Did you ever give the indoor air quality at your workplace, the gym, the restaurant, or the hotel a second thought? This petrie dish image, illustrates mould and bacterial growth taken from an office desktop we surveyed recently.
Pre pandemic, building regulations stated that everyone should get 10 litres of fresh air every second. Realistically the best way to ensure these regulations are adhered to is to rely on the building’s ventilation systems. Air change frequency, air temperature and humidity, can all be regulated but one that can’t be, is ensuring the air coming in is clean, fresh, and safe.
When considering indoor air quality, one must consider the source of pollutants both external and internally produced and how these pollutants, once they enter the building, interact with the building services; office layouts and the people using these buildings. Depending on where your building is situated, pollutants of concern will be particulate matter (PM), volatile organic compounds (VOC), CO2, CO, Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) many of which are generated by traffic. Bacteria, mould, and viruses, brought into the building both through ventilation systems, building fabric and people entering and interacting with the facilities.
Going forward to a post pandemic world, we will all be more aware of how important the indoor air quality is for us and our health. Understanding how your building interacts with such pollutants is the cornerstone of any effective remediation strategy and what we at CPA can assist with.