Design & case study of warehouse lighting and warehouse outdoor lighting
Design & case study of warehouse lighting and warehouse outdoor lighting
Introduction
In recent years, LED technology has advanced rapidly. While many warehouses still rely on traditional fluorescent overhead lighting, modern LED solutions offer significant advantages by comparison. Thanks to their high efficiency (What’s luminous efficacy and how to improve it?), optimized light distribution, and diverse range of intelligent control systems, LED fixtures can substantially reduce operational costs for warehouse lighting. ZGSM provides clients with comprehensive warehouse lighting solutions, encompassing both warehouse indoor and warehouse outdoor lighting applications. Among these, high-bay lights, floodlights, and streetlights are the fixtures most commonly utilized in this sector. With over two decades of deep expertise in the industry, ZGSM has consistently focused on developing and supplying high-quality LED lighting products, along with the accompanying technical solutions. Naturally, the effective implementation of lighting fixtures requires careful consideration—specifically regarding the selection of high-efficiency units, the choice of lenses, and the integration of intelligent systems (such as timer dimming and microwave sensing). Let us now proceed to the main text to explore these topics in greater detail.
Warehouse lighting
Warehouse lighting is primarily designed for storage areas, shelving zones, aisles, and loading/unloading zones. While the lighting layout for storage and loading/unloading zones is relatively straightforward, lighting for shelving zones is more complex. It requires careful planning of fixture placement, selection of appropriate lenses, and the implementation of practical energy-saving solutions. This ensures that the illuminance and uniformity in the aisles meet requirements, while also providing sufficient vertical illuminance on the shelves to facilitate label reading and the identification of goods. Since the layout and operational requirements of each warehouse vary, lighting solutions must be tailored to the specific site conditions. For shelving area lighting, we must also incorporate on-site factors such as shelf height, aisle width, and operating hours into the design. Key considerations during the design process include energy consumption, visual comfort including glare control, color rendering index (CRI vs luminous efficacy), and illuminance uniformity, ease of maintenance, and long-term operating costs. The image below shows one of ZGSM’s indoor warehouse lighting projects.
Warehouse outdoor lighting
Warehouse outdoor lighting is primarily used in external areas, loading docks, campus roads, storage yards, and parking lots. While prioritizing practical functionality, it also enhances the overall appearance of the site. In areas with heavy foot traffic, such as loading zones and campus roads, lighting requirements are relatively high, and fixtures typically need to operate at 100% capacity for extended periods. In contrast, warehouse outdoor lighting requirements (see below) are relatively lower in external storage yards and parking lots, where smart control systems can be integrated. Common features include light-sensing and time-based dimming functions. The former controls the on/off operation of the fixtures, while the latter reduces power output during the late night hours to minimize electricity consumption. For these applications, we must also select appropriate lenses and fixtures based on site characteristics, pole layout, and height to ensure proper light distribution (What’s light distribution?) and coverage of warehouse outdoor lighting, thereby meeting practical needs such as nighttime operations, vehicle traffic, and security surveillance.
ZGSM project example – Warehouse lighting or warehouse outdoor lighting
Warehouse lighting—specifically the distinction between indoor and outdoor illumination—is a priority that must be clearly established from the outset. If your project involves a standalone warehouse facility, outdoor lighting may not be a requirement; however, if the warehouse premises include surrounding areas such as parking lots, storage yards, or access roads, then both indoor warehouse lighting and outdoor warehouse lighting solutions will typically be involved. To facilitate a better understanding of this subject, we will use a successful case study from ZGSM to illustrate their solutions and highlight the key considerations to keep in mind during implementation.
Warehouse lighting design consideration
This project is situated in South America and involves a large-scale processing facility. The site covers an area of approximately 60,000 square meters and comprises two workshops, a loading/unloading zone, and a storage yard. The former—the indoor section—primarily requires interior lighting (specifically, warehouse lighting), while the latter—the outdoor section—primarily requires exterior lighting (specifically, warehouse outdoor lighting).
Regarding the indoor lighting requirements, ZGSM analyzed the CAD drawings to identify and define the workshop, shelving areas, and loading/unloading zones; the total indoor lighting coverage area spans approximately 12,000 square meters. The warehouse features a ceiling height of approximately 11 meters along its flanks and 12.5 meters at its center, with overall dimensions of 100 m × 80 m; the internal shelving reaches a height of approximately 7 meters. The workshop area features ceiling heights largely consistent with those of the warehouse, differing only in its relatively smaller floor area. Following extensive consultation with the client, it was ultimately determined that the average illuminance within the warehouse’s operational zones must reach 300 lux to meet the daily operational standards for storage and logistics activities. The workshop, conversely, requires an illuminance level of 500 lux—a higher specification necessitated by the need to accommodate the precise visual demands of the fine-detail tasks performed within that area. For the workshop zone, we recommended a standard industrial lighting solution utilizing ZGSM-HB11 / ZGSM-HB12 series UFO high-bay fixtures (ZGSM high bay lights). Regarding the warehouse, our on-site assessment revealed that the internal shelving is both tall and densely arranged, with relatively narrow aisles; consequently, a traditional light distribution pattern would not be suitable. Under such high mounting conditions, conventional lens-based light distribution schemes are prone to light obstruction by the shelving units, thereby compromising the overall uniformity of the illumination.
Taking these factors into account, the ZGSM technical team conducted multiple lighting simulations and solution evaluations, comprehensively comparing different luminaire types, optical designs, and installation methods. ZGSM recommended the HB11 series high bay lights for workshop lighting and the ST20 series high bay lights for illuminating the shelving and work areas within the warehouse. After thoroughly balancing lighting performance and aesthetic design, the client ultimately selected the ZGSM-ST20 series factory lights. However, the choice of light distribution curves was carefully tailored to different zones: symmetrical light distribution was used for workshop and warehouse work areas, while asymmetrical light distribution (Symmetric and asymmetrical light distribution) was employed for warehouse shelving areas. This effectively improved the overall illuminance and uniformity (What’s light uniformity?) of the storage areas while meeting the aesthetic requirements for lighting fixtures in modern industrial spaces. Below is a comparison of lighting simulation results for the shelving area using asymmetric and symmetric light distributions. The former utilized a higher wattage but achieved lower uniformity and illuminance compared to the asymmetric distribution. Regarding the selection of a microwave sensor solution, the client opted for a conservative approach. Given the high frequency of personnel movement and goods circulation within the facility, microwave control was ultimately not adopted.
Warehouse outdoor lighting design consideration
Outdoor lighting isn’t just a nice-to-have for a warehouse—it’s essential. It keeps the outside areas visible at night and helps everyone feel safer. Usually, the main spots that need good lighting are the access roads through the site, parking lots, loading and unloading zones, and the storage yards. For this warehouse in Argentina, the lighting plan zeroed in on the loading and unloading zones and the storage yards. Those are the heart of any warehouse’s outdoor lighting needs. In the loading and unloading zones, where there’s constant movement—people, trucks, forklifts everywhere—the lighting needs to be bright and precise. You can’t really cut corners there. In the storage yards, which mostly just hold parked vehicles, the lighting standards aren’t as tough. If you tailor the lighting to what each area needs, you cut down on accidents and blind spots at night. People can actually see where they’re going, and work keeps moving smoothly outside, even after dark. Here’s a breakdown of the lighting solution the ZGSM design team created for this project.
The loading and unloading area is a large space measuring 60 meters by 120 meters. Given the size of the area, we recommend installing floodlights on both sides for warehouse outdoor lighting. Since the exterior height of the warehouse is 12 meters—which is not particularly high—a larger tilt angle is required when using symmetrical light distribution to ensure that illuminance and uniformity meet outdoor lighting requirements. However, this approach has a clear drawback: excessive glare (What’s glare and how to reduce it?), which compromises the driving safety of truck and container drivers. Taking the above considerations into account, we ultimately decided to install the luminaires on the 11-meter-high exterior wall of the warehouse, using an asymmetric light distribution with a spacing of 10 meters between luminaires. With this arrangement, our final simulation results show an illuminance of 55 lux and a uniformity of 0.42, fully meeting the EN 12464-2 requirements for outdoor dock lighting.
For the outdoor yard, the total area measures 150 x 150 meters. Initially, the client planned to install light poles around the perimeter of the site. However, our technical team determined that this lighting layout would result in insufficient illuminance in the center of the area. Rather than adding additional poles in the center, we recommended moving the perimeter poles slightly inward. This approach not only reduces the cost of light poles but also effectively improves illuminance at the center. Considering both the site size and cost, we ultimately recommended that the client use six 15-meter-high poles to provide lighting for this area. To ensure lighting comfort, we also selected an asymmetric light distribution to replace the traditional symmetric distribution, thereby avoiding overly concentrated illumination. Additionally, by using an asymmetric light distribution, we were able to employ a circular arrangement to evenly distribute the six floodlights across the mounting brackets of the high poles. This eliminates the need for the contractor to repeatedly adjust the luminaire aiming points (What’s aiming points of flood lights?), significantly reducing installation costs. Below is a schematic diagram and simulation results of the lighting distribution for the storage yard. As we checked, the illuminance of the site is 24 lux, with a uniformity ratio of 0.27 (excluding the four corners). The rendering also shows that illuminance is only slightly lower in the edge areas of the storage yard, while other areas are relatively ideal, with illuminance generally above 20 lux, meeting the requirements for storage yard operations. Additionally, the client adopted our recommendation for timer dimming (More about timer dimming -astrodim) of the luminaires, allowing the system to reduce illuminance during the late night hours when factory operations are minimal, thereby lowering electricity consumption.
ZGSM lighting solutions
Summary
This article provides a detailed breakdown of the application scenarios and core requirements for both indoor warehouse lighting and warehouse outdoor lighting. Indoor warehouse lighting is designed to address storage areas, shelving zones, aisles, and loading/unloading areas; among these, lighting for shelving zones is particularly complex, requiring customized solutions tailored to specific site conditions—such as shelf height and aisle width. Warehouse outdoor lighting serves the warehouse’s exterior grounds, loading docks, access roads, storage yards, and parking lots (More about parking lot lighting design). While primarily focused on practical functionality, these systems must also be designed to incorporate appropriate lenses and fixtures based on specific site characteristics, including the distribution and height of light poles. The article features a large-scale industrial processing facility project undertaken by ZGSM in South America as a practical case study, offering a detailed demonstration of the specific implementation strategies for both indoor warehouse lighting and warehouse outdoor lighting. For the indoor areas, ST20 and HB11 series fixtures were utilized; by selecting either symmetrical or asymmetrical light distribution patterns based on the specific zone, the project successfully met the required illumination levels of 300 lux in the warehouse and 500 lux in the workshops. Interestingly, although microwave sensing technology is currently a popular trend, it was ultimately not adopted for this facility, given the constant movement of both personnel and goods within the plant. The outdoor lighting component covered a 60 × 120-meter loading/unloading zone and a 150 × 150-meter storage yard. Through the strategic placement of light poles, the selection of asymmetrical light distribution patterns, and the implementation of time-based dimming controls, the system successfully met all illumination standards while effectively minimizing glare. Do you have a warehouse in need of lighting? Are you currently seeking guidance on warehouse lighting and warehouse outdoor lighting design—including fixture selection, layout planning, and lens options? If so, please contact ZGSM for further information.
Related Products
Related Blogs
Related Cases
People also ask
Author introduction
Hello Customers,
My name is Taylor Gong, I’m the product manager of ZGSM Tech. I have been in the LED lights industry for more than 13 years. Good at lighting design, street light system configuration, and bidding technology support. Feel free to contact us. I’m happy to provide you with the best service and products.
Email: [email protected] | WhatsApp: +8615068758483