“We no longer get an afternoon slump,” Delia Batt sums up her experience working every day in the new office, laughing. Batt is an associate at the British real estate consultancy Gerald Eve, and is a member of the companies ESG steering group. Since June 2022, she and 400 of her colleagues have been working in new accommodation in the chic heart of the London West End.

Image Above: 400 colleagues are working in the new accommodation in the chic heart of the London West End. (Photo | Andrea Artz)

The 2,425 sqm office is spread over two floors, with a range of facilities on each level. Level 1 features a client lounge, a multi purpose room, two open plan working areas, an open plan touch down area and a dedicated meeting room. Moving to Level 2, there is an extra open plan working area, a library and a silent work room.

Good air rounds off the broad-minded, modern ambiance and has contributed to a reduction in employees afternoon fatigue.

Image Above: Delia Batt appreciates the good, productive working atmosphere. (Photo: Andrea Artz | Fotogloria)

Three questions about air quality

Before moving to the newly renovated space in the pioneering building One Fitzroy, built in 2015, the company had three questions on its agenda, which were also linked to the quality of the air in the rooms:

1. How can I get my workforce back into the office to work together after working from home during the pandemic?

2. How can the climate of the new office also promote health and well-being in general?

3. And how do I monitor the air quality to meet the requirements of the BREEAM and Fitwel sustainability certificates?

From order to certification in no time at all

Tony Wright, Divisional Director & Head of UK Sales – Digital Solutions ebm-papst, was asked for advice and provided answers to these questions: “We suggested certification by RESET.”

The RESET international air quality standard involves continuous real-time measurement of the air. Wright and his team studied the building plans, identified the optimum positions for the sensors and agreed on the plan with RESET.

Nine sensors powered by AWAIR Omni across both floors now continuously measure CO2 content, temperature, relative humidity, total volatile organic compounds and particulate matter (PM2.5). The monitoring data is delivered to Awair Cloud, a RESET Accredited Data Provider platform that then uploads the data to the RESET Cloud for auditing.

“It’s simply a good feeling to know that you are breathing in good air throughout the day!”

- Tom Marshall, Partner at Gerald Eve

Image Above: Tom Marshall (left) leads the sustainability strategy at Gerald Eve - and sees air quality as a key factor for satisfied employees. Tony Wright from ebm-papst neo implemented the RESET certification in Gerald Eve's chic new London office. (Photo: Andrea Artz | Fotogloria)

“Since we implemented the plan during the renovation, we were able to simply lay Ethernet cables to the sensors, which also take care of the power supply,” explains Wright.

By leveraging PoE (power over Ethernet), this was an ideal solution in three ways:

1. Only one cable is required for data and power.

2. Unlike a USB-C supply, which is commonly used, employees are not tempted to quickly charge their cell phones, which deactivates the sensors.

3. And finally, the integrated cables are also the most visually clean implementation. They simply look like stylish, unobtrusive light switches on the wall.

Image Above: Find the sensor! The inconspicuous air meters blend into the interior like a light switch. (Photo: Andrea Artz | Fotogloria)

After the sensors were approved, the three-month certification process began in June 2022, during which time the RESET Data Audit detects whether the IAQ parameters were consistently within a defined range.

Turnkey implementation

The ebm-papst UK digital team provided a complete turnkey solution taking the project from initial enquiry through to certification. This involved acting as the RESET AP (accredited professional) and navigating the entire RESET process, from the design phase of figuring out where the optimum locations are for installing the monitors, supplying and commissioning the indoor air quality sensors, making sure that the uploaded sensor data to the Awair bespoke cloud-based dashboard is also successfully pushed to the RESET Cloud for auditing.

In total, the ebm-papst UK digital team took the project from order placement to the certification audit within six weeks, meeting the Gerald Eve deadline to move into their newly fitted office.

“Introducing RESET is one of the simplest and most cost-effective ways to increase air quality in rooms,” says Tony Wright with confidence.

Image Above: Always knowing what's going on in the air: Tony Wright and Delia Batt take a look at the sensor data. (Photo: Andrea Artz | Fotogloria)

Facility management is also on board with leveraging the sensor data for a healthier indoor environment. If the sensors register the deterioration of a parameter, Facility Management is responsible for remedying the problem. Deborah McVerry, who leads the FM team comments: “Short-term deviations may indicate that a ventilation unit has failed. A long-term downward trend can be attributed to maintenance, cleanliness or filter problems. We are then able to raise issues with the building management team for resolution in a timely manner.”

Good air makes a good impression

Gerald Eve can tell the workforce about the measured values. “It’s simply a good feeling to know that you are breathing in good air throughout the day,” says Tom Marshall, who leads the environmental strategy at Gerald Eve. “The well-being and health of our employees is key to Gerald Eve. A healthy environment not only avoids fatigue and other direct problems, but it also prevents long-term illnesses.”

Image Above: ebm-papst commissioned the sensors via the Awair mobile App. (Photo: Andrea Artz | Fotogloria)

Having reliable data with RESET to achieve this objective not only brings advantages for Gerald Eve in house: “As a real estate consultant it is important that we really live the values that we promote and represent. Good air makes good sense for our colleagues, clients and visitors.”

Original Article published here. Case Study above includes additional content.