Modern Building Services

FEATURE INDOOR AIR QUALITY MODERN BUILDING SERVICES APRIL 2023 25 I n public-use buildings, many building services need to be rated, monitored, and audited to comply with various regulations, all to ensure good building performance and occupant safety. However, indoor air quality, isn’t one of those factors. From fire protection to energy efficiency, through to occupant access, food hygiene and water safety, there are numerous areas within a building that need constant and regular auditing to ensure the building services are performing as required. Despite clean air being critical to health, wellbeing and productivity, and having come out the other side of a pandemic, indoor air quality (IAQ) often remains an overlookedmatter. Arguably, it is only in recent years that air quality is being given the attention it deserves, largely down to COVID-19. For building managers and those who have a stake in building design and construction, clearly, there must be a continual focus on IAQ to avoid re-treading the same path. The monitoring and regulation of good IAQ should be a key focus for protecting the health and well-being of occupants. Indeed, as recently as February, Professor ChrisWhitty, England’s Chief Medical Officer, said monitoring indoor air quality should become standard practice in public spaces (The Guardian). For these reasons, much like how restaurants and takeaways have food hygiene ratings, Elta Group advocates that public-use buildings should follow suite and have ‘air hygiene ratings’. Why ‘air hygiene ratings’ are needed One of the key reasons why IAQ is often neglected is possibly down to air being something that is relatively intangible. Unlike food hygiene or fire safety, which can be seen, tested and dealt with, good (or bad) air quality has typically been a subjective matter. More and more evidence is becoming available that people are recognising the effects of air quality and how it impacts them in their day-to-day lives. Addressing concerns over the effects of bad indoor air quality within the workplace, 2,000 hybrid working employees were surveyed by market researchers Onepoll. 53 per cent of those asked said they were worried that poor ventilation and air quality would impact their general health and increase the risk of them catching a cold or flu. Meanwhile, poor IAQ has been linked to conditions such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) as well as increasing the risk of heart disease. ➜ David Millward , Group Product Manager at Elta Group, explains why having ‘air hygiene ratings’ is crucial to increasing productivity and wellbeing across the UK. Why we need move toward ‘ air hygiene ratings ’, and what needs to happen