right places:
- Kitchens, production floors, and warehouses benefit from bright, clear, natural-feeling light so employees can distinguish fine detail and contrasting features in objects.
- Offices benefit from balanced, low-glare light levels that reduce eye strain.
- Lobbies and customer areas benefit from warm, inviting light that shows your products and environment at their best.
Industrial and commercial sites that retrofit with modern LED systems often experience secondary efficiency benefits from improved employee safety and performance. Reduced fatigue and better visual conditions lead to better overall operational efficiency.
4. Environmental and brand benefits
Efficient lighting is also better for the environment:
- It reduces demand on the grid and therefore cuts associated emissions.
- LEDs and efficient systems reduce the need for new power plants and the stress on existing ones.
- LEDs contain no mercury, unlike many fluorescent options, and are often recyclable.
Increasingly, businesses care about sustainability and minimizing their environmental impact—and so do their customers. Efficient lighting is one of the most visible and easily identifiable “green” strategies you can implement. It signals that you’re serious about:
- Reducing your carbon footprint
- Complying with current and future standards
- Running a modern, responsible operation
What are different lighting efficiency options and technologies?
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution for lighting efficiency. A warehouse with high ceilings, tall shelves, and few windows has very different needs from an office building with an open floor plan and ample natural light. But most efficient systems share a few common elements.
1. LED upgrades and next-generation technology
To achieve better illumination, many industrial, manufacturing, and commercial sites are retrofitting old metal halide and high-pressure sodium lighting systems with next generation LED lighting.
Key characteristics of LED systems:
- High efficacy – 100+ lumens per watt is common today; prototypes like Philips’ 200 lm/W tube show where the future is going.
- Long life – up to 50,000 hours continuously, and in some cases for more than 100,000 hours.
- Improved thermal management – modern heat sinks keep LEDs cooler, extending life and performance.
- Quality of light – the spectrum is closer to natural light, improving visibility and color rendering.
Given that 15–20% of global electricity goes to lighting, widespread adoption of highly efficient LEDs has a huge potential impact. Philips suggested that swapping existing lighting to their new 200 lm/W LEDs in the U.S. alone could save $12 billion per year and prevent 50–100 million tons of CO₂ annually.
2. Networked lighting and smart controls
Hardware is only half the story. The other half is how you control your lights.
Networked lighting systems combine:
- Digital sensors
- Smart fixtures
- Central or cloud-based controls
- Software that collects and analyzes data
When you think about smart, energy-efficient lighting controls, here are six things to consider.
Occupancy and vacancy sensors
Sensors can drastically reduce wasted lighting by distinguishing between occupied and vacant rooms and adjusting energy use accordingly:
- Lights come on when someone enters and shut off when they leave.
- The system can distinguish between living heat sources (people) and non-living ones (equipment).
- It also needs to distinguish between humans and large inanimate objects.
This is especially useful in areas such as:
- Restrooms
- Storage rooms
- Conference rooms
- Individual offices that are not constantly occupied
Daylight harvesting
Some sensors include daylight harvesting capabilities:
- They sense the amount of daylight coming in through the building’s windows.=
- The system then adjusts artificial lighting levels to maintain consistent brightness while using less energy.
That means you get:
- Full brightness on a dark day
- Lower output (and lower energy use) when the sun is doing the work for you
Employee comfort and control
Look for systems that not only save energy, but also improve office comfort levels:
- Allow employees to adjust local light levels based on specific tasks
- Adjust lighting based on time of day to support healthier internal body clock rhythms
- Gradually lower light levels at closing time before turning them off completely as a safety factor
Data collection and insight
Networked systems can collect detailed data on:
- Space utilization
- Occupancy patterns
- Energy use by zone or time of day
Data quality matters. Installing sensors in every fixture (a 1:1 ratio) provides high-resolution data that is far more useful for:
- Space planning
- Cleaning and maintenance scheduling
- Future lighting and HVAC optimizations
You want the ability not just to collect data, but to act on it.
Integration with other building systems
You want your smart lighting system to do more than turn the lights on and off.
A well-chosen system can also:
- Control HVAC setpoints based on occupancy and time of day
- Tie into security systems and access control
- Limit energy use in large, lightly used spaces like conference rooms
- Help locate employees and visitors in emergencies
This level of integration turns lighting into part of a broader building intelligence platform.
Future-proofing and flexibility
When comparing systems, remember that you want something you can adapt to future changes in technology and layout:
- Wireless systems often make it easier to install now and reconfigure later.
- Open protocols and scalable platforms help you add features over time without ripping everything out.
Selecting a system now that anticipates future technology saves headaches later.
What are practical ways to improve your lighting efficiency
Whether you’re a small business or a large facility, there are steps you can take right away and others you can plan for in the medium and long term.
Quick, low-cost actions
Even before major upgrades, you can improve lighting efficiency with simple habits and minor tweaks.
- Keep lighting off when not in use
Get in the habit of turning lights off whenever you leave a room. While you may not think a few lights left on every once in a while can make a difference, every bulb left on adds a little more onto your business expense. Prevent leaving lights on unnecessarily to make a big impact on your energy efficiency. - Dust off light bulbs regularly
An extremely simple way to increase lighting efficiency for your business is to keep your bulbs dust-free. When your light bulbs are covered in dust, they may not shine to their full potential, causing the need for more lights to be turned on. Performing this task, or having an employee do it once in a while, can make a real difference. - Utilize natural light when possible
If you often operate in the daytime, it’s entirely possible that artificial lighting could be reduced, or even turned off, in certain areas. Open blinds and make use of windows and skylights where glare isn’t an issue. Natural lighting can be a reasonable alternative that will boost your company’s energy efficiency.
How to upgrade to efficient lighting and better layouts?
To see major changes, you’ll eventually want to upgrade both your equipment and your design.
Invest in LED lighting
Upgrading all or most of your lighting to LED is a big decision, but the long-term savings make it beyond worthwhile:
- LEDs use dramatically less energy than legacy technologies.
- They last far longer, reducing maintenance disruptions.
- They generate minimal heat, reducing cooling loads.
Using a professional like Relumination to design and install LED lighting is a quick and efficient way to impact your energy savings.
Reposition fixtures and right-size your system
If your building was designed more than fifteen years ago, chances are you’ve had to modify your layout and processes to keep up with your business’s changing needs. Your lighting may not have kept up.
A lighting consultation can help you:
- Reposition fixtures to better match the way you work now
- Eliminate unnecessary fixtures by using lights that spread wider or placing fixtures closer to the work
- Scale down wattage where it’s safe and appropriate
Installing lighting fixtures that are too large for what you truly need is like buying a seven-ton air conditioner for a tiny apartment: it will certainly cool the area, but with such poor efficiency that you’ll end up wasting money.
Use automation and building controls
A lighting efficiency provider can help you establish an automation system for your lighting plan. Building automation systems can:
- Turn off lights in unused rooms
- Reduce the amount of light used when the building is closed at night and on weekends
- Integrate lighting schedules with business hours and security systems
Over time, this can significantly improve the efficiency of your property.
How Relumination helps improve lighting efficiency?
Energy-efficient lighting systems are not one-size-fits-all. A warehouse with high ceilings and tall racks has very different requirements than an open-plan office or a restaurant. That’s where Relumination, as a trustworthy LED lighting contractor, comes in.
Here’s how we typically work with companies:
1. Consultation and assessment
One of the first things we provide is a consultation on your current situation. We:
- Examine your property and existing fixtures
- Review your energy bills
- Identify where lighting is being used the most and where it’s being wasted
- Measure current light levels and look for dark spots or over-lit areas
Based on this information and how your business actually operates, we provide a detailed plan to reconfigure your lighting sources and upgrade technology where it makes sense.
2. Custom design and layout
We then design the optimal layout for your facility:
- Proper fixture placement to avoid wasted light and dark patches
- The right mix of general, task, and accent lighting
- Appropriate wattages and optics for each area
- Integration of controls, sensors, and potentially networked systems
Whether you’re remodeling or planning a new build, including Relumination at the design phase ensures your layout isn’t limited by an outdated lighting scheme.
3. Implementation and optimization
If you choose to proceed, we handle:
- Installation of new fixtures and controls
- Commissioning and programming of automation systems
- Fine-tuning light levels and schedules once the system is live
We also help you optimize over time, using data from smart systems where applicable.
4. Incentives and paperwork
Increasingly, utility companies are required by regulators to encourage consumers to use less energy. One way they achieve this is through incentives and rebates.
Many companies fail to leverage these incentives, giving the firms that do an edge and increasing the return on investment of the new lighting system. Relumination can:
- Help identify available incentives for your project
Assist with the sometimes complex paperwork required to obtain them - Make sure your system is specified to qualify where possible
Conclusion
Lighting efficiency isn’t just about swapping a few bulbs. It’s about looking at how you light your spaces—from the technology you use to the placement of fixtures to the way you control them—and asking, “Can we get the same (or better) results with less?”
When you focus on lighting efficiency, you:
- Cut a major component of your energy bill
- Reduce maintenance and disruptions
- Improve comfort, safety, and productivity for employees and customers
- Align with regulations and sustainability goals
- Strengthen your brand as a modern, responsible business
Whether you’re ready for a full LED and controls retrofit or just starting with small steps like better habits and daylight use, every move toward efficiency pays you back.
If you’d like expert help designing and implementing a more efficient lighting system tailored to your building and your business, Relumination is here to help.
