What does comfort and air quality actually cost you?
Things as simple as simultaneously heating and cooling adjacent spaces leads to waste – and reduced comfort. Only one in five buildings has a control system regulating heating, cooling, ventilation and hot water generation. And still most of these buildings operate at a Class C energy efficiency level. The ones without control systems are worse again, operating at efficiency grades of E, F or G.
Balancing comfort with energy efficiency is quite a task. But it’s also the way to create healthy and comfortable work environments (and bring occupants back to our buildings). Understanding the energy burn needed to achieve the desired comfort levels is important. So, what does it really take—energy-wise—to maintain a comfortable and healthy space?
Understanding energy consumption for comfort
Comfort in an office space goes beyond setting a thermostat. It involves temperature, humidity, and even air distribution within a space. Achieving and maintaining these conditions comes at an energy cost—and the possibility of energy waste.
The lion’s share of energy use in office buildings can be attributed to humidity control, ventilation- and HVAC systems. Especially during the colder and warmer months. Are you heating and cooling two adjacent spaces? Does the ventilation system need to work twice as hard after being turned off over the weekend? Then energy is being wasted. And wasted energy equals less comfort, higher cost and more effort to reach your net-zero targets.
The moral of the story? If we want to reach our sustainability, wellness and financial targets, all these systems need to be running like a well-oiled machine – with no room for error. This means not just having a good control system in place, but knowing where energy is being wasted and what action can be taken to make these systems more efficient.
Reducing the operational cost while maintaining high-end spaces
Energy demand is and will always be present. The challenge is not simply about supplying renewable energy, but making the best use of whatever energy is used and avoiding waste. Adjusting to occupancy, usage patterns and outdoor weather conditions is a precision job. It is this lack of insight and understanding that causes many buildings to operate on a Class C level and lower.
Knowing how our buildings and their systems function gives us the insight we need to prevent this wastage while maintaining high-end, comfortable, and healthy spaces. It allows our occupiers to return to comfortable spaces and provides sustainable and financial benefits for our buildings. Achieving net-zero carbon goals while maintaining high comfort and air quality standards is within reach—for those bold enough to take up the challenge.
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