An employee spends thousands of hours a year in their workplace, which is why it is essential for the workplace to be designed in such a way that it maximizes productivity and comfort. A primary aspect of creating a productive and comfortable workplace involves the use of lighting. You might be surprised to know that lighting has a tremendous effect on all the employees.
Lighting does more than just illuminate your office. It can impact your mood, comfort level, focus, and much more. This guide will discuss the many benefits of good lighting in the workplace and how you can incorporate it into your office.
Problems with Insufficient Lighting in the Workplace
Before discussing the benefits of good lighting in the workplace, it is important to shed light on the problems and possible drawbacks of having insufficient lighting in an office. A dimly lit office with broken fuses and low light can pose a danger to the workers and bring various negative effects.
Firstly, it will cause the employees to feel tired more often. Moreover, walking into a dim and poorly lit office will instantly make them feel possibly anxious about work instead of being excited about it. This will certainly impact their productivity levels. When there is improper lighting in the office, the employees' eyes might be strained frequently, and that would make them tired more often.
The eye strain causes headaches, which can damage employees' health in the long run. All in all, not only would employers be harming their employees' health, but they would also not be as productive as they could be if provided with good lighting.
What Are the Benefits of Good Lighting in the Workplace?
It is vital that every office invests in good lighting for their employees. Not only can employers avoid the aforementioned problems, but they can also enjoy multiple advantages. Such lighting should include a combination of natural and artificial lighting. It can improve employees' satisfaction levels, moods, productivity, and more. Here's a look at the many benefits good lighting provides to employers:
Natural Light Provides Vitamin D
Good lighting involves incorporating a large amount of natural sunlight through windows, providing tons of vitamin D to employees. Being exposed to natural light is vital for humans as it can enhance one's health by absorbing calcium and preventing them from developing weak and dense bones.
Moreover, the vitamin D from exposure to natural light can also prevent tons of illnesses from developing. Such can include depression, cancers, obesity, and heart disease. Not only can sunlight prevent it, but it can also treat these and related diseases and disorders.
It Boosts Energy Levels
Natural light is much more likely to boost energy levels as compared to artificial lighting. This is because it contains Vitamin D, which helps to energize individuals. Many studies have been conducted to test whether productivity and output are enhanced through natural lighting, and they all show that it does.
Enhances Productivity
The work environment encompasses lighting, comfort level, and workplace design. If you improve all of these, you are significantly enhancing their productivity and performance. This is because they would be more enthusiastic about coming to work and would also be satisfied. Therefore, you would be enhancing productivity and employee retention rate with proper lighting and improving work satisfaction.
Can Help You Save on Energy Bills
'Good' lighting means having plenty of natural light alongside artificial light. If you install windows in your office and get LED lights, you would also be potentially saving on energy bills. This is because you are no longer spending on bills for artificial lighting.
For example, the task lamp from FlexiSpot contains an LED bulb, which means that you can have it on for hours, and will not burn a hole in your pocket. This makes it an excellent investment for workplace stations or a home office.
Protects Employees' Aging Eyesight
When there is dim lighting, there is a large amount of burden and strain on employees' eyes while working. This will not only negatively impact their eyesight in the long run but also reduce their productivity. On the other hand, by investing in good lighting, you would be reducing the strain on their eyes and helping them perform well.
For example, by investing in a task lamp from FlexiSpot for each workstation, you would undoubtedly be maximizing their work environment by facilitating smooth reading and writing.
It Enhances Workplace Safety
One of the most significant benefits of good lighting is that it enhances workplace safety. This is especially true for office spaces that deal with heavy equipment, dangerous materials, and chemicals. Moreover, with dim lighting, the employees would feel fatigued all the time. As a result, their awareness might be reduced, and they would be more susceptible to making errors or causing accidents.
You absolutely need good lighting to ensure nothing goes wrong and that the risk of accidents and injuries is minimized. With a well-lit office, employees can detect hazardous materials, slippery floors, and any such dangers. Employers and property owners will also not be held responsible either if such a well-lit working environment is provided.
It Boosts Creativity
You should allow employees to alter the lighting in the office because different lighting levels have various effects on their performance. For example, a well-lit office with plenty of light will make employees more alert and improve their analytical skills.
On the other hand, dim lighting is known to boost creativity. This is because such lighting is not too harsh and removes distractions so individuals can brainstorm easily. Hence, depending on the type of work they must do and the tasks they need to complete, you should provide them with the appropriate lighting.
How to Incorporate Good Lighting into the Workplace
Now that you know about the incredible benefits of good lighting in the workplace, you might be wondering how you can incorporate it into your own. As mentioned earlier, good lighting involves a balance between natural and artificial lighting. Here are some of the ways you can make use of both in your workplace:
Create Task Lighting
For any kind of work, such as paperwork or computer work, you should use task lighting through a task lamp from FlexiSpot. This provides direct light on the desk, enhancing your focus and concentration and allowing you to complete tasks more efficiently.
This adjustable lamp can help you put light exactly where you need it to help support a variety of focus-intensive and demanding tasks.
Make Use of Natural Light
We have already highlighted the plethora of benefits natural light can provide to an office, which is why it is no surprise that the best way to have good lighting in the workplace is through natural light. Hence, find an office space or ensure your office windows are not entirely covered. This will not only provide ample light, but it will also give you a space where you can enjoy the outside view.
Install Blinds on Windows
As mentioned earlier, you should also be able to adjust the level of lighting in your office. This can be efficiently done by installing blinds on your windows that can be used to increase or decrease the brightness and level of light. Chances are that you will need to do this since too much direct light from windows can often be too harsh and distracting.
Take Down Blocks and Dividers
Office dividers and blocks between each workstation can often hinder the amount of light reaching the entire office. It also prevents other employees from getting optimal light. For these reasons, most offices are moving towards removing these traditional barriers. When you take these down, you allow the light to flow freely throughout the office.
Eliminate Glare and Shadows
An important tip to follow when incorporating good lighting into the office is to eliminate any glare and shadows because that can increase strain on the employees' eyes. The light source, whether natural or artificial, should not be coming from the back since it causes a glare on the computer screen, making it hard to work. Similarly, if you are working with a task lamp like the one from FlexiSpot, you should ensure there is no shadow on your work surface.
Final Words
All in all, whether you are working from home or in the office, it is essential to have plenty of good lighting. This means that you should balance artificial and natural lighting well. Consider using plenty of natural light through windows. However, incorporating task lighting as well on your workstation through a task lamp from FlexiSpot.
Doing this will help you enjoy the aforementioned benefits and allow you to feel more satisfied, focused, and productive at work. Visit FlexiSpot's website to learn about their task lamp and how it can be adjusted according to your needs while working.
