Ventilation for Offices and Education (Schools and Universities)Ventilation for Offices and Education (Schools and Universities)
Air quality is deeply connected to work performance and the right study environment, the savings and benefits in these areas go far beyond the space. Air filtration and ventilation are deeply connected to productive spaces.
It’s starting to seem obvious — ventilation and fresh air can be a highly effective solution for huge hidden costs and inefficiencies in our spaces of work and education. Productivity and learning are powered by oxygen. Productivity and learning are suffocated by pollutants, particulate matter and carbon dioxide. Air filtration takes out stale carbon dioxide saturated air and replenishes the space with fresh oxygen rich air.
Carbon dioxide levels and its effects on concentration and health (link to education section on this) are costing learning and work performance. Carbon dioxide levels have disastrous effects on attention span, productivity, and overall health — see headaches in sick building syndrome. The effects of which are just really coming to light, the cost on learning and workplace productivity is estimated to be priceless.
To get a really great flow of oxygen and to manage the high humidity of many people in one place — centralised ventilation is the solution. To keep carbon dioxide under 1000 ppm we need to ensure ventilation airflow to be at 7.5 L (When calculating ventilation in bathrooms we need to be slightly more intense at 15 L per second or more) per second per person. We can use this figure to calculate air changes per hour and to make sure that we get the right amount of fresh air to each person in the space.
Portable or demountable classrooms can easily be retrofitted with decentralised units — removing that (almost classic) portable classroom smell.
Whatever your office or school /university situation ventilation should be a high consideration. Not only for energy efficiency and savings in that area, but also the quality of the work that goes on in that space.