IES FOOTCANDLE RECOMMENDATIONS

Finding the ideal recommended footcandles for your building.

The lighting authority or IES Footcandle Recommendations for lighting are an important measurement to understand and can optimize productivity, morale and comfort. For example the recommended Footcandles in movie theaters are far fewer than in a bio lab.

Skylights are an integral source for free natural lighting, whether its commercial, industrial, residential or any other type of skylight. In states like California and its quest for “Net-Zero,” many new buildings have mandated minimum quantities of skylights (i.e. 2-3% of the total square footage in industrial space).

There is a lot at stake especially in commercial space to get the lighting dialed in. Too little light and the task being performed becomes more difficult thus lowering productivity. Excessive lighting may cause discomfort and energy waste due to overheating if the Solar Heat Gain Coefficient is right.

Footcandles are the most common units of measurement used by lighting professionals. It can be measured by using a light reader and standing directly under the source. The amount of recommended Footcandles depends heavily on the activity or purpose of the space.

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IES FOOTCANDLE RECOMMENDATIONS


 

AssemblyFootcandles
  Rough easy seeing20-75
  Rough difficult seeing75-100
  Medium100-200
  Fine200-500
  Extra fine500-1000
  
Automobile Manufacturing 
  Final assembly, finishing, inspecting200
  Body & chassis assembly100
  Body parts manufacturing100
  Frame assembly50
  
Clothing Manufacturer 
  Receiving, storing, shipping20-50
  Pattern making, trimming50-100
  Shops, marking50-200
  Cutting, pressing100-500
  Sewing, inspection200-500
  
Food Service Facilities 
  Dining areas5-20
  Food displays30-100
  Kitchen50-100
  
Gymnasiums 
  Assemblies10
  General exercise and recreation30
  Exhibition, matches50
  
Hotels 
  Lobby, general lighting10-20
  Front desk50-100
  Reading and working areas20-50
  
Machine Shops 
  Rough bench20-50
  Medium bench, rough grinding50-100
  Fine bench work200-500
Material HandlingFootcandles
  Loading trucks10-20
  Picking stock, classifying20-50
  Wrapping, packing, labeling20-50
  
Offices 
  Accounting50-100
  Audio-visual areas20-50
  Conference areas20-70
  Corridors20
  Drafting50-200
  General and private offices50-100
  
Schools 
  Reading20-100
  Typing20-100
  Demonstrations100-200
  
Sheet Metal Work 
  General100
  Tin plate inspection, scribing100-200
  
Stores 
  Merchandising, serviced30-100
  Merchandising, self-serviced200
  
Warehousing, Storage 
  Rough bulky10-20
  Medium20
  Fine20-50
  
Welding 
  General20-50
  
Woodworking 
  Rough sawing, rough bench work20-50
  Sizing, sanding, medium bench work20-50
  Fine bench work, finishing50-100
  
Note: Footcandles over 200 require specialty lighting.

Case Study: Daylighting with Polycarbonate Skylights

DA 4 2800 2

The graph below shows the drastic improvement in lighting by switching from old fiberglass to polycarbonate skylights and smoke vents. Note: with the improved daylighting, the tenants were able to save significant money on energy costs.

To read the whole Case Study… Click Here

Light Study Graph