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Indoor Environmental Quality: The Importance of IEQ

The document discusses Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) and its importance in building design. IEQ refers to factors like air quality, lighting, acoustics, and thermal comfort that impact occupant health and satisfaction. Good IEQ is linked to increased productivity, reduced absenteeism, and other benefits. Key factors discussed include access to natural light, indoor air quality, acoustics, artificial lighting, thermal comfort, and giving occupants control. The Herman Miller SQA building is provided as a case study that achieved significant energy savings and productivity increases through its IEQ-focused design.

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102 views

Indoor Environmental Quality: The Importance of IEQ

The document discusses Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) and its importance in building design. IEQ refers to factors like air quality, lighting, acoustics, and thermal comfort that impact occupant health and satisfaction. Good IEQ is linked to increased productivity, reduced absenteeism, and other benefits. Key factors discussed include access to natural light, indoor air quality, acoustics, artificial lighting, thermal comfort, and giving occupants control. The Herman Miller SQA building is provided as a case study that achieved significant energy savings and productivity increases through its IEQ-focused design.

Uploaded by

Eber Amadeus
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Indoor Environmental Quality

Indoor Environmental Quality


(IEQ) is any factor of the built
environment that impacts the health
and/or comfort of building
occupants.

Significant studies and reports


addressing the benefits of good
indoor environmental quality include:

According to the Environmental

A study titled Greening the Building and


the Bottom Line completed by the
Rocky Mountain Institute showed:
Productivity increases up to 15%.
Decreased absenteeism up to 25%.
Increased sales in the daylit portion
of WalMarts Eco-Mart in Lawrence,
KS
This report is included at the back of
this section.

Protection Agencys Indoor Air Quality


Program:

An article titled, Do Green Buildings

For example:
Glare on computers
Acoustics
Air quality
Access to natural light

The Importance of IEQ

Indoor air is often more polluted than


outdoor air, sometimes as much as
25% more polluted, and occasionally
more than 100 times as much.
Americans spend approximately 90%
of their time indoors.
Sick Building Syndrome - 30% of new
& renovated buildings.
Lost productivity costs billions of
dollars annually.
Indoor air pollution is one of the top
five public health risks.

Potential Benefits of IEQ

The quality of the indoor


environment can significantly impact
building occupants. Quality indoor
environments can result in:
Increased occupant satisfaction
Enhanced performance/productivity
Reduced absenteeism
Marketing advantage
Reduced liability
Lower operations and maintenance
costs

California Sustainable
Design Training

Enhance the Well Being of Workers? Yes

that appeared in the July/August 2000 issue of EBN


Magazine, addressed the impact of the built
environment on physical, psychological, social, and
neurological-cognitive well-being of building
occupants.
Pacific Gas & Electric has a Daylighting Initiative
that has produced several significant studies
regarding the impacts of natural light on building
occupants. The studies include:

Daylighting in Schools
Daylighting and Retail Sales

Buildings that provide access to


natural light facilitate increased
retail sales and, in the case of
schools, improved student test
scores!

IEQ Factors
The factors that define indoor
environmental quality should be
considered integrated components;
the qualities of one factor
significantly affect those of another.
For example, the decision to place a
window can affect each of the
following factors, with results that

5.1

Indoor Environmental Quality


may not coincide with design intent.
The caveat is that every IEQ decision
should be regarded as having
potential positive or negative
consequences in each of the
following:

Notes:

Access to natural light


Artificial lighting
Connection to the outdoors
Acoustics
Thermal comfort
Occupant control
Air quality

Access to natural light / Connection


to the outdoors.
Exposure to natural light is very
important to human health.
Daylighting throughout the year
helps building occupants maintain
bio-rhythms that mesh with diurnal
and seasonal changes, resulting in
greater well-being.
Areas with natural light tend to
be gathering places. Both indoor
and outdoor relaxation areas with
vegetation and views are likely to
enhance social interactions and
sense of belonging.
According to the a White Paper
written by Andersen Windows
Advanced Design Research Group,
group behavior studies repeatedly
show that given a choice of
occupancy, 75% of people prefer
to work in areas illuminated by
natural light.
Daylighting Resources include:

5.2

California Sustainable
Design Training

Indoor Environmental Quality


The Daylighting Section of the Whole
Building Design Guide.

Acoustics
Few factors play as profound an
effect on environmental
quality as sound
characteristics.
Poor acoustical qualities in a work or
school environment results in
increased stress and fatigue and also
hinders verbal communication.
Background noise levels should be
carefully monitored and regulated
with sound-dampening mechanisms
where necessary. Sound absorption
materials and acoustic barriers
should be used to provide privacy
where needed. Design consideration
should be used to place point
sources of sound (such as HVAC
compressors or fans) away from
areas where low acoustic levels are
critical.

Environmental Design & Construction, 2


1.
2.

part series on Daylighting:


September 1999: Energy and
Productivity Benefits
October 1999: Bringing Daylight
Deeper Into Buildings
Lawrence Berkeley Labs daylighing
guide: Tips for Daylighting with Windows

Artificial Lighting

With regard to the indoor


environment, artificial lighting
should:
Minimize glare on computer
terminals
Render appropriate color
Provide adequate occupant control
It is also noteworthy that:
Proper lighting increases productivity
Highly controllable IEQ element
Artificial lighting uses up to 50% of
all building energy
Artificial Lighting Resources
include:
The Lighting Research Center, part of
Rensselaer Polyttchnic Institutes
School of Architecture.

Thermal Comfort

Thermal comfort factors include:


Humidity
Temperature
Air Flow

The National Lighting Product Information


Program (NLPIP) is a non-profit,
independent effort to provide
manufacturer-specific performance
data on efficient lighting products.

California Sustainable
Design Training

5.3

Indoor Environmental Quality


There are many important reasons to
provide an environment that
has stable thermal comfort.
Careful control of temperature
and humidity not only makes
occupants more comfortable,
but also achieves significant
operating and maintenance
savings over the life of a
building. Furthermore,
thermally comfortable
buildings are more likely to
retain employees and
occupants, raising property
values and income.

Notes:

To help achieve this goal, several


published thermal comfort
standards are used:
ASHRAE 55-1992: Thermal

Environmental Conditions for Human


Occupancy, sets an 80% satisfaction
quota as a target for human comfort
Cal/OSHA Minimum Ventilation
Standard, Title 8, Sec. 5142
Title 24 Indoor Air Quality Standards

Resources on Thermal Comfort


include:
Innova AirTech Instruments,
Introduction to Thermal Comfort..

Occupant Control

Giving occupants control over some


aspect of the indoor environment
has shown:
Increased occupant satisfaction
Positive impact on occupant health
Increased productivity

5.4

California Sustainable
Design Training

Indoor Environmental Quality

Examples of components that may


be controlled by occupants include:
Operable windows
Thermostat controls
Air flow
Lighting

Resources on Occupant Control


include:
Environmental Satisfaction, Personal
Control and the Positive Correlation to
Increased Productivity, a white paper

written by Johnson Controls.

Center for the Built Environment studies:


Operable Windows and Thermal Comfort.
Giving Occupants What They Want:
Guidelines for Implementing Personal
Environmental Control in Your Building

Herman Miller SQA Case Study

Project Facts
290,000 square feet
McDonough & Partners designers
Manufacturing plant and office/
showroom
700 employees: 600 in the
manufacturing plant; 100 in offices
Occupied in 1996
18 Month start-to-completion
$49.00 per square foot

Sustainable Solutions
Daylit interior street
Daylighting, including:
Roof monitors
Skylights
Sloped glazing
Photo sensors
Outcomes/Benefits
Annual energy savings
estimated at: $35,000
On a square foot basis, as compared
to previous facility

The Herman Miller SQA (Simple,


Quick, Affordable) Building in
Zeeland, MI, is a fine example of the
potential benefits of a facility
designed with good indoor
environmental quality in mind.

Maximum use of daylighting

Overall increases in productivity of


0.22% in the 9 month period
following the move
On-time delivery increase from
98.54% to 99.53%
Product quality increased from
98.97% to 99.23%
Due to productivity increases, the
building essentially paid for
itself in less than 2 years!
Additional project information,
including photographs, can be
obtained from:
U.S. Green Building Council Herman Miller
SQA Case Study
Cornell University Herman Miller SQA
Headquarters Case Study

Project Goals
Occupant health, comfort, and
communication
Integration of exterior landscape
California Sustainable
Design Training

Natural gas costs decreased by 7%


Electrical costs decreased by 18%
Water and sewer costs decreased by 65%

5.5

This manual is being developed as part of a ten-point plan to implement the Governor's
sustainable building goal as outlined in Executive Order D-16-00 and the report Building Better
Buildings: A Blueprint for Sustainable State Facilities (Blueprint). Task 7 of the Blueprint calls for
developing sustainable building technical assistance and outreach tools, including a training
program for state departments, as well as local government and private sector partners. This
manual was developed by DGS, the Sustainable building task force, and CIWMB as one component
of the sustainable building training program for state departments. This document will be
undergoing constant revision as other deliverables outlined in the Blueprint are completed and
technological and process breakthroughs advance the rapidly emerging field of sustainable design.

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