Reducing Glare to Reduce Fatal Occupational Injuries

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Reducing glare is a concern in many applications that require light towers.

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When lighting work sites near and adjacent to roadways, it is important to consider your lighting options, as lighting may cause glare issues with drivers. At special events, too much light can distract from the festivities at hand, and many municipalities are focused on reducing overall light pollution.

Construction industry fatalities rose 6 percent from 2015 to 2016, according to the 2016 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The construction industry again had the highest number of fatalities in all industries with 991 worker deaths. Of those, 35 percent of the deaths were classified as nighttime crashes. While increasing the light levels in a work zone tends to increase visibility for the workers, it also could increase glare for oncoming motorists. This can reduce visibility for motorists, which could prevent them from seeing workers and obstacles in the work zone.

To address these issues, contractors often use diffused lighting options. Directed light produces shadows and reflections. By comparison, diffused light produces uniform, soft lighting that illuminates the entire space and makes objects visible while reducing shadows or reflections.

For lighting flexibility, Generac Mobile Product offers diffuse lighting kits for all of its metal halide light towers. "Our new metal halide diffused light kits are extremely durable and simple, requiring no extra equipment to use," said Mike Goche, director of product management, Generac Mobile Products. "The biggest advantage of our new kit is that it adds life to a"

Light diffusers work by scattering and dispersing light, creating softer, less harsh lighting. When a fluorescent light bulb emits photons, the photons travel into the diffuser. Inside the diffuser, photons interact with atoms and molecules and their paths change as a result. Since the photons are all traveling in different directions when they leave the diffuser, they provide softer lighting.

Generac Mobile Products’ kits provide 360-degree lighting suitable for a variety of applications, from road construction to the oil patch to outdoor events, with coverage up to 160,000 sq. ft (14,864 m2). Kits are designed to install in about an hour, minimizing downtime and labor costs. All necessary installation hardware and wiring is included, and no welding is required. The kits can be towed immediately after installation and have a wind rating of 65 mph (105 kph).

For more information on diffuse metal halide kits visit Generac Mobile Products – Light Towers page.