Room air temperature affects occupants’ physiology, perceptions and mental alertness

Tham, Kwok Wai; Willem, Henry

doi:10.1016/j.buildenv.2009.04.002

Cited by 111 publications

(69 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…Seppänen et al [30] quantified a performance decrease of 2% per each degree Celsius of air temperature increase in the range of 25-32 • C and recommended 22 • C as the optimal temperature. Tham [32] reported a workers' performance maximized at 24.5 • C in a call centre in Singapore with a ventilation rate of 10 L s −1 -per person; but in a further simulation analysis, Tham and Willem [33] concluded that air temperature around 20 • C can improve mental arousal and performance in activities requiring attention. Tanabe et al [31] studied the effect of moderately high temperature on task performance and fatigue with 40 college-age subjects, showing an increase of fatigue and decrease in deoxygenated haemoglobin at an operative temperature of 33 • C. Wargocki et al [36] showed benefits for health, thermal comfort, and productivity in the case of higher ventilation rates: for example, the authors found a significant improvement in typing and in creative thinking at a ventilation rate of 10 L s −1 per person compared to 3 L s −1 per person.…”

Section: F1: Impact Of the Environmental Conditions On Workers' Perfomentioning

confidence: 99%

A Co-Citation Analysis on Thermal Comfort and Productivity Aspects in Production and Office Buildings

2017

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Abstract:In this work, the literature about the relationship between thermal comfort and productivity in workplaces is reviewed and explored by means of a co-citation analysis-i.e., a factor analysis applied to the mutual citations of the most relevant contributions. A structure of three main clusters of papers describing the relationships between workers' thermal comfort and productivity were identified according to the factor analysis and then confirmed with a multidimensional scaling. Results indicate that comfortable indoor thermal conditions can have beneficial impacts on workers' well-being and productivity, such as higher operational rates, lower production losses, fewer sick leaves, and reduced health related costs. Some authors proposed analytical and empirical expressions for the quantification of the impact of thermal comfort on productivity; nevertheless, due to the broad spectrum of activities and their applicability, the literature is still far from reaching a general consensus on the potential impact of comfort/discomfort on productivity and proposed models can vary significantly in the different studies.

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Section: F1: Impact Of the Environmental Conditions On Workers' Perfomentioning

confidence: 99%

A Co-Citation Analysis on Thermal Comfort and Productivity Aspects in Production and Office Buildings

2017

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“…The result is thermal comfort is the highest at the 23°C condition. Two studies (Lan et al, 2012, Tham andWillem, 2010) proved that the preferred indoor air temperature level for occupants' comfort is regardless of energy efficiency considerations.…”

Section: Physical Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In winter the indoor air temperature for optimum performance can be decreased from 21.9 to 19.7°C. Another laboratory study of (Tham and Willem, 2010) tested thermal comfort level and time exposure of occupants in three different room conditions. The result is thermal comfort is the highest at the 23°C condition.…”

Section: Physical Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

User-focused design factors of workspace for nearly zero energy office renovation: findings from literature review

Kwon¹,

Remøy²,

Dobbelsteen³

et al. 2017

24th Annual European Real Estate Society Conference

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This paper highlights the importance of considering user satisfaction in office renovation. Userfocused design approach in nearly zero energy office (nZEO) renovation is a way to increase user satisfaction and the value of office quality while meeting energy efficiency goal. The purpose of this paper is to investigate considerable measurement factors affecting user satisfaction. It is also to help better understating about user/occupants' preferences. Measurement factors are studied through literature reviews in relation to user satisfaction of workspaces. The approach aims to give a guide for analysis and evaluation of user satisfaction and to strengthen their importance in an office renovation. The findings present that main measurement factors to increase user satisfaction are not only associated with indoor environmental quality but also with psychological issues such as a feasibility of collaboration, social contact, etc. Additionally, the relationship between measurement factors and hierarchy of user requirements are described.

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“…In light of this, some studies examined the impact of basic thermal environment (e.g., coldness and heat) on performance [1][2][3][4]. According to Seppänen and Fisk (2006), individuals' activity levels are highest when the indoor temperature is 21.6℃, while activity level falls at temperatures below and above that [3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Choi and Chun (2009) examined attentional level at 20℃ and 23℃ and found that in general, an indoor temperature of 23℃ provides an environment more conducive to concentration [1]. However, Tham and Willem (2010) used indoor temperature conditions at 20℃, 23℃, and 26℃ and found that, unlike in the previous study by Choi and Chun (2009), the difference in concentration levels at 20℃ and 23℃ was not statistically significant, whereas 26 ℃ provided the optimal environment for concentration, as measured by faster reaction times and reduced error rates [4]. On the other hand, Kim et al (1996) studied participants' performance on a word-combination-task at 23℃ and 26℃ and found that the performance difference at these two temperatures was not statistically significant [2].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Effect of Indoor Thermal Comfort on Visual Search Task Performances in a Personal Learning Environment

Yoonki

Jung²,

Kim³

2014

PBS

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Abstract:This study examined the effect of perceived indoor thermal comfort of a personal learning environment on students' performances of the visual search task. To do this, 11 participants who attended a high school completed the scale of indoor thermal comfort in the simulated learning environment and they performed the visual search task which reflects selective attention. As a result, there was a strong negative correlation between indoor thermal comfort and visual search task performance regardless of task difficulty. This was different from the common sense view that comfortable environments improve occupant's performances. While this result could have been affected by students' arousal level or perceived sensitivity to the environments, these variables didn't appear to significantly influence the inverse relationship between indoor thermal comfort and visual search task performance. These findings could potentially be used to shape an optimal thermal learning environment in order to improve learner's learning performance.

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Room air temperature affects occupants’ physiology, perceptions and mental alertness

Cited by 111 publications

References 5 publications

A Co-Citation Analysis on Thermal Comfort and Productivity Aspects in Production and Office Buildings

A Co-Citation Analysis on Thermal Comfort and Productivity Aspects in Production and Office Buildings

User-focused design factors of workspace for nearly zero energy office renovation: findings from literature review

The Effect of Indoor Thermal Comfort on Visual Search Task Performances in a Personal Learning Environment

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