Large Office Building Research Articles

Microorganism Contamination of HVAC Humidification Systems: Case Study

Abstract Water samples were collected from 33 of the 54 heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) humidification system water reservoir pans in a large office building. Two different forms of humidification are used in this building: air washers and steam injection. Thirty-eight samples were cultured for human-source and heterotrophic bacteria, thermophilic organisms, and fungi. While one microbe, an unidentified bacterium, was found on more plates than any other organism, Streptococcus and Pseudomonas were found to be the most predominant microorganisms. In a comparison of the air wash and steam injection humidification systems, only small quantities of bacteria were found in the steam systems, while water collected from the air wash systems was highly contaminated. Data were also available to test the effectiveness of the cleaning system. A sample collected one day before cleaning had 58,100 colony forming units per milliliter (CFU/ml). Samples collected 1 and 2 days after cleaning had 250,200 and 528,160 CFU/ml, respectively. This demonstrates not only that the cleaning process is ineffective, biologically, it may increase the risk of bioaerosol contamination. Sample concentrations, in colony forming units per milliliter, were found to be quite different depending upon the side of the baffle plates from which the sample was collected. In some units the spray side of the water reservoir was visually clear with no observable microbial contamination. However, water on the backside (intake air side) of the reservoir would have a green, slimy and frothy contaminant floating on top of the water. This study demonstrates that gross contamination of microorganisms can exist in the water reservoirs of HVAC humidification systems. Burkhart, J.E.; Stanevich, R.; Kovak, B.: Microorganism Contamination of HVAC Humidification Systems: Case Study. Appl Occup. Environ. Hyg. 8(12):1010–1014; 1993.

Energy Cost of High Ventilation Rates in a Large Office Building in Montreal

This paper presents an analysis of the impact of an increase of the air ventila tion rate on the energy cost in a large existing office building in Montréal, based on a computer simulation using the MICRO-DOE2 program. An increase of 3.2% or CAN$ 37,000 in the total annual energy cost could be expected if the ventilation of outside air is increased from the present rate (7.6 1/s/person) to a higher one (10.0 1/s/person), which corresponds to ASHRAE recommendations. By extrapolating this result to the case where the ventila tion rate is increased from 2.4 to 10.01/s/person, the expected increase in the total annual energy cost would be about 10% or CAN$ 117,300. This increase is higher than those previously estimated by other workers.

Chemical Emissions during Recarpeting of a Canadian Office Building

One floor of a large office building in the Ottawa area was monitored during a month-long recarpeting project in which nylon carpet and latex adhesive were used. Total volatile organic compound (TVOC) samples were collected in sev eral locations at various times after recarpeting. The TVOC concentration due to the recarpeting process showed the expected exponential decrease with time. Emission rates calculated from TVOC concentrations and measured air change rates agreed well with values determined in laboratory studies, and were much greater than the emission rate of the carpet alone. Information was collected that provided a link between symptoms of occupant discomfort and exposure to the recarpeting process.

Windows and Environmental Satisfaction: A Survey Study of an Office Building

Postoccupancy evaluations of office buildings often are conducted without taking into consideration certain characteristics which cause the survey sam ple units to be different. This study examines the differences in the responses of two groups of workers within the same building by examining differences characterized by the presence or absence of windows at workers' stations. This parameter is important to study as its existence is inevitable especially in large office buildings, where a proportion of the workstations is located along the peripheral window walls and the other in the core area of the floor. This study indicates that the proximity to windows can affect workers' perception of the importance of some workspace attributes, their satisfaction with them, as well as their overall satisfaction with the workplace.

Energy Cost of High Ventilation Rates in a Large Office Building in Montréal

Energy Cost of High Ventilation Rates in a Large Office Building in Montréal

Windows and Environmental Satisfaction: A Survey Study of an Office Building

Postoccupancy evaluations of office buildings often are conducted without taking into consideration certain characteristics which cause the survey sample units to be different. This study examines the differences in the responses of two groups of workers within the same building by examining differences characterized by the presence or absence of windows at workers’ stations. This parameter is important to study as its existence is inevitable especially in large office buildings, where a proportion of the workstations is located along the peripheral window walls and the other in the core area of the floor. This study indicates that the proximity to windows can affect workers’ perception of the importance of some workspace attributes, their satisfaction with them, as well as their overall satisfaction with the workplace.

Chemical Emissions during Recarpeting of a Canadian Office Building

One floor of a large office building in the Ottawa area was monitored during a month-long recarpeting project in which nylon carpet and latex adhesive were used. Total volatile organic compound (TVOC) samples were collected in several locations at various times after recarpeting. The TYOC concentration due to the recarpeting process showed the expected exponential decrease with time. Emission rates calculated from TYOC concentrations and measured air change rates agreed well with values determined in laboratory studies, and were much greater than the emission rate of the carpet alone. Information was collected that provided a link between symptoms of occupant discomfort and exposure to the recarpeting process.

Thermally acceptable temperature drifts can reduce the energy consumption for cooling in office buildings

The energy consumption and cost in large office buildings can be reduced by allowing the indoor environment to deviate from the optimum comfort conditions to situations which are still acceptable by most occupants. One such strategy is to allow the indoor temperature to increase in the afternoon in summer. A computer program was developed to predict the thermal sensation and discomfort under transient conditions, and the detailed computer program BLAST was used to evaluate the indoor temperature, space cooling load, chilled water consumption and seasonal energy use. This paper presents a comparison performed for a reference office building in Montréal between a conventional design, with constant set-point temperature during the operating hours, and a new design, where the indoor temperature is allowed to increase after 3:00 p.m. The results show a reduction of seasonal consumption for chilled water between 34 and 40%, and a reduction of energy budget for HVAC systems of 11%.

Analysis of a commercial ice-storage system: Design principles and measured performance

This paper summarizes an analysis of the measured performance of an ice-storage system in a large office building. The partial storage system was installed at a cost below a conventional cooling system when the building was initially constructed. The design analysis concluded that by reducing on-peak electric demand through shifting cooling energy use to nighttime operation, the system would save about $38 000 per year in electricity costs. During 1987, savings were roughly 10% of this estimate. Reasons for the discrepancy include the inability of the system to deliver the design cooling load, and poor operating and maintenance practices. The assessment is based upon monitoring of the cooling load, compressor electricity use, chilled-water pump electricity use, and whole-building electricity use, each measured at 15-minute intervals. A primary objective of the monitoring project was to compare electricity costs of the actual system to what they would have been with a conventional cooling system, without storage. We estimated the hourly electricity use of the base case conventional system using the measured hourly cooling load data and a part-load efficiency curve for a 1617 kW t (460 ton) centrifugal chiller. Five months of cooling load data were available (February - June). The maximum electric demand shift was 150 kW e (6.1 W e/m 2). The average monthly peak shift was 95 kW e. Over these five months the system COP decreased from 2.82 to 1.74, while the estimated COP for the conventional system ranged from 2.84 to 2.75. Since the analysis period, the system has undergone major retrofitting to alleviate the occasional overheating and further reduce electricity costs.

オフィス古紙分別回収の試験実施と今後の展開

The purpose of trial execution of classification and collection of office used papers, which has continued in our headquarters building from this April, is to create new system and measure its cost/benefit and contribute to the society by offering know-how and data in order to utilize resources and decrease garbage.The trial has succeeded in creating system and showing good performance in cost/ benefit. To make the system prevalent, our company is proposing town-block association of companies, which aims larger economy of scale by means of cooperation of adjacent buildings. Development of this project in large office buildings in various areas is thought to be the key to the spread of unprecedented classification and collection of office used papers.

On using degree-days to account for the effects of weather on annual energy use in office buildings

To better quantify the effects of conservation measures, degree-day-based techniques are commonly used to isolate weather-induced changes in building energy use. In this paper, we use a building energy simulation model, which allows us to hold fixed all influences on energy use besides weather, to evaluate several degree-day-based techniques. The evaluation is applied to simulated electricity and natural gas consumption for two large office building prototypes located in five U.S. climates. We review the development of degree-day-based, weather-normalization techniques to identify issues for applying the techniques to office buildings and then evaluate the accuracy of the techniques with the simulated data. We conclude that, for the two office building prototypes and five U.S. locations examined, most techniques perform reasonably well; accuracy, in predicting annual consumption, is generally better than 10%. Our major finding is that accuracy among individual techniques is overwhelmed by circumstances outside the control of the analyst, namely, the choice of the initial year from which the normalization estimates are made.

A comparison of time delay spread and signal level measurements within two dissimilar office buildings

A detailed analysis of time delay spread and signal level measurements at 850 MHz was performed within a large office building. The results were compared with studies of a much smaller and dissimilar office building. The results were found to be substantially the same, despite the physical differences of the buildings themselves. This may be due to external geographical features. Overall worst-case root mean square (rms) time delay spreads in the buildings were 250 ns and 218 ns in the larger and smaller building, respectively. However, these values improved to under 100 ns when there was a good direct path between the antennas. Time delay spread was also shown to be independent of relative antenna polarizations of the transmitter and receiver, even on line-of-sight paths. Received signal levels were below -90 dB with reference to the level at 0.3 m separation, in the worst cases.

Consolidation in Hong Kong: the Shui On case

In the first judicial fitting of Hong Kong's new statutory provisions1 for the consolidation of arbitrations, the Hong Kong High Court has tailored an order directing that two separate arbitrations be heard at the same time. In so doing, Hong Kong copies a fashion, first introduced in New York,2 which is about to become a la mode in Europe.3 In the Shui On case,4 a construction company (Shui On) had contracted to build a large twin-towered office building for the Employers. The contract was on a standard form of building contract providing for the arbitration of disputes. Shui On sub-contracted to Schindler Lifts the installation of the building's lifts, but in the end, Schindler did not find it to be an uplifting experience. Shui On's contract with Schindler had terms similar to the main contract's and also contained an arbitration clause. (The High Court discerned no material difference between the arbitration clauses in the two contracts.) Various delays arose in the construction of the buildings, resulting in a non-payment by the Employers of certain progress payments. The Employers alleged that they were not obliged to pay because they had the right to deduct liquidated damages for the delays. Shui On, in turn, did not make related progress payments to Schindler. Shui On contested the Employers' right to deduct liquidated damages but simultaneously maintained that, under the payment terms of the subcontract, it was not obliged to pay Schindler until it had received the progress payment from the Employers. Schindler commenced the proceedings by filing a writ against Shui On, but that action was stayed pending arbitration. Shui On then commenced arbitration against the Employers, and Schindler commenced arbitration against Shui On. Following the failure of the parties to agree on the appointment of an arbitrator, they …

Lois Mailou Jones: The Grande Dame of African-American Art

Her creativity undiminished in her 82nd year, Lois Mailou Jones continues to produce powerful paintings that are bold blend of Western and non-Western aesthetic traditions. In paintings like Ubi Girl from the Tai Region (1972) and Deux Coiffeurs d'Afrique (1982), for example, the flat geometric patterns of color juxtaposed with masks and human forms reflect multiplicity of influences-American, French, Caribbean, and African. These recent images have come full circle: Jones first used masks in Boston in the 1920s when she worked as prop designer for the Ted Shawn Dancers and repertory theater company. During this period she also designed fabrics for F.A. Foster and Schumacher in New York City. However, Jones soon realized that designers remained anonymous, and she was determined to become successful painter. She not only achieved this goal but she also became an inspiring and legendary educator during 47 years of teaching drawing, design, and watercolor painting at Howard University in Washington, D.C., where she was awarded an honorary doctorate in May 1987. Among her students were Elizabeth Catlett and Alma Thomas.' Petite in stature, Jones has warm smile that dominates her expressive features. Whether formally dressed in furs, velvets, and silks, or covered by cotton smock behind her easel, she wears large copper pendant from Haiti representing the voodoo god of the forest, symbol of her ongoing link with Haitian and culture. Born in Boston in 1905, Jones remembers that as a little tot I was always drawing.2 Her mother, Carolyn Jones, worked in beauty shop and designed hats. Her father, Thomas Vreeland Jones, superintendent of large office building, went to law classes in the evening and became lawyer at 40. Each summer, Lois, her older brother John, and their mother escaped the smoke and tar of Boston to the ocean, daisies, and buttercups of Martha's Vineyard, where, Jones claims, her life in art really began. This was partly due to the influence of the black sculptor Meta Warrick Fuller (1877-1968),3 who also spent summers there. Fuller, who had studied with Rodin in Paris, utilized her African and AfricanAmerican heritage in her work. She advised Jones, If you want to be success in your career, you have to go to Paris. Jones began studying art at Boston's High School of Practical Arts and attended Saturday drawing classes at the Boston Museum School of Fine Arts. After her high school graduation in 1923 she won four-year scholarship to the Boston Museum School, where she was the only black student. Although she majored in design, she admired the watercolor paintings of Winslow Homer and John Singer Sargent and began her lifelong habit of carrying watercolor paints outdoors to depict the various moods of nature. Jones still considers watercolor a happy medium to relax with, as within four hours of concentrated work I can capture the essence of scenic view. After completing her studies at the Museum School, Jones applied for an assistantship there. She was turned

Can Union Labor ever Cost Less?

This paper examines the effect of unions on efficiency by estimating cost function systems over three different sets of construction projects. The results show that union contractors have greater economies of scale. This gives them a cost advantage in large commercial office buildings, but in school and hospital construction, nonunion contractors have lower costs at all output levels. Despite the cost differences, profits for nonunion contractors in school and hospital construction are no higher than those for union contractors because the burden of higher union costs is shifted to buyers.

Aesthetic control within the development process: A case study

Summary This paper examines the practice of aesthetic control in town planning as it influences the development of large office buildings in a provincial English town. The practice of control is examined within the development process at large, and within the context of the particular historical, political and planning policy framework of the town of Reading. The main actors shaping and controlling the production of the built form are identified, and their motivation, values, and inputs (and the constraints on the same), briefly discussed. The control side is shown to be in a relatively weak reactive position, despite considerable agreement amongst the various consultees, because it enters into the development process relatively late. Furthermore the universal qualities of speculative office space, and the constraints imposed by the actors in the development team, tend to dictate a standard product. On the other hand, increasingly sophisticated control has successfully prevented the most insensitive devel...

Pentachlorophenol in indoor air: Methods to reduce airborne concentrations

Pentachlorophenol (PCP) is a widely used biocide. It is used in buildings as a wood preservative and as a fungicide in finish materials. Exposure of the general population to trace concentrations is routine. PCP has been found in low concentrations in food, indoor air, many common consumer items, and on the surfaces of playground furnishings and other outdoor uses of wood. Human health effects have not been observed in occupants of buildings with low PCP air concentrations. Increased body burdens have been found in occupants of homes where PCP air concentrations were 0.2–0.4 μg/m 3 and in office workers where PCP air concentrations were 7–10 μg/m 3. Such incidents and the severe toxicity of some commercial PCP contaminants have resulted in efforts to limit population exposures to PCP uses indoors. In a large office building containing PCP-treated timbers, sealing exposed surfaces of treated wood reduced PCP air concentrations from 27 to 5.9 μg/m 3. Improved ventilation further reduced air concentrations to 3.2 μg/m 3. Increased body burdens have been found in a sample of the building's occupants. Recently, the integrity of the sealant appears to have been destroyed and cracks in the beams have appeared. Further research is necessary to determined the longevity of applied sealants and to establish acceptable limits for indoor PCP concentrations.

Leads from the MMWR. Outbreaks of respiratory illness among employees in large office buildings

Leads from the MMWR. Outbreaks of respiratory illness among employees in large office buildings

Factors Affecting Prosocial Behavior

Summary Four experimental treatments were established to compare the effects on helping behavior of brief interpersonal contact and responding to a minor request. Ss were 75 male and 26 female business persons and customers using elevators in a large downtown office building. The Ss overheard one confederate (C 1) give a second confederate (C 2) incorrect information. Ss who had first responded to a minor request of the C 2 were more likely to help this C 2 a second time by correcting the false information than were Ss of whom the minor request was not made (p .50). The results of the study were discussed in terms of several theoretical conceptions dealing with prosocial behavior.

Violation of Personal Space as a Function of Sex

Summary Experimental conditions afforded 215 Ss the option of violation or nonviolation of personal space. Two elevator floor selection panels were available to the Ss, who were the regular occupants of a large downtown office building. In Experiment 1, either a male or a female confederate (C) positioned himself by one of the available panels. The results indicated an overall significant avoidance of personal space violation when possible. If the panel space was occupied by a male, both male and female Ss significantly avoided personal space violations. However, female Ss were less prone to avoid spatial violation of a female C. In Experiment 2, both panels were occupied at the same time. A male C occupied one panel and a female C occupied the other panel, thereby forcing the Ss to violate personal space. When violation of a C's space was unavoidable, male Ss chose to violate female space, while female Ss showed no significant preference.