Commercial lighting services keep offices, stores, warehouses, and parking lots usable after dark and during the day. STS Electric designs, retrofits, and repairs building lighting from 939 W North Ave #746. Call (773) 721-1111 to scope fixtures, controls, and a written plan.
This page is for business properties. Home fixture work stays on the LED lighting hub. Storefront and site security fixtures that are not a full building retrofit sit on security lighting installation. After-hours outages go to 24/7 emergency service.
What Commercial Lighting Services Include
A lighting job is not a lamp swap. We walk the space, note fixture types and circuit loads, and tell you what can change in place versus what needs new homeruns. You get a punch list and a fixture schedule, not a verbal walkthrough that disappears after we leave.
Typical scope:
- Interior LED retrofits of troffers, high-bays, and downlights
- New branch circuits for added fixtures, displays, or occupancy sensors
- Parking lot, facade, and loading-dock lighting
- Emergency lighting and EXIT signs, including battery checks
- Occupancy, vacancy, and daylight controls
- Driver, ballast, and wiring repairs on existing commercial gear
We pull Chicago Department of Buildings permits when the repair or new-circuit scope requires them. Code explainers live on the electrical codes hub. This page does not replace that hub.
LED Retrofits: Survey, After Hours, Drivers vs Ballasts
Most Chicago commercial lighting service work is a retrofit, not a ground-up design. Fluorescent troffers and metal-halide high-bays still sit over occupied floors. We survey what is there, then quote a kit, a fixture swap, or a new layout.
In a retrofit
- Count and photograph fixtures by room and circuit
- Check drivers versus remaining ballasts so we do not mix incompatible kits
- Confirm dimming and occupancy controls still work after the swap
- Stage after-hours or weekend work when the floor cannot go dark on a weekday
Quoted as a separate project
- New panels, service upgrades, and added homeruns for a remodel
- Architectural fixture packages specified by an interior designer
- Utility-side work
We will not invent a percent energy savings. The close-out shows fixture counts, lamp or driver types, and what it costs to finish remaining rooms.
Offices, Retail, Warehouses, and Parking Lots
Offices. Open floors, conference rooms, and after-hours HVAC lighting. Adding desks without adding circuits is the common failure. We check the panel and the reflected ceiling plan together.
Retail and showrooms. Display and track lighting, back-of-house, and seasonal load. We work around open hours when we can: early morning, after close, or a limited outage window.
Warehouses and light industrial. High-bay and low-bay lighting, dock doors, and task lights over lines. Thermal and voltage checks on the lighting feeders catch heat before a trip.
Parking lots and exteriors. Poles, wall packs, and facade lighting for lots, alleys, and loading areas. Dedicated outdoor circuits, GFCI, and timers for seasonal displays sit on exterior holiday lighting outlet installation. Ice-melt circuits stay on roof and gutter de-icing.
If you only need house fixtures, use the LED hub linked above. If you need a commercial lighting partner for stores plus emergency dispatch, this is the page.
Emergency Lighting and EXIT Signs
Emergency lighting and EXIT signs are life-safety gear, not decorative fixtures. We install, test, and replace them so a power loss still leaves a path out of the building.
Typical work:
- EXIT sign installation and replacement
- Battery backup units and remote heads
- Monthly or visit-based function tests written into the close-out
- Circuits that must stay on emergency power when a generator or inverter is on site
A full building electrical program, including thermal scans and panel torque, lives on commercial electrical maintenance. Lighting retrofits stay on this page so the two jobs do not get billed as one.
What to Have Ready Before We Arrive
A short intake beats a wasted lift rental.
- Address, suite, and who has keys or a lockbox
- Hours we can kill lighting or a lighting panel
- Fixture schedule or photos if you have them
- Whether work is interior only, parking lot only, or both
- Whether EXIT and emergency units are in this visit
Do not keep resetting a lighting breaker that trips at once. If you have smoke, sparks, or a dark floor after hours, call (773) 721-1111 as an emergency, not a retrofit slot.
Where We Dispatch
Trucks run from 939 W North Ave #746 across the North Side, the West Side, the Loop, and nearby Cook County. Typical commercial lighting jobs include River North and West Loop offices, Logan Square and Near West retail, industrial corridors, and close-in suburbs on the same ComEd network.
Booked commercial projects that are not lighting sit on commercial electrical services. Unplanned repairs after we make the site safe go to electrical repair service.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are commercial lighting services?
Commercial lighting services are the design, retrofit, installation, and repair of lighting in business buildings. That includes offices, stores, warehouses, parking lots, and emergency and EXIT gear. The goal is usable light, working controls, and a written close-out, not a one-lamp service call.
Do you handle LED retrofits for offices and stores?
Yes. Most jobs are retrofits of fluorescent or older HID fixtures. We survey counts, check drivers versus ballasts, and stage after-hours work when the floor cannot go dark. New circuits and panel work are quoted as projects, not buried in a per-fixture price.
Can you light parking lots and exteriors?
Yes. Poles, wall packs, and facade lighting are part of commercial lighting services. We check coverage, existing poles, and the lighting panel before we order gear. Seasonal display outlets and ice-melt circuits stay on their own service pages.
Do you install emergency and EXIT lighting?
Yes. We install, test, and replace EXIT signs and battery units. Life-safety lighting can sit on the same visit as a retrofit, or we can quote it on its own. A full electrical maintenance program is a separate page.
Is this page for homes?
No. House fixtures and fans stay on the LED lighting hub. This URL is for commercial lighting services. Mixing the two would split the queries this page already ranks for.
How is lighting different from electrical maintenance?
Lighting work changes fixtures, circuits, and controls. Maintenance inspects panels, devices, and life-safety on a schedule. You can have both. We will not roll a lighting retrofit into a maintenance fee without a written lighting scope.
Do you work after hours?
Yes, when the site needs it. Retail and offices often cannot kill lighting during open hours. Tell us night stocking, a mall lockbox, or a landlord who must approve panel work so the first visit is usable.
Request Commercial Lighting Work
STS Electric is a licensed, insured Chicago electrical contractor. For commercial lighting services, call (773) 721-1111. Dispatch and reporting run from 939 W North Ave #746.
Bring the address, hours, and fixture photos if you have them. We will tell you whether the first visit is a survey, a retrofit kickoff, or an emergency instead.
