07 Jul 5 Things You Should Know About a Lighting Audit in Your Building

Whether you’re a home or business owner, it’s recommended and encouraged to get a lighting audit periodically completed on your building. Lighting audits provide property owners with beneficial information regarding the energy efficiency of their building(s). Energy use is one of the most significant operating expenses when it comes to owning a property.

What is a Lighting Audit?

Upon scheduling a lighting audit or commonly called an energy assessment, an energy auditor will come to your building to conduct an onsite walkthrough of your existing facility. During the inspection, the current lighting conditions and equipment will be documented, managers will be interviewed to identify areas of needed improvement, and a plan will be provided to reduce your facility’s overall lighting energy and maintenance costs. Lighting audits can be conducted on both the exterior and interior portions of your facility. It involves a series of intricate steps to collect all necessary information from general and lighting to occupant and financial.

• General: The energy auditor assigned to your facility will collect information regarding floor and ceiling plans to review current fixture locations, room dimensions, and ceiling heights. If there are any future plans for renovations or additions, this information should also be provided.
• Lighting: During your lighting audit, the energy audit will gather data on your facility’s existing lighting from information on fixtures and the number of bulbs to hours of operation and natural daylight availability.
• Occupant: Office occupants will be interviewed or surveyed to determine how the existing lighting system affects them and their current thoughts on the existing lighting system. While the information in the “general” and “lighting” categories is beneficial, gathering firsthand knowledge of occupant thoughts helps get a realistic, real-time view on the existing lighting system.
• Financial: Many facilities don’t consider current operating costs when it comes to energy bills. The energy auditor will review your current average charges for electricity and demand to display how much long-term savings will be gained from transitioning your facility to energy-saving fixtures.

The Benefits of a Lighting Audit

Scheduling a lighting audit for your facility is an excellent way to increase your location’s energy efficiency and familiarize yourself with your building further. From something as simple as improving the overall comfort of your location and further minimizing your carbon footprint to adapting a cost-effective approach to utility bills and updating your lighting fixtures, contacting a commercial lighting electrician to conduct a lighting audit is incredibly beneficial in a variety of ways.

Improved Heating and Cooling Comfort

Scheduling an energy audit for your building allows you to identify any issues with your existing heating and cooling systems and any structural problems that may hinder the effectiveness of these systems. The productivity and comfort of occupants in your building matter significantly on lighting and temperature, which is why part of the energy audit gathers direct information from these individuals. The energy auditor will inspect sealing around doors and windows, current insulation, and many more features of your facility that can impact heating and cooling. Your energy audit results will provide you with recommendations as to how you can improve temperatures, air quality, and overall performance of heating and cooling systems in your building.

Lowers Environmental Impact

Environmentally friendly options are continuing to gain traction in today’s society, and many look for ways to lessen their individual impact. Getting an energy audit on your building will help you transition to a lighting system that conserves energy, thus likely translating your facility’s eco-friendly effort into the surrounding community. Upgrading your existing lighting system will not only help you save energy and lower costs, but it will have less of a negative impact on the environment around you. After receiving an energy audit and taking steps to upgrade existing lighting, many experience a reduced carbon footprint, less of a reliance on fossil fuels, and lower amounts of harmful emissions being released into the air.

Updated Fixtures

After your energy audit, you will receive recommendations for updates to conduct on your current lighting system. Old, outdated lighting fixtures can have a significant impact on energy waste. The energy auditor will provide you with instructions on which parts of your current lighting system to improve and different lighting fixtures and brands that are fitting for your budget and existing arrangement. Any energy auditor that visits your location has the end goal of providing practical, informed solutions that enhance operations and deliver long-term results for your facility.

Increases Resale Value

Whether you’re the owner of your building or it is owned by a larger corporation, updating the existing lighting system will help improve energy efficiency, thus resulting in increased resale value. Regardless of whether you’re planning on selling currently or see it being a possibility in the future, potential buyers are attracted to energy-efficient properties. Environmentally friendly features are continually rising in popularity, making it more critical to make forward-thinking investments rather than those that will only benefit you immediately and for a short time.

Overall Cost Savings

While it may seem like an obvious benefit, getting an energy audit completed on your building will provide you with sustainable solutions that help not only the environment but also your business. Making fixes to the seals, insulation, and other features of your building help keep warm or cold air adequately contained in your space, meaning your heating and cooling systems work less. The less these systems must work results in a lower energy bill year-round. Additionally, upgrading your existing lighting system will help your building run more efficiently in all seasons, thus resulting in lower utility bills, maintenance needs, and additional upgrades.

Transition to an Energy-Efficient Lighting Solution Today

If you’re interested in upgrading your current lighting system, it’s encouraged to start researching and discovering commercial electricians in your area. Ask friends, family, and industry acquaintances if they have any recommendations. Choosing a quality commercial electrician is incredibly essential, so you can be sure you’re receiving accurate results and recommendations. Make a move to transition to an energy-efficient lighting solution by contacting a lighting professional today.