Last week, we focused on office chairs. This week, it is thermal comfort.

Temperature, humidity and airflow in office have enormous influence on how comfortable we feel. High humidity can create a stuffy and sticky atmosphere that contributes to tiredness.

It is unlikely that a single temperature or level of humidity will suit everybody. While customisation is possible in personal chambers and cabins, the open general office area has to be kept at average levels of temperature and humidity.

Don’t ever neglect airflow. In a static environment, each person is surrounded by his/her own unhealthy balloon of air that is loaded with carbon dioxide and micro-organisms.

Set the air-conditioning for air movement; use their vents a couple of times in a day; and operate fans, if any, at reasonable speeds. Also, ensure the housekeeping staff opens out the windows outside office hours. This is best done for a couple of hours in the early morning when outside air pollution is at the lowest.

Improving comfort

Regulate the air-conditioning for temperature and humidity.

Avoid locating workstations directly in front of or below air-conditioning outlets, and install deflectors on air vents to direct airflow away from people. These measures will help prevent staff being annoyed by draughts.

Control direct sunlight with window blinds, louvres, etc.

Minimise draughts and thermal differences between the head and the feet (This is technically referred to as thermal gradients).

Ensure adequate airflow. Stuffiness can result when airflow is low, and draughts occur when airflow is high.

Air quality

Contaminated air: Office air may be contaminated by several different sources, including odours and microbiological and chemical contaminants. In most modern offices, the air-conditioning system controls the quality of indoor air.

The system expels a portion of the air to the outside environment and replaces this expelled portion with fresh air. Complaints should be assessed by a qualified person.

Legionnaires’ Disease: This is an infection caused by exposure to Legionella bacteria. For office workers, exposure can often be traced to exposure to mists of airborne droplets containing these bacteria.

Commonly, such mists come from air-conditioning cooling towers, although other sources are known, including aerosols and room sprays, as well as the potting mix used in indoor office plants. Luckily, the disease is not transmitted from one person to another.

The obvious key to reducing the risk of contracting this disease is effective management of air-conditioning cooling towers and warm water systems, and avoiding office plants that afford optimum conditions for Legionella growth.

Ozone: This gas is produced in small amounts by electrostatic photocopiers and printers. Under normal circumstances, the concentration of ozone around these machines is often sufficient to cause symptoms such as itchy eyes or illness. Fortunately, many photocopiers and printers now have activated carbon filters fitted to decompose ozone; but do confirm this with your vendor.

Sick Building Syndrome (SBS): This refers to a situation where several people complain of symptoms and discomfort such as headache, or eye, nose or throat irritation, fatigue, dizziness or nausea while they are in office, and the symptoms go away upon leaving the premises. Instances of SBS are not exactly rare. Where SBS is thought to be a problem, the following checklist may be of assistance:

Look for the obvious — for example, a breakdown in the air-conditioning system. Check the symptoms to see how widespread they really are.

Ask the staff if they know of any specific problem or likely causes (keep in mind that what is obvious to the employee may not be necessarily obvious to the employer or office manager).

Check the maintenance and cleaning procedures. Train your peons, sweepers and other cleaning staff.

Cigarette smoke: This is a major contributor to the poor quality of indoor air, and we all know how to best avoid this. However, if you do permit smoking in your office, remember that continued ventilation from open windows is the only partial solution — conventional air-conditioning systems used in office environments do not effectively remove the fine particles and gases contained in environmental tobacco smoke.

Seek advice from your designer; he/she must be qualified to understand the technicalities of indoor air issues.

Also, don’t be penny-wise, pound-foolish. Engage professionals such as a qualified housekeeping expert or a facility management company. Believe me, it’s worth every penny spent. They may be a trifle expensive, but don’t forget that poor office health and hygiene can become major sources of dissatisfaction amongst employees.

(The author is an interior design consultant, specialising in the design of corporate and residential interiors . As a senior faculty member at a Calcutta institute, she has delivered lectures, guided research and conducted projects in the field of ‘Housing & Interior Design’ for over two decades. She can be contacted at kusumsmail@yahoo.com )