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Powering warehouses can be a very expensive endeavour, with a good portion of the costs of managing this business going towards electricity bills.
Luckily, there are several techniques that warehouse owners can use to make the most out of their budget while saving energy and improving lighting around the premises.
Warehouses are naturally built to have high ceilings for shelves, large open surfaces with several aisles, and very few windows. This makes installing the right type of lighting that much more important because without light coming in, you are not going to do much inside the warehouse.
Read on to learn more about how you can use daylight harvesting and PIR technology to improve warehouse lighting controls – and how you can end up saving energy without having any dark aisles:
Modern businesses are always looking for new ways to improve their bottom line and cut down on unnecessary costs. One obvious way to do this is to set an electricity budget for the warehouse and use strategies to save energy.
This is where concepts like daylight harvesting and PIR installation come in.
Daylight linking is a technique where you dim the lights inside a building during daytime to maximise energy savings and use natural light to illuminate the premises. This concept has been used for a long time, but has become more important in today’s optimisation and efficiency-centric business environment.
The other way to save electricity is by using technology, more specifically, Passive Infrared Sensors or PIR sensors. These devices are simple, compact, and can be installed in multiple locations. Their job is to analyse movement by tracking it using infrared sensors. When the sensors detect movement, they can automatically trigger the lighting for just that specific area.
There are several key principles to both concepts. Let’s explore each one in detail:
The goal of using PIR sensors and daylight linking is not only to save costs but also to save in a way that doesn’t jeopardise safety.
Without lighting, warehouses can get very dark and the fewer windows you have, the more you are going to bump into things due to insufficient lighting.
Warehouse injuries are a serious matter and can result in minor to very severe injuries depending on the type of warehouse and what is stored in it.
By using PIR and daylight linking, you can reduce artificial lighting when it is not needed but still maintain safe visibility when movement occurs. This technology works best with daylight linking techniques because they can dim the lights to a low standby level and turn on the lights when there is someone in the premises.
This prevents “dark points” within the warehouse and aisles, leading to better navigation and fewer accidents due to poor lighting.
PIR and daylight sensors, also called photocells, are frequently used in combination to manage the balance between natural and artificial lighting. If the warehouse has sufficient windows at the sides or top, the sensors can detect whether it is best to dim the lights or, if conditions are very good, turn them off completely.
However, it is important to calibrate all sensors correctly so that there is always a minimum lux level maintained within the premises. This level should be enough for visibility and enable workers to carry out tasks without any risks.
The minimum lux requirement can be set according to your warehousing setup. In most cases, a minimum lux of around 150 to 300 is sufficient for visibility, but if your workers carry out detailed tasks, then a lux of 500 would be required in some areas.
This calibration is done through professional installation. Companies like Calder Electrical use their expertise along with industry practices to optimise business lighting solutions so that you not only save energy but also get the most out of the lighting system.
PIR sensors are usually designed to provide long-range coverage, which means that they can detect movement from far away if they have a clear line of sight. These sensors can be placed strategically around areas that require the most lighting while occupied.
For example, loading bays generally require up to 200–300 lux when occupied by workers, but can dim down to 150 when no one is around. By strategically placing the sensors in the most frequented locations inside the warehouse, you can end up saving a lot of energy and money.
Professional installers can also choose to overlap detection zones to ensure guaranteed illumination in the presence of workers. This is done to avoid the problem of dark aisles and is especially important to avoid blind spots.
To optimise the system even more, the sensors can be calibrated to include a delay timer that prevents the lights from turning off too quickly while someone is briefly stationary, like during forklift pauses.
Daylight sensors can be similarly optimised to ensure that the area maintains the minimum lux requirement using a combination of natural and artificial lighting. By optimally placing these sensors around the warehouse, you can ensure that you never get dark aisles or disproportionate lighting.
The best way to make the most out of warehouse lighting is to go with a zoned approach. By dividing the warehouse into separate zones, you can greatly decrease the chances of dark aisles and improve energy savings.
For example, the sensors can be placed in zones dedicated to bulk storage, racking aisles, picking or packing areas, and the loading bay. This way, whenever these most frequented areas are in use, you can guarantee full lighting conditions, whether during the day or at night.
Warehouse lighting can also be optimised to never fully be off. It can rather go into standby mode and use around 10% of its rated energy. This way, even someone walking towards the area might be able to see what is in front of them until the lights go fully on.
A light survey is designed to figure out the lux needs for your specific business. As mentioned above, every warehouse is different. Some have natural light coming in from windows, while others have the windows shut off completely due to storage or safety reasons.
By conducting a light survey, you can map out the skylights, rooflights, and window placements in the warehouse and identify zones that require the most lighting.
This survey can be conducted by a professional installation company like Calder Electrical, which can send out technicians to do the survey for you and give you all the industry-standard recommendations in a neat and detailed audit document.
The type of sensors required would depend on your individual use case, but in most cases, PIR sensors with a long range are the gold standard. PIR sensors need to be strategically placed so that they always detect movement and have a clear view of the warehouse floor.
Similarly, photocells should be placed in a way that they can correctly sense the floor-level lighting and account for the rack reflections that may throw off the sensors, especially if they are not configured properly.
While lighting doesn’t require significant training, warehouse owners should inform the staff about the various strategies being used to save electricity and maximise luminosity when needed.
This way, every employee can understand how lighting within the warehouse works and even how to troubleshoot or report errors around the warehouse. By training the employees, you can also ensure that they never obstruct the sensors in any way and adopt energy-saving techniques themselves. For example, staff can be reminded to turn off electricity in office spaces within the warehouse when not in use or plug out unnecessary appliances to avoid phantom energy drainage.
Maintenance is crucial for warehouse lighting systems. They not only enable the warehouse to operate efficiently but also guarantee that you get the most out of your investment. When everything works perfectly, you are bound to save money.
If even one sensor is out and there is no overlapping sensor nearby, then you can expect the lighting to either always stay on at full or be turned off completely, which is an even worse situation.
The goal is to periodically check the sensors and lighting fixtures for errors or electrical problems. The good news is that you can opt for professional maintenance services through your installer.
Calder Electrical, for instance, offers dedicated maintenance contracts after installation, where technicians can periodically check the lighting of your warehouse according to a schedule. You don’t have to call the company; the technicians will always come on time and according to the set schedule.
The benefit of going for maintenance contracts with installers is that they know the lighting system in your property the best. They know which type of sensor and light is installed, its lux rating, its limitations, and its expected life.
They can easily pinpoint faults and can even fix issues before they become a problem. This not only saves warehouse owners downtime but can also help them maintain savings for the long run.
When it comes to warehouse lighting controls, three options work best for daylight harvesting and PIR sensors:
HIDs have the lowest initial cost, but they do not offer many colour options and have the highest rate of lumen depreciation because of how much energy they consume. If you have seen HID lamps on cars, then you will know that their luminance is not a joke.
However, HIDs require time to warm up before reaching maximum illumination and even a cooling time after being turned off before they can be switched on again.
On the other hand, fluorescent lighting has been the staple for the corporate world for decades and is a great option for large spaces. It has a low initial cost and is a more energy-efficient solution since it consumes less energy than HID lamps.
Fluorescent lights are available in various colour temperatures, ranging from 2700K to 6500K, along with different shapes and sizes to allow you more flexibility when lighting up your warehouse.
However, these types of lights have a temperature limitation. Warehouses that get very hot or very cold may have a drastic effect on the lifespan of fluorescent lights.
Also, frequently turning fluorescent lights on and off can lessen their lifespan, which is why they should not be used in frequently visited locations with PIR sensors.
LED lights are the most versatile and energy-efficient option on this list. They are durable and can handle a wide range of operational environments. Most high-quality LEDs can last up to 100,000 hours and do not suffer from constant on/off cycles, which makes them a great option for various types of warehouses.
The typical cost per square metre for warehouse lighting controls depends on several factors and is a core part of cost accounting for many warehouses.
The most effective way to calculate the cost is to add together the total costs for supplies, labour, overhead costs, as well as profit margins, and divide it by the total number of square metres of your warehouse.
Keep in mind that most professional installers and electricians work at an hourly rate, which, as of the tail-end of 2025, is on average about £40 to £80 per hour.
As for the running variable cost for warehouse lighting, you can expect the annual running cost of a typical 700+ lumen LED bulb to be around £4–£6. This is a ballpark figure and ultimately depends on the wattage and usage of the bulb.
We, at Calder Electrical, provide a comprehensive solution for lighting all kinds of properties, including residential, commercial, as well as industrial properties such as warehouses.
We understand the unique lighting needs of warehouses and are here to provide you with the best ways to not only properly illuminate your property but also make it incredibly energy-efficient.
We can survey your warehouse and create a lighting design to see if we can not only reduce the number of light fittings but also make the area reach a lighting level suitable for use.
We can also incorporate motion detectors so that the lights in certain areas of the warehouse are only switched on when someone enters those areas.
We can give you an energy calculation to show your current lighting costs and the estimated costs by upgrading to LED lighting, so that you can see how much you will save, normally aiming for a 40% saving.
If you are undertaking a new installation, we can help you create a lighting design suitable for the warehouse layout and intended usage.
We provide high and efficient levels of LED installation services guaranteed to meet the current wiring regulations BS7671.
In addition to this, we also provide electrical testing and maintenance service
Photo by tommao wang on Unsplash
