Warehouse lighting installation and power for San Antonio distribution buildings

Lay out the lighting to the racking

Warehouse lighting is laid out to the racking plan, not to an empty floor. Fixtures over the aisles light the rack faces where people pick, and fixtures over open floor and staging areas are spaced for that work. When the racking plan changes after the fixtures go up, the light ends up over the tops of the racks.

• Fixture layout from the racking and floor plan
• Aisle, staging and dock areas lit for the work done there
• Mounting heights checked against sprinklers and clearances

Controls that dim empty aisles

The energy code calls for automatic controls in warehouses, and occupancy sensors in each aisle let a fixture run low or off until someone walks in. Daylight controls near skylights and dock doors reduce the light when the sun does the work. The controls are planned with the layout so each sensor sees the aisle it serves.

• Aisle occupancy sensors
• Daylight controls near skylights and doors
• Zones that match how the building is used

Retrofitting an occupied warehouse

Replacing old metal halide or fluorescent high bays in a running warehouse means working from a lift above product and traffic. We plan the sequence aisle by aisle with you, so each section is closed only while we work over it, and the old fixtures and lamps are removed and disposed of with the job.

Dock doors, levelers and conveyors

Each dock door operator, leveler and restraint needs power at the door, usually with a disconnect, and the equipment supplier's sheets set the voltage and the circuit size. Conveyors and sortation lines need their feeds and motor controls in place before the equipment is set, so the power is ready on the day it lands.

• Dock door, leveler and restraint circuits
• Conveyor feeds and motor controls
• Disconnects where the code requires them

Lift truck and fleet charging

Lift truck chargers often run together overnight, so the feeder and the panel are sized for all of them at once. Electric trucks for deliveries are a separate charging system with its own load study. Planning the charging area early keeps a feeder from being sized twice.

Code, permit and the utility

Inside the city limits the electrical permit goes through the City of San Antonio Development Services Department, under the 2023 National Electrical Code the city adopted effective May 1, 2025. Panels and disconnects need the working space NEC 110.26 requires, which pallets tend to take over. Where the service has to grow, the change is coordinated with CPS Energy.

What goes wrong, and how we prevent it

The usual problems are lights placed before the racking was final, chargers added to a panel that was already full, and working space in front of panels lost to storage. We work from the final racking plan, run the load calculation before chargers are added, and mark the clear space in front of every panel we install.