What an enlightening meeting we had recently with our security, civil engineering, store design, maintenance and real estate people. They wanted us to have background on the lighting upgrade in store parking lots. It all began about three years ago with our director of security, Brian Scanlon, assessing store sites for security and safety. He worked with a consultant as well as our own engineers, eventually becoming vice chairman of the security lighting committee of the Illuminating Engineering Society of America. The IES develops recognized standards for interior and exterior lighting in all kinds of residential and commercial facilities.
Some studies show that brighter lighting correlates to fewer incidents as well as fewer accidents.
So the IES recently published new guidelines for more safe and secure sites. Brian went to lighting school, looked at other retailer s practices and reviewed research. For instance, Renssalaer Polytechnic Institute has studied comfortable lighting levels for women and men. Women need almost twice as much light as men to feel secure. The ideal is like that on a sunny, cloudless day.