As can be seen from this image from BESA in 2016, the wellness and in particular indoor air quality was already gaining traction. Fast forward to 2021 and factor in the affects of Covid on peoples perception of returning to the office, we are reminded constantly of the myriad of solutions to put peoples minds at rest, but now in the wider area of improving wellness in commercial facilities.
Wellness Conversations increasing
Senior Managers in Property Developers, Property Managers, Facilities Business and Service providers are talking about this issue on a daily basis and what can be done to ensure the well being of building occupants.
To respond to businesses’ changing needs, facility managers and building owners are re-evaluating their workspaces to accommodate their plans for the return to work movement. But doing this safely and in a way that meets changing business objectives and needs means leveraging technology to incorporate the latest health and wellness solutions.
This article in Facility Executive Magazine sums up some of the challenges. What is clear is that an effective monitoring system needs to be installed to monitor key metrics, covering everything from Indoor Air Quality, natural and artificial light levels, volatile organic compounds, CO, CO2, occupancy levels etc.
This monitoring can be achieved with inobtrusive sensors that monitor all these issues from a single small ceiling mounted device which is inobtrusive and smoke detector sized .
Wellness can also be linked to Energy Consumption, especially as CO2 levels increase when there are more occupants - and visa versa. As occupancy changes then therefore so should the HVACR equipment being used not only at main plant level but also at floor level for local FCU control.
With boardrooms pushing for improvements in employee wellness, practicalities in being able to make instant and affordable changes to accomodate improvements aren't always practical. i.e. making wholesale changes to M&E equipment in a building or replacing older items of equipment.
This Video from the Well Building Institute explains more about the Well Buildings standards and the challenges ahead.
Whilst IoT sensors themselves can do a great job, they key is using that information in an open protocol system that can not only integrate with 3rd party BMS systems, but can potentially provide data to other competitors should the customer decide to change horses.
The pandemic has brought about many challenges, but it also presents an opportunity to replace old processes, and technologies with a better way. Through technology, companies can still provide a safe environment for their employees to be productive, innovative, and collaborative.
With 35% of companies still unsure when they’ll reopen, Businesses must begin planning now to chart a safe and productive return to a changing workplace. To help determine new protocols for managing facilities, employers and building managers are increasingly looking to technologies like (AI) and (IoT) to safeguard their workers and spaces.
This article is written by Enviro-Logik an open protocol IoT solutions provider that offers a specially developed M&E stand alone IoT system that fits any sized building and integrates with BMS systems to give connectivity where BMS don't have sensing capabilities. www.enviro-logik.co.uk