Integrating ceiling tiles with lighting systems
Nick HarperIn today’s commercial interiors, lighting is about far more than visibility. It shapes how people feel, think, and behave in a space. But achieving the right effect is never just about the fitting. It’s about how that fitting integrates with the whole ceiling system.
Whether you’re designing a workplace, a hotel lobby, or a restaurant interior, aligning ceiling tiles with lighting systems unlocks a new level of visual impact, performance, and comfort. It’s where functionality meets atmosphere, and where Zentia’s integrated ceilings with lighting solutions come into their own.
Why integrate Ceiling Tiles with Lighting?
Integrating lighting into your ceiling system isn’t just about aesthetics (though the results can be stunning). It’s about performance, energy efficiency, and creating spaces that do more with less.
- Visual continuity – Clean lines. No distractions. A well-integrated system keeps your ceiling looking seamless, even when combining tiles, baffles, lighting and services.
- Energy savings – Integrated LED ceiling lights reduce energy use by up to 80% compared to traditional lighting. But to maximise those savings, they need to be positioned efficiently in relation to surfaces, especially your ceiling tiles.
- Improved light distribution – Tiles with high light reflectance can amplify your lighting system, reducing the number of fittings required while maintaining lux levels.
- Simplified installation – When your tiles and lights are designed to work together, there’s less rework, faster installation, and fewer on-site surprises.
Lighting Techniques That Work with Modern Ceilings
Recessed Lighting
Recessed fittings are ideal for achieving a clean, uncluttered look, which is especially helpful for office or hospitality projects. These integrate directly into grid ceilings or baffles, offering soft, even light with minimal glare.
Ambient and Indirect Lighting
In spaces where atmosphere really matters, like hotels or restaurants, ambient lighting can really change everything. Pair indirect lights with high-reflectance tiles and you can create a soft, comfortable glow that enhances mood without overpowering the space.
Track and Feature Lighting
Want to highlight a bar area or creative workspace? Track and feature lighting can be paired with baffles or even mesh ceiling systems to create bold visual statements with impact.
Tree or Cloud Scene LED Panels
Ceiling-integrated lighting is no longer just about function; it is about creating experience within a space. Tree and cloud scene LED panels, for example, offer a unique way to bring the outdoors in, transforming ceilings into vibrant focal points that inspire calm and creativity.
Designed to fit smoothly into suspended ceiling grids, these panels can mimic the openness of a bright sky or the soothing shade of leafy branches, making them ideal for workplaces, classrooms, and healthcare settings where well-being and focus are essential.
When paired with high-quality ceiling tiles, they deliver a sleek, unified finish that balances visual appeal with acoustic and thermal comfort, proving that ceilings can be as inspiring as they are practical.
Zentia Product Solutions
Oplia Triangle
Oplia Triangle suspended ceiling tiles are cut into an equilateral triangle shape, allowing designers to create dramatic geometries and intricate patterns that transform standard ceilings into architectural features. These tiles are ideal for creative offices, retail environments, and commercial spaces that demand visual impact.
When combined with integrated lighting, Oplia Triangle tiles can highlight geometric layouts, guide sightlines, or draw attention to key areas, turning the ceiling into both a functional and aesthetic statement. Their modular design also enables easy reconfiguration, giving spaces flexibility as design trends or business needs evolve.
Prestige
Prestige tiles offer a high light reflectance value of 88%, making them a top choice for energy-efficient lighting solutions in offices and commercial spaces. Integrated LED panels are commonly available in 600mmx600mm and 1200mmx600mm sizes, and therefore seamlessly integrate with Prestige tiles and Zentia’s Gridline suspension system, allowing spaces to achieve optimal brightness with fewer fittings.
For example, when Velux UK revamped its headquarters, Prestige was selected not only to improve ambient light levels but also to reduce energy consumption, demonstrating how thoughtfully designed ceilings can support sustainability goals while enhancing employee comfort.
The clean, smooth surface also complements minimalist interiors, providing a modern, professional aesthetic.
Sonify
With exposed soffits becoming increasingly popular in contemporary office and leisure design, Sonify provides both acoustic control and design flexibility. Its floating canopy and baffle systems can be combined with integrated lighting to create visually dynamic ceilings that soften sound, reduce echo, and enhance comfort.
Sonify’s versatility makes it suitable for open-plan offices, collaborative workspaces, gyms, and entertainment venues, where both mood and functional performance matter. Designers can experiment with baffle orientation, spacing, and colour to craft ceilings that are as expressive as they are practical.
DecoFrame/DecoMesh
DecoFrame and DecoMesh offer a perfect balance between revealing building services and maintaining a polished aesthetic. The mesh or framed panels allow light fittings to stand out, turning ceilings into layered visual features. These systems are ideal for co-working spaces, higher education facilities, or trendy hospitality venues where a raw, industrial look is desired without sacrificing structure or finish.
Beyond aesthetics, the open nature of DecoMesh makes maintenance and service access straightforward, providing a functional solution for busy environments. Lighting integrated with DecoMesh panels can create striking visual effects, highlighting textures, patterns, or movement in large spaces, while retaining the practical benefits of a suspended ceiling system.
Case Studies
Material Source Studio, Manchester (Oplia Triangle)
When Material Source Studio sought to enhance its meeting room with a ceiling solution that would push the boundaries of traditional ceiling tiles and encourage collaboration across its partners, Zentia in collaboration with MSS partner, Light Forms, stepped in to deliver a tailored solution.
Key features of the solution included bespoke lighting, designed in collaboration with Light Forms, which complemented the overall aesthetic and functionality of the raft system. The ceiling raft was tailored to align perfectly with the size and space of the table beneath it, ensuring a balanced and cohesive look.
At Velux’s newly extended UK & Ireland headquarters in Glenrothes, natural light and occupant wellbeing were top design priorities. To support this, over 1,100 m² of Zentia’s Prestige hA+ Tegular15 tiles were installed across open-plan office areas, offering 87% light reflectance, Class A acoustic performance, and excellent fire ratings.
The high-performance ceiling systems contributed to the project’s energy efficiency and visual clarity, complementing the engineered timber and steel structure designed by Sinclair Watt Architects.
“They met all the aesthetic, fire and acoustic performances,” said architect Iain Mitchell. Contractor Colin Burns added, “It looks good… gives a nice bright finish.” The result is a workspace that balances sustainability, practicality and style.
Bradford University (DecoMesh)
The refurbishment of the University of Bradford’s Student Central aimed to create a modern, comfortable hub for students to work, relax, and socialise. The contractors and architects needed a ceiling solution that was both cost-effective and visually appealing while concealing extensive services in the ceiling voids.
Zentia’s DecoMesh E15 ceiling tiles provided the perfect answer. Made from galvanised steel and available in various colours and mesh patterns, the tiles offered a contemporary look while allowing easy access to services above. Their durable, powder-coated finish ensured longevity, delivering a functional yet stylish solution that helped transform Student Central into a vibrant, energising space.
Custom linear lights were also integrated behind the DecoMesh panels, allowing light to travel through the mesh and create an industrial, modern environment.
Playsport Scotland, home to Scotland’s first full-motion VR Racing Centre, needed a ceiling that combined acoustic performance with striking visuals, including integrated lighting and a racetrack motif.
Zentia’s Sonify system delivered the solution, using canopy and baffle elements with custom-coloured Nexus baffles on a black grid. Their 3D Studio platform and on-site support ensured the ceiling met both aesthetic and acoustic requirements, enhancing the immersive racing experience and seamlessly integrating with striking spot and strip lighting
The University of Edinburgh refurbished its Level Three changing rooms at St Leonard’s Land, seeking a modern, vibrant space that was both visually striking and acoustically effective.
Zentia’s Sonify system provided the solution with custom canopies and baffles, visualised through their 3D Studio platform for efficient planning. As Adrian Cavaye, Senior Architectural Technologist, said, “The canopy colour, profile, shape and orientation options Zentia offer with its Sonify range… allow any number of different design solutions to the ceiling space.”
Custom linear lights were installed to frame the canopy, as well as being integrated amongst the rest of the hanging tiles. The result is a dynamic, acoustically comfortable environment that enhances the student experience.
Bradford College (Prestige, Sonify, DecoFrame)
Bradford College renovated a five-storey mill into a modern higher education centre, facing challenges with soffits, reduced suspension points, and strict acoustic requirements.
Zentia provided a tailored solution using a mix of Prestige, Sonify Baffles, Aruba, Oplia hA dB, and Arena tiles on a DecoFrame SL2 grid. The Oplia hA dB tiles offered superior sound absorption and 40 dB impact noise reduction, while Sonify Baffles created striking feature ceilings, combining functionality and design to enhance the learning environment.
The ceiling grid was used to support lighting installations where appropriate, and strip lighting added between the Sonify acoustic baffles to create an arresting directional effect. The DecoFrame Kit Canopies supported an integrated lighting installation, with lighting solutions incorporated directly into the ceiling panels.
Howdens Joinery (Prestige, DecoFrame)
Howdens Joinery Group’s new logistics hub at Warth Park, Northampton, required a ceiling solution that balanced sustainability, aesthetics, and acoustics, while using moisture-resistant finishes in staff areas.
Zentia’s Prestige hA+ tiles with DecoFrame Kit canopies created a contemporary floating ceiling beneath black soffits, aligning with the brand’s industrial aesthetic. Paul Jackson, Contract Director at Bespoke Construction Services, said, “The Zentia products gave a very clean and crisp finish to all areas,” highlighting the project’s success in combining style and functionality.
Lighting was integrated directly into the DecoFrame Kit Canopy installations, which also combined with some unique lighting designs that support the overall brand identity.
Design Considerations by Sector
Ceiling Lights in Office Design: Productivity and Comfort
Lighting isn’t just visual, it’s psychological. Poorly designed lighting can lower productivity, cause eye strain, and even affect mood. Integrating high-performance ceiling tiles with lighting solutions allows designers to balance brightness, glare control, and acoustic comfort.
For example, combining Oplia hA dB or Prestige tiles with recessed or panel lighting can create a uniform, well-distributed light that reduces shadows and enhances focus. Additionally, flexible ceiling grids make it easy to upgrade or reposition lights as office layouts change, ensuring long-term adaptability and maintaining a comfortable environment for employees.
Ceiling Lights for Hospitality: Ambience and Mood
In restaurants, hotels, and bars, lighting is a key part of the customer experience. It not only illuminates but sets the tone and evokes emotion. Subtle, indirect lighting paired with smooth Prestige tiles can create a warm, inviting atmosphere, while bold feature lighting integrated into Sonify baffles or DecoMesh ceilings can provide drama and focal points that impress guests.
Designers can also use layered lighting strategies, combining ceiling, wall, and accent lights, to guide movement through spaces and highlight architectural features, all while maintaining acoustic and aesthetic harmony.
Lighting for Leisure: Creativity and Immersion
Leisure environments, from gyms and theatres to cinemas, esports arenas, and VR centres, demand lighting that is both functional and experiential. Open ceiling designs using DecoMesh or Sonify systems allow for creative integration of spotlights, LED strips, and coloured lighting effects, generating rhythm and visual interest.
Dynamic lighting paired with these feature ceilings can amplify energy in a gym, enhance immersion in VR arenas, or create cinematic tension in entertainment venues. Moreover, acoustically treated tiles ensure that while spaces are visually stimulating, sound remains clear and controlled, contributing to a fully engaging experience.
Final Thoughts
When ceiling tiles and lighting systems are designed together, the result is more than the sum of its parts. It’s not just about drop ceiling tiles with lights or recessed lighting for ceiling tiles; it’s about unlocking new creative possibilities for every space and creating a comfortable environmental for all.
Whether you’re shaping the mood in a boutique hotel or maximising productivity in a corporate HQ, the ceiling is the canvas. And Zentia gives you the tools to make it work beautifully.
Want help designing a ceiling that works as hard as your lighting? Contact Zentia now for ceiling design consultancy and technical guidance.