Very few electrical service contractors have found a way to work directly with their customers when upgrading indoor and outdoor lighting systems.

To quote an advertising slogan of many years ago, there’s an app for that. In this case, it’s augmented reality lighting design software that electrical service contractors can download for free. 

We believe that electrical service contractors could do their customers (and themselves) a big favor by getting acquainted with a free app that will enable them to visualize what a new configuration of lighting fixtures would look like and how it would illuminate an indoor or outdoor area.

The world is full of lighting long overdue for an upgrade. As might be expected, few customers are eager to become enmeshed in correcting even the worst cases. 

By using an augmented reality app for lighting design, however, ordinary service electricians familiar with their customers’ operations and facilities could easily show them solutions for their problems. 

Better yet, they would allow their customers to bypass the complicated process and considerable expense of engaging outside consultants, who begin by gathering facts service electricians already know.

The greatest benefit for customers relying on service electricians familiar with their properties is the ability to visualize layouts based on practical knowledge of their facilities and operations.

Using digital graphics to portray the finished appearance of a completed installation is hardly a new phenomenon. Residential remodeling contractors have used it for years. 

Today, homeowners rely on a growing number of do-it-yourself apps to accomplish the same thing. For several years, the “view in your room” feature in Amazon’s shopping app has enabled shoppers to use a smartphone camera to place and manipulate 3D catalog pictures of furniture pieces in a live image of a space.

A lighting design app can go a step further than merely showing how various fixtures will look once they are in place. It can also show how well they will illuminate the space.

To better understand some of the specifics of lighting design apps, we went to Kaitlin Burke, lead software engineer at Cooper Lighting Solutions, Peachtree City, Ga. Her company’s app is called Light ARchitect. The “AR” in the name is a nod to the app’s augmented reality capability.

We hope you agree with our assertion that most service electricians who are graduates of accredited apprenticeship programs should be capable of using a software app like Light ARchitect. With it they can deal directly with their commercial, industrial and institutional customers to help them select new and better fixtures for indoor or outdoor configurations.

Absolutely! Light ARchitect is a straightforward and easy-to-use application for electricians looking for a way to enhance the design experience. It’s quick to install to get started, and we have several online resources for users looking for more information.

We believe the competitive advantage in this direct-to-customer approach by well-trained service electricians rests in their firsthand knowledge of their customers’ organizations and operations. This unique understanding of what drives success in the day-to-day activities in their customers’ facilities puts them in an advantageous position to help their customers select smarter lighting solutions.

Service electricians can leverage this first-hand knowledge by using Light ARchitect to create and showcase lighting proposals. The app lets users visualize lighting in real time and in their customers’ facilities, creating a customized experience.

Loaded into an electrician’s mobile device, an AR app for lighting design might often be described as a “tool.” But it ranks higher than the most useful gadget in any electrician’s toolbox because it provides more than a means of doing work. Far better, it provides a means of winning work.

This is more than just a design tool, it’s also a powerful way to communicate. By helping customers visualize a lighting design in their own space, Light ARchitect goes beyond mere functionality and becomes a key tool in winning projects.

ArchiVIZ / stock.adobe.com