Are you looking to upgrade the lighting in your auto body shop? Proper lighting is essential for producing high-quality work, ensuring safety, and boosting productivity. In this comprehensive guide, we'll dive deeply into everything you need to know about auto body shop lighting, from the types of lighting available to the best practices for installation and maintenance. Whether you're a seasoned auto body professional or just starting out, this guide will provide you with the knowledge and tools you need to create a dazzling and efficient work environment. Let's get started!
What Auto Body Shop Lighting Should Be?
Portable
Portable LED lights are often used in auto body shops due to their flexibility and ease of movement. They allow mechanics to have close-up lighting for many jobs and can be pulled closer to the specific area being worked on. LED lighting is known to be 75% more energy efficient and last 25 times longer than incandescent lighting. The light produced by LED lighting is also more concentrated, which makes it easier to see when working in small, tight spaces such as inside a truck, under a car, or under the hood. Additionally, LED lights are extremely resistant to shocks and come sealed in moisture-proof casings, making them an ideal option for auto shop lighting. Some portable LED lights come with additional features such as suction cups, hooks, stables, and fans, or can even fit over the head for hands-free application, making them even more useful in tight spaces.
Color Rendering Index
One of the best improvements you can make to your spray painting operation is to upgrade from standard fluorescent tubes to full-spectrum, high-color rendering lights designed for auto body work. These lights are affordable and offer many benefits, including improved color matching, reduced need for re-mixing, less waste, fewer repaints, happier customers, and increased profits.
What Should Auto Body Lighting Be?
According to the Local Codes
It's important to ensure that you are meeting the guidelines for safe auto body shop lighting in your place, especially in areas where you may be working with hazardous materials, such as those in a spray paint booth. These regulations and codes typically vary by state or region, so make sure to check with the NEC to ensure compliance.
Explosion Proof Lighting
Investing in lighting designed for hazardous conditions is a wise decision for those who work with materials that can potentially create dangerous situations. It is vital to have proper lighting to ensure the safety of your team and facility. LED explosion-proof lights are an ideal solution in such cases due to their lower current draw and durable housings. These lights are designed to withstand harsh conditions and can minimize the risk of accidents in high-risk areas. They are particularly useful in areas where hazardous vapors from spray paints and other chemicals may be present. By using LED explosion-proof auto body lights, you can protect your team and facility from unwanted outcomes such as fires and shattering glass. Additionally, these lights are energy-efficient and offer cost savings in the long run, making them a wise investment for any business that prioritizes safety and efficiency.
Explosion Proof Lighting
Instead of replacing the entire lighting scheme at once, it may be more cost-effective to phase the project or retrofit existing fixtures with LED lights. Retrofit kits make it easy to rewire and reconfigure existing fluorescent fixtures to accommodate LED lights, resulting in increased lumen output of up to 65% and reduced electricity use from the moment the fixture is turned on.
The Importance of Auto Body Shop Lighting
While Choosing the Necessary Color
Having inadequate body shop light can lead to inaccurate color matching and poor overall service, which can have a negative impact on profitability and productivity. This is because, without proper lighting, it can be difficult to properly match colors, resulting in unsatisfied customers and a reduction in business. In order to prevent this from happening, it's crucial to deliver consistent results in the industry, and this requires the right lighting solution in place to ensure accurate color matching and a safe working environment for team members.
In addition, having the right lighting in place can also improve the overall productivity of the team. With better lighting, team members can work more efficiently and effectively, resulting in faster turnaround times and increased profitability for the business. Furthermore, a safe working environment is essential to ensure that team members can work without fear of injuries or accidents that can lead to expensive lawsuits and a damaged reputation for the business.
Care about the Health of Team Members
It's crucial to prioritize the safety and well-being of your team members, as they are your most valuable asset. Without them, you won't be able to operate at full capacity. In order to ensure their safety when working with toxic materials and machinery, it's important to provide a well-lit environment. If your auto body shop layout is not properly lit, it can negatively affect your team's performance and make them feel unsafe. By adequately lighting the workplace, you can alleviate their worries and position them for success within your industry.
Types of Lighting for Auto Body Shop
Linear Lighting Fixtures
LED linear light fixtures are energy-efficient and provide instant light with no warm-up period, making them a great choice for lighting up high-ceiling garages. They come in various sizes, making it easy to fully customize your overhead lighting. If you currently have fluorescent fixtures of this type, you can upgrade to LED with a retrofit conversion kit.
High Bay Lighting
High bay light fixtures are a suitable option for illuminating large spaces with high ceilings, such as commercial or multi-storage garages with ceiling heights over 15 feet. The most common types of high bay light fixtures include round, linear, and sealed vapor-tight fixtures. A wide distribution pattern of LED high bay lights can reduce the number of fixtures needed.
Wraparound Lighting
LED wraparound body shop lights are an excellent option for illuminating garages with lower ceilings. They are installed level with the ceiling surface, which prevents them from hanging low and getting in the way of ladders, boards, and other items that may be moved around the space. Unlike other lighting options that produce light in only one direction, wraparound lights body shop produces multidirectional light from both sides and the bottom, resulting in a larger spread of light overall.