Building automation is preventive healthcare

Today, there is growing awareness that the quality of air we breathe has a significant impact on our health and productivity. Commercial buildings are becoming clean in order to maintain the health of the people who live, work and play in them.

- JAN ERIK PROCHNOW

Let’s have a closer look at why healthy air is so important and what can be done about it. It is a familiar phenomenon: The room is packed with people, and the longer the meeting, the less dynamic its participants. What is happening is that the CO2 exhaled by everyone reaches a concentration level that compromises people’s productivity.

There is science behind this. In a large project the productivity of students was tested for tasks that required different levels of involvement, under various exposures to CO2. The result of the research, published in 2012, found that even for simple tasks – such as listening and absorbing information – the performance of the students increased by a significant factor of 1.5, when the air quality was improved.

For tasks requir¬ing higher levels of involvements, such as taking initiative, the measured performance increased by a sheer factor of 10. Keep in mind that these high-value tasks are what make you stand out and advance your career, and are generally speaking what make a work¬force more productive.

Imagine a system that brings in exactly the amount of fresh air that is needed to make sure you stay productive! This is what we call demand-controlled ventilation.

Natural light from dusk to dawn decreases depression and improves mood, energy, alertness and productivity. Therefore, lighting systems that mimic the change of light temperature (colour) during the day are not just “nice to have” but a driver for productivity and occupants’ health.

Total automation