LED Lights for Convention Centers

Frequently Asked Questions

There’s a lot of options to choose from when it comes to buying convention center lights. Scroll through the list below or call (888) 423-3191 to speak with a lighting expert. We’ll do our best to support you in this process.

What Type of Lights Are Used in a Convention Center?

Convention centers typically use high bay lights. Ceiling heights are generally high, so the lights used are very powerful.

Is It Better to Flood a Convention Center with a Wide Beam Angle or to Use a More Narrow Beam?

We believe that wide beam angles would work better. Achieving the right foot candles, and then ensuring the light is balanced is easier with wide beam angles. However, there is a caveat here, if the ceilings are high, you will probably need to narrow the beams down so more of the light is on the flood and less on the walls.

Rather than worry about what beam angle to choose, we recommend you create a lighting plan first. The lighting plan software will define the best beam angle for you so you won’t have to guess.

What Is the Best Color Temperature to Use in a Convention Center?

We would recommend either 4000K or 5000K. 5000K is the most commonly used option.

What Light Level Is Needed in a Convention Center?

For the general hall, we would recommend at least 30 to 50 foot candles. But there are many other locations in a convention center, like meeting rooms (30 foot candles), corridors and hallways. The best choice depends on the use of the space.

Is It Better to Use Linear or UFO Fixtures in a Convention Center?

This is really a matter of choice, but one thing UFOs do better than linears is perform better at higher mounting heights. That’s because we can install optics on UFO fixtures to narrow down the beam so that the light can get down to the exhibition floor.

The best way to decide about this is to create a lighting plan based on your needs. We can model both UFO and linear styles but the report can help us discover the best options for you.

Do You Sell Domes to Block the Light from the Side View?

We do have acrylic dome options for many of our high bay fixtures.

Is It Better to Retrofit Existing Fixtures or to Use New Fixtures?

Unless there’s a need to keep the existing fixtures, new would be a better choice. However, if your exhibition hall uses expensive uplight fixtures, you can save considerably by retrofitting these fixtures to LED with our metal halide retrofit kits.

We Want to Avoid Shadows and Want a Very Uniform Light Coverage. How Can We Do This?

This is actually easy to accomplish through a lighting plan. A lighting plan will show you two important calculations: light levels (foot candles) and how well balanced the light is (average/mInimum footcandle ratio). By looking at this second calculation, you can make sure the lights provide balanced light without shadows.

Are Your Fixtures Compatible with Lighting Controls?

If your control systems work with a 0-10V or 1-10V dimming system, then yes, they are.

Do You Sell Fixtures That Change Color for Different Events?

We do, but these are offered on 2X2 and 2X4 panels lights.

Do Your Fixtures Come with Safety Cords to Prevent the Light from Falling?

Yes, we can provide safety cords for your installation.

Our Convention Center Gets Lots of Daylight. Can We Set the Lights to Dim When Not Needed?

Yes. Many of our lights are dimmable, so they can be adjusted to provide less light when not needed.

If We Install in Between Events Over Multiple Weeks, Will the Lighting Look Off?

It depends entirely on your existing lighting. If it is old and tired with worn out bulbs, the LED lights will look a lot brighter.

What's The Best LED Convention Center light?

The best way to determine what the best light is for your convention center is to create a Convention Center lighting plan.

A convention center lighting plan simulates your indoor area or outdoor parking lot. It places lights, either in existing locations or in new locations, and calculates how bright and well lit the conventions center floor will be. We can build a custom convention center lighting plan for Free.