If you’re considering retrofitting your facility with energy-efficient LEDs, you’re likely aware that these projects have the potential to reduce energy and maintenance costs, improve employee productivity, and much more. That’s why choosing the right lighting partner is so important.
As you evaluate organizations, you want to consider the range of services they offer, how they manage retrofits, and their support models. You also want to understand the relationships they have with electric service companies, making sure those partnerships bring value to your project.
Services to Consider
Look for services beyond simply supplying fixtures and controls; look for turnkey, full-spectrum solutions, like these 6 essential LED retrofit services.
- Facility Audits
- Design & Commissioning
- Environmental Testing
- Installation & Ongoing Program/Project Management
- Ongoing System Maintenance
- General Support/Troubleshooting
1. Facility Audits
The first step in a retrofit project should be conducting a facility audit. A lighting provider should inspect your facility to understand the working environment, and ultimately recommend the lights and controls needed to maintain peak efficiency. This step is key to an accurate scope and cost estimate and even provides insights into lowering your carbon footprint and operating costs.
2. Design & Commissioning
Whether the products are designed in-house or commissioned from other manufacturers, the lighting provider should ensure that all LED lights are made not just to enhance your environment, but adhere to all codes and standards of current regulations, too.
3. Environmental Testing
An LED lighting provider with on-site environmental testing can determine whether lighting products are able to withstand temperatures, humidity, and other environmental factors that they may be exposed to.
This is especially crucial for cold storage facilities and other harsh environments, where LED lights may be subjected to subzero temperatures and frequent washes for sterilization.
4. Installation & Ongoing Program/Project Management
Productivity is a top priority, so installation should not disrupt normal operations. Find a lighting provider that works with you to schedule the installation of the LED fixtures on a timeline that accommodates your operations.
Your lighting provider should have the capacity to manage the project, depending on the project scope. Some lighting companies supply the products while an energy services company they’ve partnered with completes the installation, or the energy services company may handle project management. Either way, you’ll want a single point of contact so you aren’t chasing down answers.
5. Ongoing System Maintenance
An attentive, proactive approach to fixture and controls maintenance is vital. You must be able to rely on the lighting provider’s expertise to help you solve issues before they turn into serious problems — and quickly.
Look for a provider that offers maintenance add-ons, such as post-installation visits to your facility to check that your fixtures are working properly and as efficiently as possible.
6. General Support/Troubleshooting
If an unexpected issue occurs, can you count on the lighting provider to come to your aid when you need them, or are you put in a service queue waiting for a return phone call that may never come? Are they quick to not only respond, but find a solution? Do they have a customer-first approach that informs every process?
Avoiding costly downtime at your facility is crucial, so every concern that arises must be resolved with immediacy, and you should be able to confidently turn to a single contact from your lighting provider in those critical moments.
Orion’s End-to-End LED Retrofit Services
Orion’s vertical integration means we can manage every aspect of our customers’ retrofit projects, from identifying a facility’s needs to support after installation — and everything in between. We can also simply provide products and rely on one of our partners to manage the project and complete the install. Our customer-centric mindset pushes us to find flexible and custom solutions based on the specific needs and goals of your business.
To get your LED retrofit off on the right foot, reach out to the Orion team for a free facility audit today!
