The Comfort Map—A Possible Tool for Increasing Personal Comfort in Office Workplaces

Abstract

Previous studies have shown that indoor environmental quality (IEQ) parameters may have a considerable effect on office employees’ comfort, health and performance. Therefore, we initiated a research program to help occupants identify IEQ parameters they perceive as risk factors for their health in an office and enhance their comfort levels in an office environment. Since we assumed that office employees might have different indoor environmental quality expectations related to their work area and that these differences could be measured, our objective was to develop an office ‘comfort map’ based on occupants’ individual IEQ preferences. Thus, the goal of the comfort map would be to help tailor office spaces to their occupants’ health and comfort expectations. The comfort survey was developed to assess the comfort-related opinions of the occupants, based on IEQ parameters (visual comfort, acoustic comfort, air quality and thermal comfort) of a chosen open-plan office building. The survey also assessed the degree to which the given IEQ parameter was considered a health risk factor by occupants or caused a negative comfort sensation for them. The survey was filled in by 216 occupants. The answers were then analyzed with the help of a frequency table depicting relative frequency. The measurements of IEQ parameters took place in an open-plan office in the chosen office building (a Hungarian subsidiary’s office building belonging to an international company in Budapest). The occupants had different opinions regarding the perceived effects of the IEQ parameters on their health and comfort. Almost two-thirds of the respondents (64.8%) were dissatisfied with the adjustability of the noises and sounds IEQ parameter at their workstation. Furthermore, half of the respondents (50.1%) were dissatisfied with the adjustability of ventilation. Most of the occupants (45.8%) considered noises and sounds as the IEQ parameter that had a negative effect on their health. There were also IEQ differences between different areas of the office space. Based on these results, a comfort map was developed for the office. The comfort map contains information about the IEQ characteristics of each workstation by depicting the thermal comfort, carbon dioxide, visual comfort and acoustic comfort characteristics of a given workstation on a relative scale. Based on the thermal, air, acoustic, and lighting differences between the workstations, occupants can select their preferred workstations when a desk-sharing system works. Although still in its pilot phase, the comfort map could increase the chances for office employees to find the workstation best suited to their IEQ expectations. This could improve occupants’ overall comfort level, which could in turn enhance occupants’ productivity and mental as well as physical health.

Self-rated health implications of noise for open-plan office workers: An overview of the literature

“…Noise appears to be the environmental aspect most related to users’ comfort and satisfaction, representing the most disturbing one within an OPO layout. 17,21 The health and well-being of OPO workers are affected by increased noise levels, 20 and, in fact, these impacts are recognised by them, 26 and (therefore) they acknowledge the reduction of their productivity. 17…”

“…In terms of large renovations, another solution pointed out by researchers is the creation of separated and isolated zones in order to enhance workers’ privacy and/or social interaction, as well as creating alternative workspaces, 17,22,24 given that different desks in the same office can represent different experiences and, therefore, different comfort rates when assessing the same aspects. 26…”

“…Study 09 -Borsos et al 26 In order to assess OPO workers' comfort and satisfaction, Borsos et al 26 developed a survey based on IEQ factors to assess stakeholders to improve the workspace occupants' expectations and outcomes (named as 'comfort map'). The survey was created to understand the level of health and well-being impact of each IEQ (visual, acoustic and thermal comfort, as well as air quality) based on occupants' perceptions, considering that opinions would differ.…”

Extension of the Áprily Lajos primary school in Visegrád

“…The classrooms of the street wing are south facing, so large windows provide the necessary amount of light, while shading is provided by external and internal textile blinds and a tree line in front of the main façade. Moreover, these changes enhance the quality of the indoor environment as well, which is a crucial determinant of the users' sensation of personal well-being and comfort [13]. The rigidity of the main façade, due to its function, is relieved by the playfulness of the façade window allocation of the western gable walls (Fig.…”

An Efficient Method to Compute Thermal Parameters of the Comfort Map Using a Decreased Number of Measurements

“…The tool presented here was developed by the research group and displays comfort parameters in the form of fields and scales, so several comfort parameters can be presented simultaneously (visual comfort, acoustic comfort, thermal comfort, air quality), which will be referred to later as a comfort map. In a previous work [8], we introduced the concept a comfort map and investigated its subjective aspects with a questionnaire-based study. Comfort maps were created in a standardized, measurable way, using the PMV-PPD (predicted mean vote-predicted percentage dissatisfied) method set in ISO 7730 for thermal comfort.…”