Case Studies: Diamond Vogel Tulsa, Oklahoma

Dialight brightens Diamond Vogel’s paint operation and lightens the load on maintenance.

Now a fourth-generation family-owned business, Diamond Vogel is the midwestern leader in paints and coatings for architectural, industrial, wood, farm and fleet, traffic and aerosol applications.

With a commitment to innovation that’s kept the company thriving since 1926, the company operates seven manufacturing facilities and 63 service centers.

At its Tulsa, OK paint mixing facility, the company produces thousands of gallons of paint and coatings, combining powdered pigments, proprietary coating formulas and other raw materials to produce its long-lasting, high-quality products.

Conventional Fixtures Couldn’t Cut It

Because of the potential for airborne particles and fumes, the facility is a Class I Div 2 hazardous environment, which imposes strict requirements on the type of fixtures that could be used safely inside. Not only must they be hazardous certified, but heat is also a concern, as temperatures routinely reach 110° F under the scorching midwestern sun. At those high temperatures, virtually any conventional fixture would be hard-pressed to survive.

Production supervisor Alton Wells not only runs the day to day operations, he’s also the de facto maintenance man for the 27,500 square foot facility. For most of the last 19 years of his career, the Tulsa facility was lit with banks of 300W incandescent lights— roughly 10 banks of 6 fixtures each. Under the grueling heat, the fixtures failed frequently, not to mention emitted poor quality light when they did work.

This was a serious concern, considering that poor lighting is the leading cause of slip, trip and fall incidents, which are some of the most common causes of workplace injuries. And, data shows that improving overall illumination in a facility can reduce accident rates by as much as 60%. While accidents weren’t a major problem for Diamond Vogel, Wells recognized the opportunity to lower the risk even further, while also reducing the maintenance demand.

“We dealt with a lot of shadows because of the poor quality of the incandescents, which made it difficult to make precise measurements of raw materials in our manufacturing process. It was hard to see the markings on the containers,” Wells said. “Plus, lights were constantly popping off in the summer months due to the heat, and with 12-15 bolts holding each fixture together, it took a long time just to change one light bulb.”

Complicating matters, most of the lights were positioned directly over raw material storage—about 25 feet high. That meant accessing fixtures with burned out bulbs was practically impossible most of the time, leaving no choice but to wait until so many lights were out that it forced Wells to bite the bullet and replace lights. In the summer, this could become a monthly routine.

Egress lighting was also lacking. The facility did have the OSHA-required emergency lighting and exit signs over each exterior door but getting safely to that door could be a challenge. With power outages a relatively frequent occurrence, thanks to notoriously powerful Oklahoma thunderstorms, safe backup lighting was a concern. Wells had installed backup battery lights over three doors, but this required monthly testing of each fixture and replacement of the very expensive batteries in each system every 3 years.