Dr Michelle Agha-Hossein Sustainability Engineer , BSRIA
Modern HVAC systems along with robust Building Management Systems provide the opportunity for building operators to have access to real-time data . This allows for better monitoring and control of indoor temperatures , air quality , heating , ventilation , air conditioning ( HVAC ) and lighting levels , before occupants even notice environmental conditions changing around them .
Are we doing enough to drive up the quality or our indoor spaces ? What are the next steps ?
It ’ s hardly a secret that people are the most important and the most expensive asset to any organisation . Essentially , this is due to the fact that employees need to be at their best to be most productive .
We are witnessing a rapidly growing interest in the UK construction industry for designing , delivering and maintaining healthy buildings , However , we need to call for faster actions . Healthy workplaces should be seen as a right for all and not a privilege for some .
In order to quantify the benefit of investing for better buildings , employers should identify any issues by tracking key metrics ( such as levels of sickness absence ), including reasons for absence and the direct / indirect costs . Most employers do not currently measure all of these on a regular basis , so without a clear picture of “ before ” and “ after ”, it can be difficult to assess what difference an initiative or investment has delivered .
A final salvo : wellbeing is the new bottom line : a well workplace is a right , not a privilege .
And : “ although sounds are but vibrations in the air which affect the ear ’ s auditory nerve , they can move the heart .”
References
1 PWC Research , The Rising Cost of Absence 2013
2
CIPD - Absence Management : Annual Survey Report 2015 ( The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development is a professional association for human resource management professionals .) 3
CIPD - Annual Survey Report – Absence Management 2015
4
CIPD - Recovery , rehabilitation and retention : Maintaining a productive workforce 2004
By Dr Michelle Agha-Hossein Sustainability Engineer , BSRIA
For more information , call + 44 ( 0 ) 1344 465 600 , email bsria @ bsria . co . uk or visit www . bsria . co . uk
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