BESA Connects you to the Invisible Threat | Indoor Air Quality
BESA Group
The Building Engineering Services Association is the UK's leading trade organisation for building engineering services.
Indoor Air Quality is the invisible threat made visible, it refers to the air quality within buildings, and poor indoor air quality is known to affect the health, comfort, and general well-being of building occupants.
Understanding Indoor Air Quality and why it's so important
We want to help you understand indoor air quality, the importance of good ventilation and improving the air quality in our buildings, schools and our homes. The air you breathe affects every part of your body, from your lungs to your heart and brain.
The World Health Organization identifies several serious long-term illnesses linked to poor air quality, such as asthma, lung cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and other inflammatory conditions.
Additionally, air pollution is the fourth leading cause of death, following cancer, obesity, and heart disease. Unfortunately, being indoors at home or work doesn’t protect you from polluted air.
In the UK, we spend a large proportion of our time indoors - the most common estimate is around 90% of our day. So indoor air quality has a significant impact on our well-being
The UK government emphasises that poor air quality is especially harmful to children, potentially causing lifelong health issues due to prolonged exposure to pollution. Find out more information on Indoor Air Quality.
What are the most common causes of poor indoor air quality?
Understanding the factors that affect air quality is crucial for effectively managing and monitoring indoor air quality. Since indoor air quality can fluctuate hourly and daily, we recommend continuous monitoring to help you maintain and improve the air quality in your buildings and homes
Here are some of the most common air pollutants you should be mindful of
Particulate Matter such as PM10 & PM2.5
Particles are defined by their diameter for air quality regulatory purposes. Those with a diameter of 10 microns or less (PM10) are inhalable into the lungs and can induce adverse health effects. Particulate matter poses serious health problems both outside and indoors. It is recognised by the WHO as one of the air pollutants that is most damaging to human health because it can penetrate via the lungs deep into the bloodstream and organs.
Mould
It’s usually easy to spot when a home has a mould problem, although some types of mould are not visible. Typically, it appears as a dark stain or black growth around windowsills, walls and ceilings. But mould doesn’t just look unsightly - it’s also bad for your health, and for some people, it can be deadly.
Carbon Monoxide
Carbon monoxide is a poisonous, flammable gas that is colourless, odourless, tasteless, and slightly less dense than air.
Carbon Dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a natural gas present in the air and caused by respiration; which can build up in poorly-ventilated spaces. Find out more about Indoor Air Quality
Improving and achieving good indoor air quality
While poor air quality has negative effects on health, the opposite is also true. Improving air quality could benefit national health outcomes, reduce pressure on the NHS and prevent premature deaths.
Good air quality has been shown to improve a range of mental and physical health factors. To improve indoor air quality in our buildings and homes there are number of things we should consider focusing on,
Ensure good standards of ventilation
Ventilation may be achieved naturally (e.g. opening windows, trickle vents etc.), as well as through mechanical ventilation systems, or by a combination of the two.
Reduce sources of pollution
It is important to remember that things like cleaning products; aerosol sprays; paints, carpets, scented candles; glues, resins, cigarettes, printers, photocopiers are indoor pollutants and are thought to be responsible for a range of health problems from headaches and eye irritation to serious long-term illness such as cancer.
Regular monitoring of indoor air quality
In order to improve the indoor air quality in your buildings and homes, you must first understand the problem and continuously monitor the air quality, which can vary, even on an hourly and daily basis.
Our Monitoring & Managing Indoor Air Quality in the Home blog provides top tips for enhancing indoor air quality in your home.
Recommended by LinkedIn
Have you a made a contribution to the health, well-being, and productivity of building occupants by working to improve Indoor Air Quality?This could either be through exceptional work in one project, a series of projects, or through an innovative technical development or practice.
Make sure to provide details of the problems you encountered, how you assessed and addressed the IAQ challenge and what innovations were used. It might also be helpful to explain what standards you worked towards and why.
Top tips on submitting a winning entry
Read the criteria carefully: As you plan your entry, it's important to carefully review the awards criteria. Make sure you provide a clear assessment of the project, person, or team's positive impact, and back it up with evidence.
Make the most of your time: We understand that creating a winning entry takes time, so it's important to make the most of the time you have. Carefully plan your schedule to ensure you have enough time to craft an exceptional entry that truly showcases your achievements.
Tailor make your entry: Remember to keep the judges' criteria in mind and craft an entry that is concise, straightforward, and easy to comprehend.
Indoor Air Quality Awareness
Everyone in building engineering services should have a basic grounding in air quality solutions and be able to explain how poor indoor air affects human health and well-being and the costs of not addressing it properly.
The course will help you to measure, monitor, mitigate unhealthy indoor air and is suitable to all within building engineering services and the wider construction industry. Find Out More about the BESA Academy Indoor Air Quality Awareness Course.
The general election must get people talking about Indoor Air Quality again
The election debate around healthcare has so far been restricted to who is going to spend the most money – but we need more imaginative solutions and a stronger focus on protection and prevention that could shorten waiting lists, reduce prescription costs, and improve the wellbeing outcomes for thousands of people.
While doctors and nurses can treat the symptoms of conditions like asthma and poor lung function, their patients then return to their homes and workplaces where the conditions that cause or worsen the problems still exist – and the cycle continues. Read More Here...
Setting the standards of Indoor Air Quality
BESA has produced a series of concise guides on good practice, including A Beginner's Guide to Indoor Air Quality, Indoor Air Quality for Health & Well-Being, Buildings as Safe Havens. and a Practical Guide to Mould.
These free resources are designed to assist building owners, managers, and engineers in interpreting indoor air quality (IAQ) data and developing effective strategies to improve the indoor environment.
By setting the standards for IAQ, BESA helps you understand how to enhance air quality in buildings and homes, empowering you to take meaningful steps toward healthier indoor space. Download our Indoor Air Quality Guides today
Clean Air Day
On 20th June we we celebrated #CleanAirDay by championing the cause of cleaner, healthier air for all. This event was more than just a gathering; it was a call to action to keep clean air at the top of the agenda.
Chair of the Indoor Air Quality Group, Adam Taylor gave a speech on going beyond compliance to protect the nation's health; IAQ in a post-Covid era.
Thank you to Nuaire & Soler & Palau Ventilation Group for sponsoring the event.
BESA are committed to keeping air quality at the forefront of the agenda for businesses. Through collaboration and shared expertise, we can set the standards and ensure that everyone has the knowledge and resources to implement best practices for cleaner air.
Save the date
World Ventil8 Day is back on Friday 8 November 2024!