Benefits of LED Lights for Construction Sites

While emergency lights and related forms of vehicle lights are most well-known for first responders like police officers and firefighters, these are not the full extent of their uses. Another common area where they’re often utilized is within construction sites, particularly those that happen to be on or near roads, highways and other areas where vehicles commonly travel.

At LED Equipped, we’re proud to not only offer a wide range of emergency vehicle LED lights and warning methods, but also to provide clients with a selection of LED work lights, spotlights, floodlights and more. Often intended for trucks and related construction vehicles or settings, these lights are ideal options for keeping the proper amounts of light present on the job site, even at night — and, just as importantly, for warning passing vehicles of the construction taking place. Here’s a broad primer on how these forms of LED lights work, why lighting is so important for construction projects, and your general options available in this realm.

A Primer on LED Lights

Within both the emergency and construction light fields, LED lights are considered the industry standard. This is because they’re known for their impressive lifespan, ability to withstand impact, resistance to temperature extremes and other useful traits. As an added bonus, they can also help save on energy costs via their reduced power usage over traditional incandescent lamps that are still the hallmark of standard vehicle lighting.

LED work lights are often installed onto equipment used in underground metro construction, large scale mining operations and other settings where illumination is needed regardless of the time of day. They’re also utilized by workers who need to travel through dangerous areas, such as those with limited or no lighting at all. Construction vehicles working near roads typically make use of warning lights to communicate to others on or around them, both during the night and day.

Why Lighting is Vital on Construction Sites

No matter your construction location or the scope of the project, proper lighting is vital. This is because without it, work simply cannot be carried out as needed — which is why the use of warning lights within this setting is so important.

On large projects, where conditions are typically poor due to weather or other elements that hinder visibility, vehicle lighting can make all the difference in keeping workers safe and allowing them to continue working as needed. This is especially true on projects taking place at night, where the presence of vehicle lighting allows for those involved to see what’s happening around them and avoid accidents or collisions that might have been caused by poor visibility under other circumstances.

In addition, the use of vehicle LED warning lights within this setting can help protect your site from looters as well, who will likely avoid the area if they feel it’s well-lit, making it less inviting to them.

Finally, if you’re a lead contractor or manager of a construction site, proper lighting will help you avoid liability in the event of an accident. This is especially important given the complexities surrounding these kinds of projects, which can lead to plenty of hazards that aren’t easily detected in some cases — if they’re detected at all. By installing vehicle lights at your construction site, you’ll be able to increase your safety protocols while simultaneously protecting yourself from lawsuits or other negative incidents caused by neglecting to install proper lighting.

Roadside Project Lighting

One particular form of construction that deserves its own section here is roadside construction, which takes on the added challenge of passing vehicles, including many cases where said vehicles need to be redirected or otherwise manipulated in some way. The best option for carrying out this work is to make use of vehicle LED lights that can be easily aimed at drivers, warning them when necessary and directing them to continue in their current direction or take whatever alternative path has been set up.

These lights aren’t just vital for drivers — they’re important for workers on your site, as well. They allow them to see at night, without having to wear more cumbersome safety gear like headlamps which can impair their vision of oncoming traffic.

In fact, did you know that this theme even extends to some buildings or structures? That’s right — many structures that are within a certain close proximity to a road will be required to have some kind of strobe or flashing lights to ensure drivers don’t run into them.

Factors to Consider When Purchasing Construction LED Lights

What should you be factoring in when you’re organizing your construction light setup and purchasing any missing items? Here are a few variables:

• Brightness: The first thing to consider, obviously, is how bright the lights are. When you’re working with construction workers at night (and sometimes even during the day), this can be vital in ensuring they’re able to see well enough and avoid potential hazards. At the same time, you’ll want to make sure that your workers aren’t blinded by overly bright lights, as they could end up hurting their eyes.
• Construction Site Coverage: You should also be thinking about how much area you’re going to need covered when choosing construction LED lights. If you have a small site with a handful of rudimentary tasks to complete, one quadruple-head LED light bar should be able to cover the entire area and provide you with all the light you need. But if your site is larger and more complex, you’ll want to make sure whatever vehicle lights or construction lights you choose will be sufficient for the job at hand — meaning they’ll need to cover a lot more area.
• Orientation: This is another big one to consider, particularly if you’re installing work lights on your vehicles. What kind of orientation does each light have? If they happen to be outfitted with dual-beam headlights, for example, this means that the majority of their light will shine directly in front of the vehicle. On the other hand, if you’re looking for light that shines at a 135-degree angle or even wider, this means their light will shine out to the sides to help increase visibility.
• Ease of Installation: Finally, make sure you choose construction LED lights that are easy to install. If they require special wiring or installation procedures, it’s going to take longer for you to get them up and running, which may prove problematic in the case of emergencies or other incidents where you need light fast.

Options for Construction Light Formats

There are several different options you have available when it comes to the actual format of construction light(s) you purchase. Here are some of the most common options, plus a few words on each of them:

• Visor lights: These are larger lights which can be attached to the visor of an emergency vehicle, allowing it to project light out directly in front. The best part? Because they’re so simple, they don’t require any wiring or installation modifications — just pull them out and stick them on the visor!
• Light bars: These are perhaps the most common type of construction LED lights. They’re long and thin, typically made out of either aluminum or plastic alloy, and feature several different light heads (typically anywhere from 4-12) which can be arranged in different patterns to help create the desired coverage area.
• Grill lights: Grill lights are a bit more complex, as they require you to remove the vehicle’s grill and then install them in their place. They’re not truly “lights” as such, as they don’t actually work by projecting light out towards oncoming vehicles or workers. Instead, these construction LED bars work by shining them at the ground so that those working in the vicinity are able to see well enough.
• Work lights: These are by far the simplest and most straightforward of all construction LED lights, as they can be mounted directly onto heavy equipment like cranes and bulldozers. Because they don’t require installation and instead get mounted directly on the equipment itself, you can expect them to last a lot longer.
• Running board lights: For trucks with steps, you can mount construction LED lights underneath the steps so that they shine directly onto the ground. This helps to reduce shadows and blind spots, making it easier for workers to see what’s around them.

For more on the various construction lighting options available to you, or for information on any of our emergency LED lights or other products, contact the pros at LED Equipped today.