Optimising offices for a safe return to work

Whilst a full return to the office may not be imminent, we now have an ideal opportunity to address the air quality issues inside our buildings.

Instead of continuing with business as usual, we can use this gift of time to come back better and create healthier workplaces for employees.

What's causing poor indoor air quality?

Modern buildings are designed to be airtight. This is a must if the industry is to lower its carbon footprint but it can lead to some unintentional problems.

A lack of ventilation in an airtight building will mean the indoor environment quickly becomes stale and stuffy. This build-up of excess moisture and CO2 can result in illness and the growth of mould in the building. Air conditioning, or the lack of, similarly allows for an increase in humidity as well as leaving unfiltered particles suspended in the air.

There are also many pollutants which are generated from inside the workplace itself. Cleaning products, solvents, dust, carpet fibres, photocopy residues and building materials, otherwise known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), create quite an unhealthy cocktail of contaminants which eventually filter throughout the office.

Risks to health and wellbeing

Breathing in the pollution found outside can have disastrous effects on our health, yet often we fail to recognise when we're suffering the effects of indoor air pollution.

"Sick Building Syndrome" is a phenomenon which is increasing amongst office employees, and involves a collection of symptoms related to a certain building. Dry or itchy eyes, throat and skin, headaches, lethargy and irritability are all commonly reported symptoms which increase in severity whilst in the office and improve or disappear when away.

Although Sick Building Syndrome is still poorly understood, physical and environmental factors such as ventilation and cleaning products have all been linked to the experienced symptoms.

As mentioned, a poorly ventilated office means a subsequent increase in CO2 levels. Worryingly, research is suggesting that levels as low as 1,000 parts per million can result in health problems and poor cognitive functioning even if exposed for only a few hours.

There is also research to link indoor air quality (IAQ) to productivity at work. A YouGov survey commissioned by the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) found that almost 70% of office workers believed poor air quality had a negative impact on their day-to-day productivity. 68% of these experienced lapses in concentration whilst 67% reported suffering from fatigue whilst at work.

Of course, we now have the added risk of COVID-19 which some scientists suspect can be transmitted through the air, creating another air quality issue which must be tackled for the sake of employee health.

Read more about preparing your air-con systems to beat COVID-19

Read more about Optiming offices for a safe return to work