How much do LED Projectors cost and what factors affect the price?

If you’re reading this article, you probably like the idea of a projected solution for your factory but need some idea of how much this is going to cost. A projected floor marking solution may seem straight forward, I mean how simple an ask can that be right? There are a number of factors which affect the cost - by the end of this article you will know what affects the price of a projected floor marking solution and what you can do to keep the cost down.

Whenever we do a site survey for a projected floor marking solution, there are 5 key metrics we look for:

• Height of the projection (Where we are projecting from and to, this is normally measured as the Floor to Ceiling height)
• The existing lux level within the factory environment
• The number of colours being projected
• The actual colours (yes this makes a massive difference)
• Complexity of install
• For a crane projector, we also look for the maximum burden size and the maximum height it will be lifted to in normal use.

How does the height of the projection affect the cost of the projector?

The actual powerhouse behind the projected floor marking solution is the projector unit itself. This consists of the lamp unit and, depending on the power of the projector also reflects the size of the heat dissipator. The power of the projector unit is measured in watts and can vary from a 25W unit to a 300W unit, A typical factory with a projector sat at 4-6m with an average lux level of say 100 - may only need a simple 25W projector. As the height from which the floor marking increases - the size of the projector will also need to increase to compensate for loss of definition over distance.

Lux level - whats this all about?

Every factory environment has a lux level whether this is good or bad. A factory with a lot of natural light is likely to have a high lux level - we have measured some environments at over 800. The problem is at this level you are fighting natural light aka the sun, and the sun wins every time. A factory with a lower lux level, especially some of the newer high efficiency LED lighting can have a lux level as low as 25 - this is perfect for projecting floor markings.

In projected floor marking terminology, the actual lens is called a Gobo, this is the medium through which the light passes to create the image or sign. While it is possible to project an image of 4 colours - some colours are harder to project than others with yellow being the easiest and red being the most difficult. If you have a high lux level in your factory and/or you want to project your image from higher than optimum - You may be able to keep the projector costs down by choosing a yellow FLT warning sign rather than a red stop sign.

Complexity of the install. 

For many of our projects - the client’s engineering team have been able to supply a fused spur to the point where the floor markings are being projected, often they have gone on to actually install the projector themselves taking all the installation cost out of the project. For an installation mounted on a crane, this will involve getting specialists involved to install the projector. The method of detecting FLTs and MHEs to switchover the signage from say a walkway to a hazard symbol can make the difference between a successful integration and a failure. We offer a number of different systems for detecting FLTs, firstly can be a simple PIR detection system which detects the difference between an FLT and an operator. Our more complex systems offer a geolocation tag system on the vehicles to trigger the warning signs.

How does a crane projector affect the cost?

When we measure up for a crane, we have to factor in all of the above criteria, but we also need to factor in the size of the burden to be lifted and the maximum height it is lifted to. The reason for this is that if the burden is above a specific size and the burden is lifted to a specific height - then the projected marking will be blocked by the burden casting a shadow - to overcome this we install 2 projectors - one each side.

What other specifications do I need to look out for when buying a projected floor marking solution? 

Factors that are easily overlooked are the IP 65 water resistance, the projector’s integrated cooling system and modularity of the system.

The Clarity projector system is fully adaptable from a static warning sign to a fully interactive smart walkway. We also do not want to have to return to fix the projectors hence we use the Alis-tech projectors which, while these are not the cheapest products made in Italy, they also have been proved to be very reliable - any issues have been fixed without question. While some Chinese sourced projectors may save you money initially, the long term investment can be costly. Alis-Tech projectors also come with a 5 year warranty

So how much would 1 static LED projected image cost?

The average cost for a simple static or pulsing projected image with a 25W Projector is roughly £900 however this can increase to £1,300 depending on the colours used, the complexity of the image design, the height of the installation and the lux level.

For a more complex interactive Projected image system, this would involve an investment of around £1,300-2,500 per projector, as there is more complex wiring involved.

Obviously, there are many factors involved in working out a price for a projector, and each sites requirements are very different. Hopefully these figures have helped you understand how much these projectors could cost you to help you decide whether these would be a good fit for your factory.

If you are interested in getting a price for a projector in your factory, please contact us here. Or if you would like to find out more about our LED projectors, visit our learning centre here, and click on the projector tag to find all related articles.