Diamond Vogel, the midwestern leader in paints and coatings for industrial applications, was faced with a challenge when its Tulsa facility’s 300W incandescent light fixtures failed frequently due to the 110 degree F heat under the sun.
Production supervisor Alton Wells not only runs the day to day operations at the Tulsa facility, he’s also the maintenance man for the 27,500 square foot facility. For most of the last 19 years of his career, the Tulsa facility was lit with banks of 300W incandescent lights— roughly 10 banks of 6 fixtures each. Under the grueling heat, the fixtures failed frequently, not to mention emitted poor quality light when they did work.
This was a serious concern, considering that poor lighting is the leading cause of slip, trip and fall incidents, which are some of the most common causes of workplace injuries. And, data shows that improving overall illumination in a facility can reduce accident rates by as much as 60%. While accidents weren’t a major problem for Diamond Vogel, Wells recognized the opportunity to lower the risk even further, while also reducing the maintenance demand.
That’s why Wells turned to Dialight, implementing its SafeSite High Bay light fixtures. Not only did the fixtures improve color clarity, brightness and safety, but Diamond Vogel was also able to reduce their fixture count by about 10 lights.
“We’ve lit the place with fewer fixtures than we originally had, and we’ve got easily four-times the light,” Wells said. “The difference is amazing. It’s better by leaps and bounds, and it’s helping us to be more efficient because we can see so much better.”
The elimination of harsh shadows allows employees to measure raw materials more accurately for precision formulation of their products, and the outstanding color clarity improves quality control and R&D. Plus, it’s safer: LED lighting has proven to improve trip hazard detection by 23.7% and reduce glare by roughly 50%. In addition, the white light of LEDs encourages alertness and reduces fatigue by a factor of 5X, helping employees to feel more alert and energetic on the job.
“Of course, since we could see better, it made those areas that could use a little cleaning or sprucing up a bit more obvious,” Wells quipped. “And so now we’re keeping things a lot neater, painting more and it just makes the whole place look nicer.”
At the same time, Wells says it’s made a huge difference for employees. “I’ve already noticed an increase in the mood of everyone on the floor. Before, it was like working in a cave with a flashlight,” he said. “When the contractor started turning the new lights on as they were installed, everybody said, ‘Wow!’ and they couldn’t believe the difference. I show them off to everyone who comes in here from corporate. I just can’t help myself.”
“We are extremely pleased with the entire experience of working with Dialight,” Wells said. “A lot of companies will try to sell you something you don’t need, but Dialight really listened to my needs, understood their products and capabilities, and even though they pushed me in a different direction, it was for my benefit. And, the fact that they covered all of these products with a 10-year warranty, that is amazing to me.”
For more information, please visit: www.dialight.com.
