center for school innovation a presentation at the bsu indianapolis center a high performance...

Center for School Innovation

A Presentationat the BSU Indianapolis Center

A High Performance Schools Workshop

29 January 2009

A High Performance Schools Workshop 29 January 2009 Center for School Innovation

Presentation Outline

Ways of Thinking Social Factors Environmental Factors Economic Factors State Mandates New Guidelines Resources

Walter Grondzik, PE

LEED-AP

Professor

Department of Architecture


These factors are often collectively referred to under the heading of Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ), but consist of distinct concerns related to how the human body receives and reacts to stimuli Thermal Comfort Visual Comfort Acoustical Comfort Indoor Air Quality

Environmental Factors


Indoor Environmental Quality represents those many dimensions of a space that are not enscribed on drawings or described in specifications—yet are critical to occupant well-being and satisfaction

Indoor Environmental Quality

the space we draw the space we occupy


Addressing the various contributors to Indoor Environmental Quality is particularly important in a high performance school as students, teachers, and staff are literally immersed in the many variables that constitute IEQ … and human performance will suffer if IEQ is not up to par

Indoor Environmental Quality

bad IEQ (artist’s

representation)

good IEQ

(artist’s

representation)


Topic Area What Why Design Intent (general design direction) Design Criteria (specific design targets) Issues Important to High Performance

Schools Questions

Discussion Pattern for IEQ


What Thermal comfort is a state of mind that expresses

satisfaction with the surrounding thermal conditions It is an opinion … not a physical condition

It is a subjective response that is influenced by four key environmental variables, two physical personal variables, and several mental personal variables

Air temperatureRelative humidityAir speedRadiant conditionsClothing being wornActivity levelExpectations, mood, stress, …

Thermal Comfort


Why

Building occupants are generally very sensitive to thermal conditions and deviations from desirable conditions lead to complaints, distraction, and coping behaviors that may be negative

Thermally comfortable conditions essentially place this particular aspect of the environment into the sub-conscious, allowing a greater focus on learning

Thermal Comfort


Design Intent

All regularly occupied spaces should be deemed thermally comfortable

A design is a hypothesis (saying does not make it so)Comfort is a human response, not a set of physical

variables (measuring does not make it so)The above points strongly suggest that a post-occupancy

evaluation (POE) should be specified

Thermal comfort should be achieved with minimum required consumption of energy

It is easy to achieve thermal comfort is energy consumption is of no concern … that is not today’s case

Thermal Comfort


Design Criteria Meet ASHRAE Standard 55 (period)

Thermal Comfort


Issues Important to High Performance Schools Thermal comfort is not required by most building codes

Thermal comfort is sort of hit or miss in many green building guidelines (good intent may serve occupants better than a credit)

Providing thermal comfort requires a substantial consumption of energy resources (even “less” is still substantial)

Being in the center of the comfort zone is not demonstrably better than being on the edges (the boundaries are a threshold)

There are four environmental variables (design tools) to consider with respect to comfort—not just air temperature

Thermal Comfort


Issues of Interest to High Performance Schools The concept of adaptive comfort may be used with

naturally ventilated schools (ASHRAE Standard 55)

Thermal Comfort

adaptive summer

comfort zone


Questions

Thermal Comfort

?


What Visual comfort is a state of mind that expresses

satisfaction with the surrounding luminous conditions

It is a subjective response that is influenced by several quantitative and qualitative environmental variablesIlluminanceLuminance (brightness)Glare (lack thereof)AppropriatenessAestheticsSource/type of lightDiversity of views

Visual Comfort


Why Building occupants are reasonably sensitive to

luminous conditions and deviations from desirable conditions lead to complaints, distraction, coping behaviors that may be non-productive

Visually comfortable conditions essentially place this aspect of the environment into the sub-conscious, allowing a focus on learning

Particularly bad lighting conditions can lead to health effects (eye strain, headaches) and loss of productivity (by diversion of energy into coping mechanisms or a measurable loss of visual acuity)

Visual Comfort

a th

eme

seem

s

to b

e de

velo

ping


Design Intent

Provide conditions that will lead to expressions of comfort in all regularly occupied spaces—virtually every school space should be visually comfortable when occupied under defined visual task scenarios

Provide these conditions in a way that reduces energy demands

Visual Comfort


Design Criteria

There is no single unified benchmark for visual comfort—no visual comfort zone has been defined (drat)

The design team needs to set individual targets for those aspects considered most important in each space and address them individuallyThere are guidelines for many specific issues such as

illuminance, brightness ratios, absolute brightness limits, color rendering

When individual aspects have been successfully addressed, look holistically at the resulting luminous

environment

Visual Comfort


Design Criteria

Visual Comfort

one source for lighting criteria


Issues Important to High Performance Schools

Daylighting is universally recommended and appreciatedFor its positive ambianceFor its energy efficiency

Ensure that the lighting system is first effective, and only then efficient

Efficient (and effective) lighting requires logical controls—that actually work

Daylighting controls must be commissioned; there should be a POE of lighting conditions; communicate intents with users

Visual Comfort


Questions

Visual Comfort

?


What Acoustical comfort is a state of mind that expresses

satisfaction with the surrounding auditory conditions It is a subjective response that is influenced by

environmental variables established (for the most part) by the design teamLoudness of wanted sounds Loudness of unwanted sounds (noise)Reverberation timeArticulationAnd … more intriguing quality indicators in

music spaces

Acoustical Comfort


Why

Building occupants are surprisingly insensitive to acoustical conditions … yet hearing is a critical part of the learning environment

Acoustically comfortable conditions will support and enhance learning—leading to higher performance

Acoustically uncomfortable conditions will detract from learning and may disadvantage a large number of students in any given class

Acoustical Comfort


Design Intent

Provide conditions that will lead to expressions of comfort in all regularly occupied spacesEvery learning space should be acoustically

comfortable when occupied (as should most support spaces)

Ensure that room acoustics enhance learning rather than impeding learning

Acoustical Comfort


Design Criteria There is no single unified benchmark for acoustical

comfort—no acoustical comfort zone The design team needs to set individual targets for

those aspects considered important to high performance (success), and address them individuallyThere are guidelines for a few issues such as

background noise (NC), reverberation time (RT), speech privacy

After addressing individual aspects, look holistically at

the resulting acoustical environment

Acoustical Comfort


Design Criteria Meet Access Board “requirements” Comply with good practices

Acoustical Comfort


Issues Important to High Performance Schools Poor school acoustics have been recognized by the

Access Board as a serious impediment to student learning—this is a widespread problem

Numerous otherwise good high performance design moves may seriously and negatively impact room acoustics and noise control (such as open plan spaces, flexible spaces, cross ventilation, …)

The acoustical conditions in most school spaces are the result of fundamental architectural design decisions (no consultants are involved)

Many architects have little grounding in acoustics (sorry to say)

Acoustical Comfort


Questions

Acoustical Comfort

?


What Indoor air quality (IAQ) is a collective term that

describes the state of contamination of room air

It is a two-part proposition It involves quantitative (scientifically

established) limits on health-impacting contaminants (such as carbon dioxide, radon, or formaldehyde)

It involves qualitative (personally determined) limits on comfort-impacting contaminants (such as odors)

Indoor Air Quality


Why Many air contaminants have

well-documented negative impacts

on health and well-being Although many of the health effects of

poor indoor air quality are long term,

students are in school for the long term Some air contaminants can act fairly quickly

and cause symptoms that require absences

from school and/or reduced productivity

Indoor Air Quality


Design Intent

Provide acceptable indoor air qualityMore on “acceptable” in a minute

Do so with due regard to the substantial

energy impacts of ventilation

Indoor Air Quality


Design Criteria Meet ASHRAE Standard 62.1

Prescriptive path (most common)Performance path

Indoor Air Quality


Ventilation Design Criteria A people component A space component

Indoor Air Quality


Issues Important to High Performance Schools

Poor air quality can destroy the effectiveness of a school

Providing good air quality is energy intensive, and the

energy impacts of IAQ decisions need to be considered

It is unclear what effect providing better than acceptable air quality will have on occupants (in other words, then benefits of exceeding ASHRAE Standard 62.1 are unclear)

Indoor Air Quality


Questions

Indoor Air Quality

?

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