Lighting plays a vital role in every place. It affects the mood and energy around us. Employers have started taking care of their employees in every aspect. They have been working on finding the best lighting for their employees. People believe that lights in the workplace have a lot to do with the prosperity of the business.
What if the lamp is dim in the workplace? Will the lighting affect the productivity of the employees? Can I reduce turnover by providing a more relaxed environment for my workers? To clear your mind, we will take you through the tips that you can adopt for providing a calm work atmosphere through the right illuminant in the workplace.
People come up with different views on everything. However, you know that your employees contribute to the overall growth of the business. You need to understand the need of the hour. For example, if you have an international book-keeping process and employees need to use computers, you cannot afford to let them work in dark light. It will cause strain to their eyes and level up their stress. Therefore, it would be best to take the purchase of your lights seriously and act accordingly.
Have you heard about workplace ergonomics? There are several constitutional factors included in the term ergonomics. The whole concept involves chair positions, desk height, and regular movements. Similarly, workplace lighting ergonomics is also a term that you will come across on the internet. When you understand the concept in detail, you will see workplace lighting regulations by OSHA in the U.S., Great Britain’s Health and Safety Executive, and Canadian Center of Occupational Health and Safety.
What constitutes a stress-free work environment?
Do you think your corporate environment is stressing you out? The reasons for such a scenario could be because your coworkers are overloud, your desk is messy, or you cannot tolerate the fluorescent light. It does not matter what the reason might be if it is affecting your resourcefulness and wellbeing. Along with personal stresses, people get overstressed at the office as well. Additionally, the physical environment can also contribute to making the whole situation worse. Therefore, it is crucial to create a relaxing ambience. The perfect brightening will help to calm down your stress level. It also assists in increasing the level of concentration and increasing productivity.
Five most favorable lighting tips for creating a modern and relaxing workplace:
Change the lighting at the table
As mentioned above, fluorescent light might be irritating for your employees. You must get rid of it as soon as possible. Studies have revealed that these types of lights are annoying and are outside the range of safe ultraviolet radiation. They are the source of irritation and discomfort to the eyes of the employee. It is likely to cause more stress and encourage health problems. Therefore, using warm-white lamps or incandescent lights on the table will be beneficial.
Switch to blue-enriched white light
Employees’ moods determine the potential they have to work in a business. Some studies have revealed that using blue-enriched white light enlightens the spirit of the employees. What does a blue-enriched white light do? In an organization, this type of light improves performance by helping the office workers improve alertness. While performing office activities, contributors need to be alert in all aspects. For example, while doing data-entry, you need to concentrate on every figure and record it correctly. Once you lose concentration or you get distracted, you might skip a number or two. Therefore, to avoid such errors, the lighting system has to be perfect.
Customizing brightness
Some sections in the office do not allow natural light to enter. It creates a dampened effect in these areas, causing more stress to the office workers. The best solution to get over the darkness will be customizing brightness by introducing LUX. These lights change the lighting of the computer screen and give it an indoor-lighting effect. Another way to personalize lamps at the workplace is to allow employees to bring in personal illuminants. The main point here is to distribute light in every corner equally. By doing so, you will see the difference in working conditions and productivity. Your workers are the backbone of the business; therefore, it will be suitable for you to set things accordingly.
Invest in a lighting control system
When a business installs a lighting control system, it enhances the color output, brightness, and tuning the level of light. It is the same as customizing LUX. Here, the employer can control the light inside the office to give the darker areas a much improved appearance. With an efficient control system, you will be able to regulate, tune, and adjust artificial light. Also, you can introduce a spotlight system in the stairs to help the employees find the way. It would be helpful if you remember that you must avoid lights that flicker. The effects of such rays are depressing and annoying. A proper system will ensure efficient brightness in each corner, further leading to a better atmosphere in the workplace.
Introduce corrective lighting
It will be a compliment to your workplace to maintain the balance between light and shadow. It is beneficial for people to prevent sitting in shadows. Therefore, to set the right angle, corrective lighting becomes the mediator. It helps to control various lights and color temperatures in the offices. Overall, this lighting delivers a comfortable view to the eyes of the workers. They will not feel stressed and irritated with the other lights like natural light, desk lamps, and the primary lighting source. You will get the most of your employees if you provide them with the right working conditions. It may seem intense in terms of brightness. However, it plays a vital role in creating a healthy and stress-free environment for employees.
What lighting is best for office space?
Providing natural light in the office space will turn out to be the best option for a relaxed environment. However, most of you might have heard about the LED lights available in the market these days. Business firms have started the use of these lights as they are economical in every manner. The LED bulbs are energy-efficient, long-lasting, and you can adjust them according to the requirements of the workplace and employees in all respects. Offices have many things that give out light, for example, laptops, computers, cellphones, televisions, and so on. Therefore to overcome excessive lighting from other objects, the LED bulbs will be the best solution.
What should be the brightness level of the lights at work?
There are not only visual effects but also psychic, biological, and emotional effects that lights cause. Light in a workplace contributes to efficiency in work and personal well-being. Therefore, you need to keep a balance inside the office area to cover all these aspects mentioned above. You need to select and install the LED bulbs that you can adjust according to the individual requirements of your colleagues. There has to be an appropriate use of natural daylight and artificial lighting to maintain a balance for a stress-free work atmosphere.
How does lighting help to reduce stress in employees?
Sometimes, people ignore the relevance of illumination in the workplace. It leads to a lot of health issues causing stress, vision problems, increases absenteeism, and much more. Therefore, it is time to realize the importance of brightness in the office space. The right lights in the office rooms will lead to a much healthier and happier environment. On the contrary, bad light contributes to several issues.
You will always spot a difference in the performance of people working in front-end and back-end operations. There will be two entirely different environments and behaviors that you will come across due to lighting in different areas of the business. You will see that a person working in a warehouse will be frustrated by the end of the day as compared to the one working at the reception area. A survey has revealed that 80 percent of the employees say that good and balanced lighting in the work area leads to better productivity.
Various types of office illumination available:
There are three standard types of lighting available for a modern workplace
Compact fluorescent
This is the most standard lighting that you will see in offices. CFL is the other name that people give to such lights. The efficiency level of the bulbs is far better than any different radiance. For instance, to get the same amount of brightness, you can replace a 22-watt CFL against a 100-watt incandescent bulb. The compact fluorescent lamps have a long-lasting life of approximately 20 times more than the incandescent ones. Their tendency to burn at a cooler temperature initiates higher lumen output.
Besides the positive side, the CFL has mercury that might be tricky while disposing of it after use. Another drawback of using these lights is the flickering property that sometimes causes stress to the eyes of the workers. As we are talking about creating a stress-free environment in the workplace, you will surely have to get rid of CFLs. These bulbs are most suitable for small business areas where people have to move to-and-fro rather than sitting in one place.
Incandescent
The benefits of these bulbs are quite fewer than the other two types. Therefore, you might see lesser incandescent lighting in offices. The incandescent fixtures are quite common in old models. It is the least energy-efficient type amongst LED and CFLs. Also, their lifespan is shorter as compared to the other two lights. On the contrary, one benefit that these bulbs give is full and faster lumen output. Alongside this, they are environment-friendly besides the over-consumption they do. The overall structure of incandescent lighting is far better than the others as it has a tungsten filament and harmless metal. You will see these bulbs in a more decorative form like an accent type lighting. For regular use and task-related areas, office employers do not prefer to use it very much.
LEDs
Lastly, you will see LED lights in offices due to the various benefits they have. Be it your home or office, these lights are used quite a lot due to their efficiency. No other source of light will be as long-lasting as these bulbs or tube lights. LEDs generate the coolest lighting by consuming low voltages. The output lumen is far better than any other illumination that you use in the workplace. Starting at a higher initial cost makes it the only drawback for people. However, if you see the long-term benefits, these will be suitable for the long-run. Their life span is long, and mostly you get a guarantee for a replacement if the light stops working between a specific period. You can choose from options like bulbs, tubes, rope lighting, etc.
Final Verdict
When it comes to choosing office lighting, you need to make a long-term investment over selecting cheaper workplace lumen. You cannot afford to replace bulbs every week or so. Therefore, it is vital to understand the need of the hour and use the lights that will illuminate the office in a better way. You need to determine the location of your office and see how much natural light you can utilize. It would be better for every corner to get natural light. However, if some areas are damp, you need to select lights accordingly.
You can choose the best from the three options as mentioned above. There will not be much of a difference, but the small benefits will make it worthwhile. Helping employees in every aspect will be beneficial for you. Therefore, to give them a stress-free workplace, they need to be your priority. It will be helpful for the employees to work under the right conditions to give their best output. Even though it might seem like nothing, lighting plays a vital role in changing the mood of office workers. Make it positive by implementing the tips mentioned above.