Enhancing Air Quality in Office: Unveiling Hidden Contaminants and Safeguarding Your Staff
Imagine subjecting your staff to the detrimental effects of drinking a glass of contaminated water. You wouldn’t dare do it, and understandably, they wouldn’t appreciate it either. Why should they settle for exposing themselves to a workplace environment with equally harmful air quality? It’s essential to prioritize the well-being of your employees by ensuring clean and healthy air quality in the office.
No one would serve their staff a glass of dirty water, filled with harmful contaminants. Nor would anyone be delighted to receive one. So why would they be happy to enter a workplace with similarly harmful dirty air?
Accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic, indoor air quality is becoming a concern in workplaces all over the world. Common questions people ask themselves when entering a busy building of any kind are:
- What’s the chance of catching Covid-19?
- Is the building stuffy?
- Is it too hot or too cold?
- Will it trigger my allergies or give me a headache/migraine?
- Is there mould growing behind the furniture?
Note how just one of the above relates to viral transmission. That’s because there are many other aspects to poor air quality in offices which can adversely impact human health, and people are waking up to this fact – particularly millennials.
At a recent employee wellbeing congress in the UK, we asked a delegate whether he and his peers expected employers to ensure that air in workplaces was clean and safe to breathe. It’s not about expectations, he said, it should be a requirement.
Understanding the Impact of Poor Indoor Air Quality
- Elevated CO2 levels indicate poor ventilation and consequently high viral transmissibility. High CO2 levels can also cause building occupants to feel drowsy and impact productivity.
- Tiny bits of Particulate Matter (PM 2.5) in the air can damage the respiratory system, causing illness and absenteeism. The WHO 2018 reported a link between high levels of PM 2.5 and lung cancer.
- Toxic Volatile Organic Compounds are emitted as gases from certain solids or liquids. Buildings can experience a spike in VOCs after refurbishment or other activity.
- Humidity can make building occupants feel uncomfortable and impact productivity. It has also been linked to viral transmission and the growth of mould and fungi in buildings.
- Temperature can be a source of tension in the workplace, and while this one’s more for the health of the planet rather than people, it’s proven that high or low temperatures can indicate energy waste resulting from poor heating control.
These airborne contaminants, which are proven to damage human health, cannot be seen in the air you’re breathing, unlike the filthy glass of water described above.
The good news is, the tech is here to help you understand what’s in the air you breathe at work, and more importantly, to provide employers with actionable insights to ensure a safe and healthy workplace.
ZiggyTec’s Smart Sensor Solutions
ZiggyTec’s smart sensors monitor the air quality in workplaces, measuring these five key parameters and helping you to keep them at a safe level.
We place the discrete, high-quality, and fully certified sensors at optimum locations around the workplace, and we send the data to the cloud via innovative Internet of Things (IoT) technology.
The sensors operate on batteries, and their reliance on the IoT network eliminates the need for cables or WiFi connections.
We cover all hardware, communications, and installation costs. Our team can complete the installation for a 100-sensor building in a day. You can access your reports within 24 hours, and our dedicated client support team is available to assist you continuously.
Sustainability Accreditations and Benefits
Clients can access this data through reports tailored to their requirements – some require access to information in real-time, while others use monthly reports to measure, monitor and mitigate against air quality issues, keeping employees safe and ensuring peace of mind.
The benefits of indoor air quality monitoring extend beyond this purpose too. Many clients use the intelligence provided by our reports to optimise their use of energy-sapping ventilation systems, reducing emissions in a data-driven way.
Or to optimise their heating and cooling systems, to the same effect. Others use the service to gain sustainability accreditation, such as RESET Air.
Harmful Toxins in Office Air
There was a time when we could see at least some of the filth in the air we breathed in the workplace – back in the days when people could light up at will. If someone were to light up in the office today, you’d be horrified – you’d probably call the police.
But just because you can’t see the other harmful toxins in the air today, doesn’t mean they don’t matter to your and your employees’ health.
Give ZiggyTec a call today, to find out how we can help you monitor your indoor air quality and ensure that the air your staff breathe in is as clean and healthy as the water in your coolers.