Perceived Indoor Environment and Occupants’ Comfort in European “Modern” Office Buildings: The OFFICAIR Study

Abstract

Indoor environmental conditions (thermal, noise, light, and indoor air quality) may affect workers’ comfort, and consequently their health and well-being, as well as their productivity. This study aimed to assess the relations between perceived indoor environment and occupants’ comfort, and to examine the modifying effects of both personal and building characteristics. Within the framework of the European project OFFICAIR, a questionnaire survey was administered to 7441 workers in 167 “modern” office buildings in eight European countries (Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, The Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain). Occupants assessed indoor environmental quality (IEQ) using both crude IEQ items (satisfaction with thermal comfort, noise, light, and indoor air quality), and detailed items related to indoor environmental parameters (e.g., too hot/cold temperature, humid/dry air, noise inside/outside, natural/artificial light, odor) of their office environment. Ordinal logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the relations between perceived IEQ and occupants’ comfort. The highest association with occupants’ overall comfort was found for “noise”, followed by “air quality”, “light” and “thermal” satisfaction. Analysis of detailed parameters revealed that “noise inside the buildings” was highly associated with occupants’ overall comfort. “Layout of the offices” was the next parameter highly associated with overall comfort. The relations between IEQ and comfort differed by personal characteristics (gender, age, and the Effort Reward Imbalance index), and building characteristics (office type and building’s location). Workplace design should take into account both occupant and the building characteristics in order to provide healthier and more comfortable conditions to their occupants.

Indoor gaseous air pollutants determinants in office buildings—The OFFICAIR project

“…The research strategy consisted of three complementary phases: (a) “general survey” (167 buildings, winter of 2011‐2012), using questionnaires and checklists; (b) “detailed study” (37 buildings) with measurements carried out both in summer (2012) and winter (2012‐2013); and (c) “intervention study” (nine buildings) with more detailed measurements (eg, active sampling and online monitoring) carried out before and after an intervention related to the reduction in IAP. Further details on the project strategy and outcomes are reported in the project website (http://www.officair-project.eu) and in project‐related publications …”

“…Further details on the project strategy and outcomes are reported in the project website (www.offic air-proje ct.eu) and in project-related publications. 10,11,[18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28]…”

Building and indoor environmental quality assessment of Nigerian primary schools: A pilot study

“…Occupants' wellbeing can be simultaneously affected by several IEQ factors in a complex way . Studies have shown that schools can be contaminated by various chemical and biological pollutants .…”

The Use of Audio Stimulation to Affect Sensorimotor Learning

“…Workplace noise has been found to be an explanatory factor in fatal industrial accidents between 1990 and 2005 [9], especially if worker communication was involved. In a less obvious example, worker performance and comfort can suffer with the presence of disruptive or unwanted noise; a survey conducted within eight European nations with 7441 participants revealed 'noise' as the variable with the highest association with occupants' comfort [10]. Finally, noise has been found to affect recognition memory, which can lead to diminished performance or accidents by diminishing vigilance [11].…”