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Air Quality Is More Important Than Ever: Equipment and Regulations in the Fight Against COVID-19

COVID-19 highlighted the need to accurately monitor indoor air in response to the virus, rising air pollution and respiratory issues. Many building executives find new technologies to better respond to the virus and increase occupant peace of mind.
By John Bohlmann
March 26, 2021
Topics
Legal and Regulatory
Equipment

Although air quality is one of the leading causes of public health concerns since the industrial revolution, policy measures and regulations set to combat it seem to be a step behind. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need to accurately monitor indoor air in response to the virus, rising air pollution and respiratory issues. Many building executives are finding new technologies are enabling them to better respond to the virus and increase occupant peace of mind.

More than ever, there is a need for indoor air to be well-circulated in residential and commercial buildings to prevent conditions that allow bacteria and viruses to thrive. Good indoor air quality may be our most important asset to fight COVID-19 after washing our hands. A study in Naturestates increasing indoor ventilation can be as effective as vaccinating 50% of a building’s occupants. Employers are pressured to prioritize safety for the return to work, and construction executives can help meet that demand by being more air quality-minded for new spaces and existing buildings.

Smart solutions are critical to give occupants confidence in the air quality. Building executives are finding just how important it is to their occupants to install smart air quality monitoring systems. Let’s take a look at the equipment, regulations and recommendations which demonstrate the importance of air quality monitoring in the context of a world dealing with COVID-19.

Air Quality Filtration Systems in Buildings

According to the EPA, Americans spend roughly 90% of their time indoors, and this is not accounting for the inevitable increase since the start of the pandemic. This bears dire consequences: A Harvard study found air quality and productivity are directly related. Poor air quality increases the rate of sick leave and decreases productivity by 10%; in schools, students’ grades may fall up to a full letter grade due to polluted air.

Most building owners will be facing cutbacks in terms of facility funding this year, and so solutions must focus on bringing existing buildings to acceptable levels of air quality. Possible strategies include dilution ventilation, cleaning air ducts, filtration, ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) and other smart controls. To aid these strategies, building owners can install technology to track temperature, humidity, and CO2 levels. This inexpensive real-time monitoring utilizes the latest technologies for data access and sends direct alerts so that users can take appropriate steps to handle poor ambient air quality.

How COVID-19 Affects Sensitive Vertices in the Construction Industry

Hospitals and schools are examples of buildings in need of high-quality filtration systems, as exposure to air pollutants causes significantly more harm to children and those with underlying health conditions. The quality of these systems can be distinguished by having a high Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV), but there is an increasing realization that high filtration rates should be universally in place. The pandemic has also forced through the proliferation of other types of equipment. Improvements in ionization, effective in deactivating the virus, could prove crucial in protecting vulnerable groups and providing better air quality for all.

Regulations and Liability Issues for Building Owners

During the peak months of COVID-19, there have been strict regulations in the United States regarding mass cleaning of spaces, but air quality has been largely ignored. In terms of guidance for reopening buildings, owners were only pointed to OSHA standards, which are outdated and quite sparse on information. This is where the United States has some way to go to catch up to Europe, for example, where industry standards organizations such as the WELL certification have been successful.

Regardless, building owners can take matters into their own hands by completing a survey of the quality of their systems to ensure that they meet the standards set by ASHRAE and OSHA for indoor air quality. In addition, observing the building management system to produce reports on the quantities of air circulated around the building is key. That way, if stricter regulations are introduced, there is a degree of assurance that everything has been done to maintain standards.

Environmental Impact of the COVID-19 Response

Environmental issues have recently become a hot topic for the construction industry after an article from Bold Business outlined that the construction sector is responsible for up to 40% of the world’s carbon emissions and that the global buildings sector consumes 36% of the world’s energy. Furthermore, there has been a considerable increase in energy usage per occupants in buildings across the board. To combat this accusation, consider that the future of the building industry could exist in technologies that push for greener solutions.

Combining an air quality monitoring system with a building management system and occupancy sensors can allow targeted ventilation to be deployed, reducing overall energy usage. The second approach is pursuing carbon neutrality. In the future, it will be easier to plug into utility data and take a brief survey about the usage patterns in the building to provide a year-long carbon footprint assessment.

Implementing the measures related to air quality monitoring and filtration on a widespread basis will be the main challenge for buildings moving forward. While state-of-the-art ionization equipment exists, it is difficult to roll it out on a large scale. There needs to be regulations in place to kick start a movement toward smart monitoring so occupants, especially those in vulnerable groups, can feel safe in commercial and residential settings.

by John Bohlmann

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