|
FROM THE EDITOR
It’s still shockingly common: You’re sitting in an educational session at a trade show and the presenter tells you: “…and because of our high-performance building initiatives, we expect a boost in productivity by as much as 20 percent.” Thankfully, convention-goers have gotten wise: There’s usually a plethora of hands that shoot up, or someone from the crowd simply shouts out, “How can you prove that?”
| SPONSORS |
|
Despite the skepticism, common sense dictates that at some level these claims — though maybe not as drastic as 20 percent — are correct. But how do you measure productivity? One way is to compare sick days in a new high-performance building with sick days or even health care costs in the previous, traditional building. Another way is occupant-satisfaction surveys – where you compare the before-and-after results.
But do either of these methods really measure productivity? In its most literal form, productivity is an input/output measure. And absentee rate or occupant satisfaction only tangentially measure productivity. But that’s okay — either of those numbers, or student test scores, or a reduction of nosocomial illnesses at health care facilities, or lost-time accidents at industrial facilities — are good proxy measurements for productivity.
What are some of the key aspects of a high-performance building that affect productivity? Many of the items fall under the umbrella of indoor environmental quality: Acoustics, lighting, indoor air, appropriate temperature, and more. There’s even a proven link between energy efficient buildings and occupant comfort — and of course, while comfortable occupants aren’t necessarily more productive ones, at the very least, they’re not less productive ones.
As always, I’m interested to hear from you – in what ways do you measure productivity in your high-performance buildings?
Cheers,
Greg Zimmerman, editor
HIGH-PERFORMANCE STRATEGIES
Wellness: Using Buildings To Support Human Health
A recent Building Operating Management cover story explains how, for a long time now, facilities focused on sustainability have included considerations of the impact of materials selection on the health of building occupants.
IN THE NEWS
ASHRAE Updates IAQ Standard
ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 62.1-2016, Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality, sets minimum ventilation rates and other requirements for commercial and institutional buildings.
|