CodeLumen: The future of lighting is high-tech and cost/time-saving direct supply chain solutions

Artificial lighting is effective in manipulating volume, distorting the perception of space, and even dramatizing the shapes and textures of materials. The quality of illumination is a key factor for those who seek overall comfort, health, productivity, and harmonious living surroundings. Given the importance of artificial lighting, why, then, is it rarely planned during the early stages of construction projects?

Artificial light helps us find our way in the dark of the night, pleasantly spend our evening reading a book, or it can create a special atmosphere at our favorite weekend dinner spot. In the process of construction, it is critical to creating a lighting plan which will take into consideration all the small details, for example, bringing light to blank spots in spaces that lack natural light or highlighting architectural details. It is also important to consider the technical requirements of the lighting and how it affects the overall cost of the project budget. But what makes some projects cost more and some less?

It's simple, let's dive into the process.

There are three essential factors required to create a successful and cost-efficient lighting project.

1) Professional Lighting Project Consulting Experience

In our previously published article, How Our Lighting Technology Transformed the Iconic Butler Brothers Building, we explain in detail the five simple steps required to create a haven of perfect lighting for a 90 million development.

• Defining a strategic goal and purpose of the lighting project
• Estimating the budget and final costs of the project
• Considering the psychological and emotional effects of your lighting design
• Finding the perfect fixture for every location with correct lighting output, color temperature, glare control, energy efficiency, and the right CRI
• Organizing seamless logistics, including delivering products on time

Throughout fifteen years of experience in the lighting business, the co-founder of CodeLumen, Julio Gabbert, decided to master and optimize every step of this process. His partner, Luis Medina, an ex-NASA electromagnetic engineer, dedicated his technical skills and experience to bring CodeLumen to the next level: from just a lighting company to a "one-stop-shop" for all lighting needs, including a unique lighting takeoff software and in-house lighting manufacturing.

Luis Medina and Julio Gabbert, CodeLumen Founders.

Our number one priority is to provide the best lighting service and save time and money for the client. Based on our experience, the following is a list of factors that can directly impact the cost and successful outcome of a lighting project:

• Project timing and construction deadlines
• Exaggerated markups by lighting fixture retailers and representatives
• Very detailed and stringent spec grade lighting specifications
• Energy-efficient requirements
• Location of the projects (Logistic Partners)
• Ease of installation of specified lighting fixtures
• Efficiency and experience of lighting providers
• Future maintenance costs

For example, our team recently completed an energy-efficient retrofit job for a Lear Corporation manufacturing plant. Our goal was to help Lear Corp. significantly reduce their energy and maintenance costs by replacing 250 outdated high-energy consumption fixtures (750 watts metal halide fixtures) with ultra-efficient 250 watt LED's high-bay fixtures. The lighting project saved Lear 80% in energy and maintenance costs attributed to lighting. Most importantly, the new LED fixtures provided 35% more light which positively impacted employees' productivity.

2) No Middleman - Direct Supply Chain Approach

Let's admit it, good and beautiful lighting fixtures usually come with a hefty price tag attached to it. The main reason can be attributed to the traditional supply chain model with up to four layers of heavy profit markups. Today, about 95% percent of US importers, wholesalers, and retailers operate under this outdated and costly business model.

The chart below describes the difference between the traditional supply chain model and the direct model adopted by CodeLumen.

Standard lighting products distribution model vs CodeLumen direct manufacture model

In today's digital age, world supply chains are much more efficient and connected. In addition, clients are much more knowledgeable and therefore demand better products at lower prices. At CodeLumen, we adopted the direct supply chain model with the goal of giving our customers access to great aesthetic and functional lighting products. This translates into directly manufactured products, no middleman, at significantly lower costs.

In recent years, our team has validated our supply chain model by successfully completing hundreds of residential and commercial lighting projects on a national scale. You can learn more about how we saved our client 50% and completed the project in less than ten days by reading our Popeyes case study. Also, discover how, with an extremely tight budget, we transformed an iconic historical building in Dallas into industrial loft apartments. In conclusion, the exclusion of the middleman allows us to offer our clients a great value on custom-made LED lighting solutions in a timely and cost-effective manner.

3) Advanced Technology

How does an NYC based lighting company work on projects worldwide and supply direct manufactured lighting goods? The answer is Creates AI Platform.

A platform designed to eliminate the hassle of lighting projects.

All the above does not work without the appropriate technology in place. Everyone who has experience working on lighting projects knows the hustle it takes to perform lighting takeoffs, fixture specifications, cross-references, energy efficiency compliances, installation instructions, logistics, just to name a few. A lighting project of any size involves lighting vendors, logistics companies, retailers, architects, electricians, builders, general contractors, etc. Therefore, technology is increasingly playing an important role in streamlining and facilitating the lighting process.

But what if we tell you that all this is possible:

• Keep all lighting specifications in one cloud-based storage which is available anytime from any device for everyone who is involved in the lighting project.
• Control your cost and see your lighting schedule anytime and anywhere.
• Easy shipment tracking.
• Efficiently install and manage the lighting project using the detailed floor plans of allocated lighting fixtures that are provided with every project.
• In one click, see all lighting fixture specifications with images and detailed technical characteristics.
• Easily collaborate with the team on the lighting project as well as add, remove, and exchange lighting fixtures from the lighting schedule.

Just to name a few.

Is it a dream tool that all lighting companies are looking for? Fortunately, our engineering team built a robust software, which saves time and increases efficiency during the entire lifecycle of a lighting project. Our user-friendly platform, Creates AI, allows our team to easily connect with clients to create, remove, change, and store all lighting specifications allocated throughout the floor plan while tracking the logistics and installation processes. Our users always have the project details at their fingertips, and the process is as simple as switching a light on.

In conclusion, there are three key factors that can help you save up to 50% on the cost and time of your lighting project:

1. Description of the main KPIs for your lighting project, considering the application, influence on ambiance or productivity of space, and maintenance cost.
2. Planning your lighting needs at an early stage of the construction process.
3. Choosing the right lighting provider—hire an experienced lighting professional, try to avoid as many middlemen as possible, and explore new technologies that can eliminate the hassle of lighting by streamlining the entire process from start to finish.

Looking for the perfect lighting for your space? Feel free to contact us at [email protected].