31/10/2024 – NoticiasClave.net
Data from the World Health Organization indicates that most people spend up to 90% of their time indoors, whether at home, in the office or in other public and private environments.
To improve our well-being indoors, the European Parliament has recently reviewed the energy efficiency of buildings directive (EPBD), which now also includes a healthy indoor climate (IAQ) as a priority, so it is advisable to implement solutions that facilitate its control .
From pollen to air pollution, indoor air pollutants can affect anyone, with harmful effects including seasonal flu, las allergies or the asma and symptoms such as cough, headache and lack of concentration.
Johnson Controls (NYSE: JCI), an international leader in smart, healthy and sustainable buildings, points out five keys to improving air quality and well-being in the office through technology:
–Ventilation. There is a direct correlation between occupancy, air quality and sustainability. People breathe an average of 20,000 times a day, so ventilation rates must be adapted to the number of people in each room or building. With a measurable and adaptive HVAC strategy that controls ventilation based on carbon dioxide (CO2) levels, ventilation rates can be adjusted as CO2 increases or decreases according to occupancy, saving energy and improving the quality of the environment.
–Temperature and humidity. It is also crucial to control the temperature and humidity levels within the building. When humidity is too low, it can cause itchy skin and eyes and rashes. When it is too high, it can worsen asthma and allergy symptoms and facilitate mold growth. Using an IAQ system, IoT sensors and building management software together, temperature and humidity are adjusted based on each need.
–Filtration. While ventilation helps reduce CO levels2an air filtration system can remove viruses and airborne particles. With the latest clean air technologies, more than 99% of airborne pathogens are captured before they enter the building atmosphere.
–Disinfection. The air passing through the vents must also be disinfected to ensure it is clean and safe to breathe, using methods such as ultraviolet radiation disinfection whose ionizing effects kill most bacteria.
–Monitoring. Faulty or malfunctioning equipment can mean the difference between building occupants breathing clean air or unhealthy air. By integrating clean air technology and monitoring solutions, companies can constantly analyze their performance to stay on top of maintenance as well as make improvements to their strategy. Monitoring with intelligent control technologies also makes it possible to predict the levels of use of spaces to reduce energy consumption.
A constant flow of clean air not only improves well-being in the office, it can increase productivity by up to 11% according to the World Green Building Council. As Andrea Vallejo, vice president and general manager of Johnson Controls for Southern Europe, points out, “Buildings are dynamic systems that change according to the climate, their occupancy and use. QOffice owners and managers have a double mission: to improve the operational efficiency and sustainability of critical systems —lighting, HVAC and energy— to reduce energy consumption and CO emissions2 and in turn make the spaces healthier for their occupants”.