For most businesses, upgrading commercial lighting has traditionally meant one thing: a large capital expenditure. New fixtures, installation labor, electrical work—the bill adds up quickly, and for many organizations, it lands in a budget category that gets deferred year after year.
Lighting as a Service (LaaS) changes that model entirely. And for the right kind of commercial client, it's a significantly smarter way to approach facility lighting.
What Is Lighting as a Service?
Lighting as a Service is a subscription-based model in which a business pays a predictable monthly fee—rather than a large upfront cost—that covers the design, installation, maintenance, and eventual upgrade of their commercial lighting system.
Under a LaaS agreement, the lighting equipment is owned and maintained by the service provider. The business gets the benefit of modern, high-performance LED lighting without the capital outlay, the procurement headaches, or the ongoing maintenance burden.
How It Works in Practice
The process is straightforward:
- LMS conducts a lighting assessment of your facility
- We design a lighting solution optimized for your space and usage patterns
- Equipment is installed—typically with no upfront cost to the business
- You pay a fixed monthly service fee that covers the system
- LMS handles all maintenance, repairs, and eventual upgrades over the term of the agreement
Who Benefits Most From LaaS?
Lighting as a Service is particularly well-suited for:
- Businesses with significant capital expenditure constraints or competing investment priorities
- Facilities with large footprints where a full lighting retrofit would represent a substantial one-time expense
- Organizations that value predictable operating costs over variable maintenance and repair expenses
- Properties that are leased rather than owned—where the tenant wants better lighting but can't justify a major capital investment in someone else's building
The Financial Logic
The question most clients ask first is: does it actually save money? For most commercial facilities, the answer is yes—or at worst, cost-neutral with significant non-financial benefits added in. Here's why:
- Modern LED lighting reduces energy consumption by 40-60% compared to older fluorescent or HID systems. That saving offsets a significant portion of the monthly service fee.
- Maintenance costs—bulb replacements, ballast failures, emergency service calls—are eliminated from the business's budget entirely.
- The business benefits from consistently high-performing lighting without degradation over time, since the service provider has an incentive to keep the system in top condition.
Capex vs. Opex: Why It Matters
For many businesses, moving a major expense from the capital budget to the operating budget is itself a meaningful benefit—regardless of the total cost. Operating expenses are often easier to approve, more flexible to manage, and don't compete with other capital projects for funding.
LaaS makes lighting an operating line item rather than a capital project. For CFOs and operations managers who've been deferring a lighting upgrade for years, that shift alone can move the decision forward.
Thinking About It for Your Facility?
LMS offers Lighting as a Service to commercial clients in Salt Lake City and across the Wasatch Front. It's not the right fit for every situation—but for many businesses, it's the smartest way to get the lighting upgrade they need without the financial friction that's been holding them back.
Contact LMS Lighting, Electrical & Signs at (801) 281-0401 or visit lmsles.com to ask whether LaaS makes sense for your facility. Free assessment included.