Understanding Dealership Lighting

We are in the age of LED lighting, with its modern look, cool feel and endless design capabilities nevermind its low consumption of energy you would be plunging your dealership into the “dark” if you are using any other types of lighting.

Lights not only present your cars, products, and merchandise but also create the dealership’s atmosphere. It's an essential part of the first impressions and the customer experience.

Dealership lighting is divided into different areas that must comply with their own requirements.

The main areas for most dealerships are as follows: (Dealerships vary this is just a general guide)

Reception (Normally within the main showroom)
New cars showroom
Used cars showroom
Workshop
Parts department
Various offices for the different departments
Oil storage
Basement parking bays
Outside parking bays
Customer parking
Security rooms/huts/pods
Bathrooms
Outside yards and/or driveways
Kitchens
Staff locker rooms and bathrooms

The factors one must contend with when choosing the types of lights and where to place said lights are as follows:

SANS Code

South African National Standards, There is a lot of code that we have to abide by such as the code of practice for the wiring of a premises and Lux levels of the various sections.

Lighting Colour

The colour of the lights chosen will be determined by the application of the light and where it is placed, the colour of a light plays a very important role in the environment it is placed in.

IP Ratings

Luminaire ingress protection ratings, simply put it is the rating given by the manufacturer to help us determine where a particular light can be installed,

for example, if one wants to install a light outside where it will be rained on and be exposed to the outside elements it needs to have a specific IP rating.

Maintenance of the light

We have to determine how difficult it is to repair the light once it is installed, what equipment one will need to repair a faulty light, and what the feasibility will be for the dealership once a light fails.

Lux Intensity

This is the brightness of the light. It needs to be determined if the light will give off enough light in the area it is installed in, the opposite is also true for a light that can't give off too much light in its chosen area.

Placement

The placement of light is one of the most important things to consider in an installation. It can easily be seen if lights are placed in the wrong place even by someone that is not an expert. Not only can it look wrong from a design standpoint but it can also give off an undesired shadow. It can also cause a nasty glare that will be unpleasant to the eye.

New and used cars Showroom

Showrooms come in a big variety of shapes and sizes. Some have ceilings, some show the steelworks of the building and some have high roofs, some have low roofs, and so we have to deal with each showroom differently.

When it comes to showrooms that have no ceiling and are high we normally opt for a high bay light called the LED UFO.

These lights are the best replacement for the more traditional high bay lights that were either halogen or mercury vapour, they use a lot of energy and are slowly being phased out.

The LED UFO lights come in a variety of sizes that are usually determined by the wattage of the light. The colour we recommend for the lights is called daylight. The colour spectrum is 6500k,

this gives the showroom an adequate amount of light and does not put an unsightly glare on the cars. If the calculation of the size of the showroom and the number of lights chosen to light up the area is done correctly, then this will give an enjoyable atmosphere to the showroom the cars and merchandise will look great and the sales desks and reception that is usually found in this area will fall into the parameters of the SANS code 10114-1. This is highly recommended as a replacement for existing high-bay showroom lights and should be the only option for new installations.

We do caution against using inferior brands that have no warranties and don't come from a reliable source; it could turn into a very expensive exercise.

Showrooms that have Sectional ceilings or solid ceilings

With these, we tend to use a range of backlit LED panels.

These also come in many shapes and sizes, but what is chosen depends on the showroom.

On a higher set ceiling, we normally install 600 X 1200 60 Watt back-lit LED flat panel colour range between 6000k to 6500k daylight. If a 600 X 600 sectional ceiling is used you can use the 600 X 600 Back lit LED flat panel.

If a solid ceiling is used you can use a frame made especially for the 600 x 1200-sized panel. This is recommended for new installations where the solid ceiling and sectional ceilings are installed on a high bay level. You can use the round backlit panel lights on your lower set ceilings. The panel lights disappear into the ceiling and look great aesthetically. They also work great as the main lights on bulkheads built onto the ceiling using LED strip lights as secondary decorative lighting.

Again beware of cheap imitation lights and use sources that are trusted and have warranties.

It is not uncommon for pre-existing installations on sectional ceilings to have the 3 to

fitting. In these cases, we have a look at a few options, based on the budget of the dealership we will either replace said fittings with 600 X 1200 back-lit LEDs. If this is not in the budget of the dealership we will do what we call an LED conversion where we re-wire the existing fluorescent fitting to accommodate LED T8 tubes,

The colour of the tubes is 6000 to 65000k. We only use the best-quality tubes when doing conversions.

A few things to consider when choosing the conversions over the replacement to new fittings: Are the existing fittings in good enough condition to keep? Do the existing fittings still work in the area where they are installed?

Workshop/Service area

The dealership workshop is one of the most important areas to concentrate on when it comes to its lighting. Because it is where the mechanics and technicians work on the cars this area needs to be well-lit, according to SANS 10114-1. The size of these workshops also determines the type of lighting used, but we also have to use a mixture of different lighting techniques and a mix of lights to comply with the SANS code and to give the workers a comfortable and safe work environment.

Poor lighting quality can cause

Eye-strain
Fatigue
Headaches
Stress
On-the-job accidents

When we speak of poor lighting quality we mean both too little light and also too much light.

This can lead to mistakes on the job, poor quality work, and low productivity. The perfect balance of lighting is required in the workshop/service area.

If the workshop has a high set roof we will normally use a mix of high bay UFOs mentioned in the showroom lighting section along with 4 or 5 ft open channels double tube fittings that we fit with T8 LED tubes colour 6500k.

Layout

The inspection bay

The inspection bay is a small section at the entrance of the workshop where a technician will inspect and take note of any dents, scratches, and other types of cosmetic imperfections. Lighting in the area is very important so that nothing is missed during this inspection. We will typically use the open channel light fitting with the 4 ft or 5 ft LED tubes with 6500k colour, mounted on a P2000 extruded galvanized steel channel that is mounted at the correct height for the optimal light spread.

Main driveway

In most workshops, you have the main driveway where cars can be pulled in and out typically in the centre of the workshop. Here we will also use the 4 or 5-ft open channel lights used in the inspection bay mounted either directly to the roof trusses/steel beams or ceiling and depending on the height we will also sometimes use the P2000 channels.

Service bays

Found on the left and right sides of the driveway close to the walls you will find the service bays, the amount will vary depending on the size of the workshop.

A service bay will consist of a car lift and toolbox area and a table for the technician to work on and place the tools and parts they are working on. Here it is extremely important to focus on the lighting selection and lighting design because of the nature of the job the lights need to be compliant. For this, we make sure that there is plenty of light over the engine bay usually also 5 ft open channel lights mounted on our P2000 channels and the rest of the service bay. At the section where the work table is will usually mount a 5 ft open channel light on the wall above the table.

Oil storage

This is where the old oil from the serviced vehicles is stored. This area needs to be well-lit because hazardous materials get handled here. We generally use IP-rated tubed LED light fittings with covers. This prevents any tube that might break from falling in the oil contaminating it, and prevents steam in dust from going into the light fittings.

Workshop Stores

Workshop Stores are located in the workshop area. This is where the tools and a few spares get kept. Typically has rows of shelves and cupboards. We install open-channel tubed lights spread out evenly.

Parts Department

This is where the workshop pulls the relevant parts needed to service or repair the cars. It normally consists of parts counter that will have a pc and a few employees whose job is to check the computers for stock and part numbers and pull the relevant stock needed. We recommend 5ft open channel LED fittings spread out evenly and with enough light to comply with SANS 10114-1.

Main parts storage usually located just behind the parts counter have shelves evenly spread apart with walkways so that the employees can access their stock. In this area, we also use the 5ft open channel lights placed in the walkways of the shelves, and the stock on them can be clearly visible.

Dealership offices

Offices come in many shapes and sizes and have different types of roofs and furniture and flooring, so there isn't really a set standard when it comes to the style of the lights in these areas, and can also be subject to the dealership's corporate identity. But no matter what style of lighting is chosen for these areas, we must always make sure that the amount of light always complies with the SANS codes. Often times offices will have inconsistent lighting in both color and brightness. This needs to be rectified as it looks unsightly and impairs your vision.

We also highly recommend using only LED lighting.

Here are just some of the fittings we like to use depending on the roof type:

Sectional or solid ceilings - 600X1200 LED flat panels

Concrete roofing - 600x600 LED Flat panels, 5 Ft LED tubed fitting with a prismatic cover.

Office passages- 18-watt round or square LED panels.

Bulkheads- LED strips and LED downlights.

Bathrooms, Locker rooms, and change rooms.

In bathrooms with showers, it is always important to use IP Rated fittings so that the electrical equipment is not affected by steam and condensation. In the bathroom stall, we suggest an 18-watt round flat-panel LED in the main area either a 600 x 600 flat panel or 600 x 1200 flat panel or decorative tubed 5 ft fitting.

For locker rooms and Change rooms we normally use 5 ft open channel LED fittings.

Kitchens

We will mainly use 5ft open channel light fittings in these areas, but also make use of the 600 x 600 LED flat panel or the 600 x 1200 flat panel if there is a sectional ceiling and in smaller kitchens, we will make use of the 18-watt round or square led panels.

Basement parking bays

It is important to always have 24hr light in these areas as it has no natural light, sticking to the SANS code for basement parking 5ft open channel lighting is always the best choice for these areas.

Outside parking bays/Customer parking.

Parking at dealerships varies due to the different layouts of the

land and building placement, but most dealerships normally have pole-mounted lights around these areas with various lighting options. Our preferred lighting options on the poles are normally between a 50 to 100-watt LED flood light if it is a mains-powered light otherwise we prefer solar-powered street lights given that there is enough exposure to sunlight so that they can charge the batteries.

When choosing solar street lights it is important to take brand and warranty into account and do the proper research on the types of batteries used in this selection of lights, Lithium-ion batteries are the preferred batteries in these types of set-ups.

Exterior/Outside yards.

Exterior lighting is very important, especially from a security standpoint. You will usually find 400-watt metal halide flood lights on poles spread around the dealership and mounted high on the walls of the dealership's building. We generally replace these with LED flood lights ranging from 200-watt to 400-watt depending on the size of the area that needs to be lit.

On poles, we prefer to mount solar lights if the area gets enough sunlight. If these areas are not well lit then it leaves the dealership vulnerable to theft and vandalism. It's also important for the security on-site to see where they are patrolling so that they can identify threats long before they are too close and can be put in harm's way. Well-lit exterior areas are usually a good deterrent against any criminal activity.

Security rooms/huts/pods

Security rooms/huts/pods are Normally fitted with open-channel LED lights.The security must have efficient lighting so that they can operate all the equipment in the room properly and also for their own personal protection. As the security is normally based at the entrances of the dealership it is also important that they have a well-lit exterior all around them so that they can clearly see any vehicles and people that wish to enter when it is dark and they will also be able to identify any threats more clearly and quickly.

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