Warehouse, Industrial & High Bay Lighting
Lighting for tall, busy buildings where fittings sit high above racking, vehicles and people at work.
Warehouses, factories and workshops light differently from offices. Fittings may hang eight or twelve metres up, racking throws long shadows down narrow aisles, and vehicles move under them all day. This page covers high bay and industrial lighting. If you are lighting an office, showroom or shop, our commercial lighting page is the better guide.
Mounting heights and racking aisles
High bay fittings are chosen for the height they hang at and the spread of light they give. Open floors suit wide beams, while tall racking calls for narrower optics laid out along the aisles so labels on the top shelf can be read. When racking is moved or extended, the lighting layout often stops matching, which is a common reason customers call us. We plan the new layout against the racking drawing, not just the roof grid.
LED retrofit or new fittings
Older industrial buildings often still have sodium or metal halide lamps, or long runs of fluorescent battens. Replacing them with LED high bays is usually the obvious step. Where existing fixing points and wiring are sound, a retrofit keeps the job quick. Where the wiring is tired or the positions no longer suit the use of the building, new circuits and fittings are the honest recommendation. We tell you which applies after looking at it.
Controls in general terms
Controls decide whether lighting is on only where it is needed. Presence detection can bring an aisle up as a truck approaches. Daylight sensors can dim fittings near rooflights. Zoning lets a quiet area stay dimmed while loading bays run at full output. We keep controls simple enough for staff to understand and never set them up so somebody walks into a dark aisle.
Factory floors, yards and car parks
Production areas may need higher light levels at workstations and fittings that cope with dust or moisture. Outside, yards, loading docks and car parks need weather-rated fittings and sensible switching. These can be designed alongside the internal work so one contractor handles the whole site.
Access and working round operations
Working at height safely takes planning. We agree where towers or powered platforms can operate, which aisles can be closed and when. Within our hours of Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 5:30pm, the job is phased so stock keeps moving: one section at a time, with temporary lighting kept where it is needed.
Emergency lighting and certification
Planning a relight
A good relight starts with how the building is used today. We walk the floor with whoever runs it, noting the busiest aisles, the picking faces, the areas used only occasionally and any spots where staff complain about glare or shadow. We look at the existing circuits, the fixing points and the condition of the roof structure where fittings will hang. That survey turns into a written quote with a proposed layout, the fittings, the controls and the order in which zones will be done. Where an older lighting circuit is in poor condition, we say so in the quote rather than discovering it halfway through.
Cold stores, dusty production areas and wash-down zones each need fittings built for the conditions, with suitable protection against moisture and dust. Fittings above loading doors and in busy aisles may also need protection from impact. We specify fittings for the environment they will live in, not just the light they give, so they keep working for years rather than failing early.
Escape routes in a warehouse need emergency lighting too, and a relight is a good moment to check it. Every new circuit is tested and certified. For other work on industrial buildings, see warehouse and industrial electrics. We work from Lyford near Wantage; see the areas we cover or call 01235 430442.