The Importance of Good Office Lighting

There are many variables that help the office environment improve in worker productivity. One variable often overlooked is the issue of office lighting. Office Lighting can influence work productivity and the ability to perform office duties effectively, especially if the lighting is poor. In fact, many office surveys claim that office lighting is one of the most important concerns in an office environment.

Fluorescent Lighting

Fluorescent lighting is the most common form of lighting found in an office, however, this form of lighting is usually not strong, and causes issues. With computers lining the area of an office space, fluorescent lighting ends up increasing the glare in the office, especially against the glare of computers. This makes it harder for workers to see their computer screens. Obviously, this poses a problem for productivity and can spread a glaring glow across the office that hinders workers from working effectively.

Beyond the glare of the computer screen, many fluorescent lights end up not being strong enough to light up the office environment. This is because the light tubing that is used for this lighting is usually cheaper than stronger and more expensive lighting tubes. Workers tend to squint as they read papers or bulletins in their office environments, hindering productivity and causing issues like eyestrain. Eyestrain should not be taken lightly. This physical problem is spread out over the aggregate of time, including the hours worked, the days worked, and the years worked in such an environment. This can cause a worker’s eyesight to degrade over time.

Effects of Poor Office Lighting

Fluorescent office lighting is also problematic since it does not give a full lighting color to the office environment. Most workers in an office might notice that their office environment looks dull in color. This not only hinders reading clearly on papers, but it can also influence mood. Psychological studies have shown that bright, clear lights tend to elevate the mood of the worker. Not only can a worker see clearly through the office, the light tends to give them more positive thoughts and helps them attain a sense of motivation and energy in the day. Older fluorescent lights tend to make workers feel sluggish or tired as the day goes on. This is related to human beings’ circadian rhythm, which is the natural sleep and awake cycle for humans. Powerful, clear light tends to help human beings wake up and become stimulated neurologically. With lacking, less powerful lights, people tend to become weaker or lethargic underneath such lights.

This is not only important for workers, but it is also important for potential clients. Say a potential client or customer comes to visit the office and sees a slightly drab, low-light, office environment. Such a sight may give off the wrong signal to the client such as the office is being cheap or disorganized to implement a better lighting system. The office lighting system could be so poor, a client may become tired or lethargic themselves in such an office atmosphere.

Try to keep the office environment full of natural light. This is important for both mental and physical health. Do not forget that a healthy happy workforce will reflect heavily against the health and happiness of your business.