Commercial lighting across south-east Melbourne and the CBD
Fluorescent battens that have been failing one at a time for two years, or a warehouse you cannot get a lift into during trading. On a commercial lighting job the fittings are the predictable cost. Access is the one that decides the quote.
- 5.0 from 216 Google reviews
- Registered Electrical Contractor REC 20101
- 25 years trading
Lighting is the largest electrical cost most sites can actually control
It runs every hour you trade, it is measurable, and it is the one line on the bill where a change shows up quickly.
- Fittings failing individually and being replaced reactively, month after month.
- Old fluorescent battens or metal halide high bays still running.
- Staff complaining about glare, flicker or eye strain in an office.
- Areas of a warehouse or car park that are genuinely too dark to work in safely.
- An energy bill where lighting is an obvious and growing line item.
- A retail space where the product does not look the way it should.
- Lighting levels that would not meet AS/NZS 1680 if anybody measured them.
- A fitout or refurbishment where the lighting needs designing rather than replacing.
What a commercial lighting upgrade actually covers
A like for like lamp swap and a relit space are different projects. We measure what you have before recommending either.
- A site walk-through to establish how the space is accessed, occupied and traded.
- Lighting levels assessed against what the space is actually used for.
- LED changeovers, whether retrofit lamps or full fitting replacement, costed both ways.
- High bay and warehouse lighting, including access equipment and traffic management.
- Office lighting designed for screen work rather than raw lux on a desk.
- Retail and hospitality lighting, including track, feature and display.
- Sensor, daylight and zone control so empty areas are not lit all day.
- Work staged out of trading hours where that is cheaper than closing the floor.
About Commercial lighting
Access decides the price, not the fittings
On a commercial lighting job the fittings are the predictable cost. Getting to them is the one that moves. A warehouse with fifteen metre ceilings needs a scissor lift, a traffic plan and frequently a shutdown, and that will comfortably exceed the cost of the lights themselves.
We quote around access and staging rather than per fitting, so you can see where the money actually goes and make an informed decision about whether a weekend shutdown is cheaper than working around your operation.
Lighting for the task, not for brightness
Interior lighting is designed against AS/NZS 1680, which sets levels for the task being performed rather than a general brightness. A warehouse aisle, a packing bench, a retail display and an office desk have genuinely different requirements.
That distinction matters commercially. Lighting an entire building to the level the most demanding task needs wastes money on both the installation and the running cost, and it is the most common fault in a lighting design done by someone selling fittings.
What we install
Office
Designed for screen work, which means controlling glare and reflection rather than maximising lux on the desk. Zoning and daylight control so the perimeter is not lit at full output on a bright day.
Warehouse and industrial
High bay LED changeovers, aisle lighting and task lighting at packing and assembly positions. Sensor control in areas that are occupied intermittently, which in a large warehouse is most of them.
Retail and hospitality
Track, feature and display lighting where the job is making product and food look the way it should. Ambient lighting that suits trading hours, with dimming where a venue changes character through the day.
Car parks and external
Lighting to the levels required for safe movement, with sensor and timer control so an empty car park is not lit at full output all night.
Retrofit or replace
LED retrofit lamps into sound existing fittings are cheaper up front and make sense where the fittings have life left. Full replacement gives better light distribution, better control and a warranty covering the whole assembly. We price both so the comparison is yours to make rather than ours to assert.
We quote the job in front of us
No rate card, because the honest number depends on things nobody can see from a website. Estimates are free.
03 9889 3341Not urgent? Send the details and we will come back to you within one business day.
Standards this work is held to
Interior lighting is designed against AS/NZS 1680, which sets illuminance for the task rather than a general brightness. That distinction matters commercially: a warehouse aisle, a packing bench and an office desk have genuinely different requirements, and lighting a whole building to the highest of them wastes money.
The honest way to price a changeover is around access. A warehouse with fifteen metre ceilings needs a scissor lift, a traffic plan and often a shutdown, and that will exceed the cost of the fittings. We quote it that way rather than per fitting, so you can see where the money actually goes and decide whether a weekend shutdown is cheaper than working around your operation.
How long it takes
- Site assessment
- Usually within the week. Free.
- Quote
- Two to three business days after the walk-through, priced around access and staging.
- Office changeover
- Typically out of hours, a floor at a time.
- Warehouse high bay
- Scheduled around access equipment and a shutdown window, often a weekend.
Rated 5.0 across 216 Google reviews
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Symon did a brilliant job replacing my bathroom fan. He quoted me $700 when another company quoted me over $2k for the same job! Symon was easy to communicate with, performed the job quickly and tidied up after himself. Would…
Aretha Peethamparam, Google review -
We recommend Simon unreservedly. Tired of overpriced superficial service and competency? Don’t look any further than Simon @ STL Electrical. And to boot, he’s a good guy. Simon will now be our go-to sparky.
Nigel Bird, Google review -
Highly recommend Simon and STL Electrical. One of our mains tripped during a freak thunderstorm resulting in no power to part of our kitchen (incl fridge) and internet. Simon was a lifesaver and kind enough to respond to an after…
Nat Chen, Google review
Commercial lighting questions we get asked
Retrofit LED lamps or replace the whole fitting?
Retrofit is cheaper up front and works where the fittings are sound. Replacement gives better light, better control and a warranty that covers the whole assembly. We price both so you can see the difference rather than take our word for it.
What is the payback on an LED changeover?
It depends far more on your hours of operation than on the fittings. A warehouse running two shifts pays it back quickly. An office lit forty hours a week takes considerably longer. We will not quote you a generic figure.
Can you work out of hours?
Yes, and for most retail and hospitality it is cheaper once you count lost trade. We tell you what the out-of-hours rate changes about the price before you commit.
Do you handle the access equipment?
Yes, including the traffic plan where a lift has to operate in an area that is still being used.
Can you improve lighting without a full changeover?
Sometimes. Re-zoning the switching, adding sensors, or relighting one problem area often does more than replacing everything. We will say so if that is the case.
Related
Talk to an electrician now
Fastest way to get an answer is the phone. It is answered 24 hours a day, seven days.
03 9889 3341Not urgent? Send the details and we will come back to you within one business day.