Office Lighting

Office lighting

A lighting project for a workspace is not solved by choosing an attractive fitting. It is solved with the right lumen level per square metre, a low UGR rating and a light tone that can handle eight hours of screen work without tiring anyone.

At FactorLED we handle that entire project with professional products: grid-ceiling LED Panels, recessed Downlight and Ceiling Lights LED and the surface-mounted and suspended ranges of LED Linear Lighting. We are a manufacturer and distributor offering trade pricing to installers, architecture practices, refurbishment companies and resellers, and you can browse the full range from Indoor Lighting.

Light levels: how much a well-designed office lighting scheme needs

This is where any serious project begins, and where most of them go wrong.

What is set under the standards for indoor workplaces is a minimum level per type of task, not per square metre of floor space. For office work at a screen, the usual design range is 500 to 750 lux on the working plane, with 500 lux as the floor: the lower end for general desk tasks and the upper end where there is intensive reading of paper documents, technical drawing or visual quality control.

That amount of light is not spread evenly across the whole space. Circulation areas and walkways need considerably less, while meeting rooms sit at an intermediate level that is also best left dimmable, because they switch between presentations and projection.

The classic mistake is to bring the whole floor up to the highest figure. It is expensive to install, expensive to run and, above all, it creates a flat atmosphere in which one area cannot be told apart from another.

To size it properly you need one more thing besides the level: the average light intensity has to be maintained over the years. Calculations use a maintenance factor, because an installation delivers less light at the end of its service life than on the day it is commissioned.

Office lighting and UGR: the figure that shapes the working environment

A space can meet the lux requirement to the letter and still be uncomfortable. The explanation is glare, the blind spot of most quotations.

The UGR index measures the discomfort a light source causes from the observer's position. For screen work the reference value is UGR<19, and our catalogue includes optics with UGR17 in downlights and recessed products, and microprismatic diffusers with UGR19 in the linear ranges.

You notice the difference as soon as you sit underneath. A cheap opal diffuser spreads light but becomes irritating when you look up; a microprism cuts the light beam at the critical angle and delivers the same visual comfort across the whole desk. That is why UGR appears on the datasheet of every product we sell for this application.

The other factor is uniformity. A bright, even working plane requires that the ratio between the lowest and the average value does not collapse at the edges, and that depends on the spacing between fittings and the mounting height, not on the wattage of each one.

If you want to go deeper into how it is calculated and why it is mandatory, our Technical Blog covers it in detail. Here we stick to what affects the purchase.

Eye strain at the end of the working day almost never comes from a lack of light. It comes from the contrast between a bright screen and a poorly designed environment, or from a reflection that forces you to reposition your head all day long.

Colour temperature: which type of lighting goes in each area

Mid-range white light is the standard for artificial lighting in professional environments, but it is not the only answer.

4000K white is the design value for the work area: it provides mental clarity without the clinical feel of cool tones and without the yellow cast of warm light. It is the reference neutral tone, which is why it works just as well at nine in the morning as at six in the evening. It is the most versatile tone in the catalogue and the one we specify by default when there is no design constraint.

3000K has its place in reception areas, waiting rooms and break areas, where a more welcoming than productive feel is wanted. Choosing 3000K for an executive office with wood finishes also works, and it is a perfectly legitimate design decision.

Almost all our ranges come in a selectable CCT version, so the same product code covers both scenarios and the choice is made on site with a switch. For an installer, that means fewer product codes in stock and less risk of getting the order wrong.

What we do not recommend is mixing different kelvin values within the same field of view. Two tones side by side on the same surface are visible from the doorway and look like a botched repair.

Daylight and sensors: adapting LED lighting to the sun hour by hour

Daylight is not an extra: it is part of the calculation.

A floor with large windows has a natural light ingress that changes throughout the day and the year. If the installation always runs at full output, you are paying for surplus light for much of the working day. With daylight sensor control, the row nearest the façade dims automatically while the inner rows hold their design level.

An office's energy efficiency is not measured only in the fitting's lm/W: it is measured in hours of operation at full power. A project with Presence and Light Detectors in toilets, archive rooms and meeting rooms cuts consumption without bothering anyone.

Our catalogue covers both routes: dimmable products via DALI and 1-10V for large projects, and versions with a built-in dimmer or integrated detection for small refurbishments where there is no control line.

And there is a third, cheaper one to implement: making the fitting's own wattage adjustable. Several ranges include a wattage selector, which lets you correct on site if the calculation came out too low or too high, without changing the hardware.

Office lighting: the two layers of lighting for offices

A professional project is not solved from the ceiling alone, even though that is where the bulk of the installation sits.

The general layer sets the base level of the workspace and drives consumption. It is where the solution for the whole floor is decided and where any mistake is multiplied by the number of fittings.

The second layer is task lighting at the workstation. An arm lamp from our LED Table Lamps range lets you focus light on the document at a specific desk without raising the level across the whole floor, and it is the right answer when one person needs more light than the rest because of the type of task. We carry this family in the indoor catalogue, with E27 and E14 lamp holders and rechargeable versions.

Done properly, the two layers add up instead of competing: the general layer covers the room's visibility conditions and the task light meets the specific needs of each workstation. Done badly, they overlap and you end up with twice the light intensity the calculation called for.

Where this shows most is the individual office versus the open-plan space. In an enclosed office a well-chosen central fitting plus a desk lamp is enough; on an open-plan floor the grid takes over, and individual task lighting is the exception.

What the business gains from a well-designed project

A project of this kind is justified with numbers, not impressions.

Light affects work performance measurably: an environment with insufficient light or with reflections forces a constant effort of visual accommodation that is paid for in errors at the end of the shift. That is why what works best in an office is not the most powerful option: it is the most stable one.

Employee wellbeing also comes into the equation. A space with well-distributed, flicker-free light reduces complaints about headaches and eye discomfort, which are among the most common sources of dissatisfaction on a screen-based office floor.

And there is a third argument that convinces any finance department: a properly sized installation consumes less and needs far less maintenance. Nobody has to climb up to change a bulb every season or shut down an area to replace a fitting.

The sector has been moving for years towards that combination of correct levels, automatic control and stable colour. It is not a fad: it is what separates a floor where people work in greater comfort from one where everyone ends up switching on their own desk lamp.

Which office lamps go on each ceiling, area by area

Each family has its own territory, and it is best not to force it. By this stage of the project the level each area needs has already been decided: what remains is translating it into products.

In an accessible tiled suspended ceiling, the 60x60 panel remains the most straightforward solution: it fits the module, spreads light well and can be replaced without touching anything else. There is also a 120x30 cm format for elongated grids and continuous-row installations.

In a continuous plasterboard ceiling, the leading product is the round or square recessed fitting, surface-mounted Ceiling and LED Surface fittings when you do not want to cut into the board, and continuous linear runs when the space is long and narrow.

Where there is generous ceiling height, in an industrial building converted into offices or an open-plan designer space, the answer is suspended linear lighting: it brings the fitting down to the working plane and keeps the upper area clear.

And when refurbishing an existing fluorescent installation, the most cost-effective option is almost always to keep the housing and replace each tube with its equivalent in T8 Glass LED Tubes. It is the quickest way to switch to LED lamps without building work and without touching the ceiling tiles.

Finally, a linear pendant light is the answer when the ceiling is high or when the interior design scheme wants the luminaire to be seen. At that point the fitting is no longer just a technical component and becomes part of the room's design.

In terms of wattage, most suspended and recessed fittings range between 20W and 45W per point depending on format and height, with the classic panel's 20W as the mental benchmark for most installers. We prefer to talk about useful luminous flux on the working plane, which is what really determines how many fittings are needed.

Each of these families has its own page and its own datasheet. What this project calls for is choosing the right luminaires for each space, not putting the same one everywhere.

The best office lighting at business prices

This is where FactorLED stands apart from a generalist distributor.

We work with trade pricing: you activate your business account, volume-based tiers are applied and you buy at the same level as a wholesaler, with no intermediaries. It is the argument that carries most weight when the lighting system for an entire floor is decided on cost per installed point.

We manufacture a large part of the range, with Osram and Bridgelux chips and Philips CertaDrive drivers depending on the series. That means continuity: if in two years you need to replace a part from the same line, it will be available, and in the same tone. For office maintenance, that is worth more than a one-off saving.

For a well-designed installation, before you order we can run a DIALux calculation on your floor plan: we send you back the fitting layout, the levels per area and the expected consumption. That way the order matches the calculation and you are not left with surplus boxes.

Shipping is fast and the exact cost appears in the basket, based on weight, volume and zone, before you confirm the order. For project orders, the usual route is to speak directly with our sales team on 91 805 67 67.

We have been a manufacturer and distributor since 2015, based in Pinto (Madrid). If you are weighing up the right lighting for an entire floor, send us the square metres and the ceiling height and we will prepare an office lighting proposal with your pricing applied. We have spent years delivering projects of this kind at every scale, from a three-desk office to an entire floor.

Office lighting FAQs

What lux level does an office need?

For screen work, the design range is between 500 and 750 lux (according to European standard EN 12464‑1) on the working plane, depending on the task. Corridors and storerooms need considerably less, and meeting rooms are best left dimmable.

How many fittings are needed per square metre?

It depends on the ceiling height, the flux of each fitting and the reflectance of walls and floor, so there is no fixed rule. With your floor plan we calculate it in DIALux and give you the exact layout of light points.

Why do you place so much emphasis on UGR?

Because it is what decides whether the result delivers higher productivity or ends up causing discomfort, and you will not see it in the catalogue unless you look for it. Two products with the same flux can give a completely different experience at the desk.

What type of light works best on an open-plan floor?

Even, mid-range white light, with the same tone across the whole field of view and zone control so the level can be adjusted according to the daylight coming in. On an open-plan floor, uniformity matters more than power.

Can you supply a large project all at once?

Yes. We manufacture a large part of the range and keep stock of the project series, so we can supply volume and guarantee later replacements in the same tone and the same finish.

How do I activate trade pricing?

You apply for a business account on the website with your company tax details. Once it is activated, the prices in your profile are trade prices and volume tiers are applied automatically.

Do you offer dropshipping for resellers?

Yes, we work with resellers and wholesalers. Ask our sales team and we will explain the conditions for blind shipping and the volume tier that applies to you.

If your project is under way, send us the floor plan and the ceiling height. We will send back the calculation by area and the equipment your office lighting requires, with your account pricing already applied.