Ten tips: How to brighten up your office this winter
Did you know that lighting, both good and bad, can affect your wellbeing and productivity? The right office lighting can reduce stress and common health complaints such as headaches, neck and back pain and eye strain. Brighten up your workday during the darkest season of the year with our smart tips!
1. Choose LED lights. LED lighting is a good option for both the environment and your budget due to its long lifespan, environmental friendliness and low energy consumption.
2. Think blue. Cool blue lighting has a refreshing effect as it lowers the level of melatonin, the sleep-inducing hormone, in the body and makes you more energetic and efficient.
3. Place your desk lamp to the left of you if you are right-handed and to the right if you are left-handed. This prevents shadows forming over your workspace.
4. Choose ergonomic desk lights that can be adjusted. Desk lamps have a highly concentrated direct light, which is perfect when you want to light up a specific area.
5. Let your tasks dictate your choice of lighting. While working at the computer you generally need less light than when reading printed materials or working with small details.
6. Keep in mind that dark surfaces absorb light and bright surfaces reflect it. Therefore, rooms with dark décor usually need more light fittings. With screens and white surfaces, make sure that light fittings are not directed in a way that light will reflect off the surface into your eyes.
7. Mix directional light with general lighting to create soft and pleasant contrasts between light and shadow.
8. Turn out the light. Do you sometimes forget to turn out the light when you leave a room? A motion sensor is a good investment for the office. This will turn off the light when there’s no-one in the room, which can lead to considerable savings on your energy bills.
9. Keep in mind that if your office has high ceilings you will need light fittings with more powerful light distribution.
10. Make use of the daylight in your room. Natural daylight can be a huge boost to employee wellbeing and will also help you save on lighting costs.
