Can you feel whether a building is good for your health? Whilst ‘feeling’ whether a building is good for your health could be considered intangible, it is well documented (with its own page on the NHS website[1]), that ‘sick building syndrome’ is a condition that can have severe health impacts[2]. There is no defined or understood cause of Sick Building Syndrome other than assumptions that it could be to do with poor ventilation, off-gassing of materials or poor lighting amongst others. Therefore, if we can experience ‘sick building syndrome’ without known cause, by default we must be able to feel and experience the opposite ‘healthy building syndrome’ if you will, which would be defined as a building that can improve your wellbeing and health.
So in the context of ‘healthy building syndrome’ what is wellbeing? The World Health Organisation define wellbeing as the following:
‘Well-being is a positive state experienced by individuals and societies. Similar to health, it is a resource for daily life and is determined by social, economic and environmental conditions. Well-being encompasses quality of life and the ability of people and societies to contribute to the world with a sense of meaning and purpose. Focusing on well-being supports the tracking of the equitable distribution of resources, overall thriving and sustainability. A society’s well-being can be determined by the extent to which it is resilient, builds capacity for action, and is prepared to transcend challenges.’ [3]
Therefore, it can be summarised that in the context of building design:
- Wellbeing can be felt as a ‘positive state’
- Wellbeing is determined by environmental conditions
We know that we can use design to certain targets to achieve optimal comfort, health and wellbeing. These are defined most typically by the BCO Guide to Specification which defines the healthy targets for humidity, temperature etc. which are further enhanced by the WELL Building Standards criteria for Air such as ‘A01.1 Meet Thresholds for Particulate Matter and A06.2 Improve Ventilation Effectiveness’ amongst others. Meeting these criteria should make for a healthy building.
Further enhancements are through the Daylighting and Material features, ensuring products have very limited off-gassing, chemicals etc. and chemicals are limited/removed in the operation and maintenance of the building.
However, when it comes to look & feel and how a space is perceived, material selection and visual representation of wellbeing is just as important as the technical aspects detailed above. WELL therefore also encourages use of natural materials, biophilia and views of nature through the Mind and Materials features.
And whilst trends in office design are incorporating those features, how do we keep the ‘feeling’ of a healthy building fresh, innovative and exciting? Listed below are 5 examples of materials that can be used in office design to meet the Mind and Materials features, whilst being interesting and innovative:
- Innovative materials such as clay plaster https://clay-works.com/
- Different textures such as tiles made from sea shells https://www.dezeen.com/2020/08/28/sea-stone-newtab-22-design-shells-materials/
- Natural finishes such as cork https://puretreecork.com/products/cork-flooring
- Fabrics made with natural materials https://www.camirafabrics.com/en-uk/contract/fabrics/main-line-flax
- Hemp based products https://hempblock.co.uk/our-products
One building in particular which has employed some of the above (plus other materials such as timber) have been very successful in the London office market, is The Black and White Building which imparts a sense of calm, meditative and restorative space despite being located in the heart of Shoreditch, London. This is further enhanced by the sense of craftsmanship (therefore lack of adhesives) that make this building feel crafted and cared for, again contributing to a sense of health & wellbeing.
In summary, designers should ensure that as many of the WELL credits are targeted to achieve a healthy building, over and above the BCO guide. However ‘healthy buildings’ don’t need to be caricatured by being a building covered in timber and pot plants to make it healthy, it’s about the intangible as well as the tangible. And typically when high-quality, natural, crafted materials are used they not only look better and maintain better they will likely last a lot longer too.
[1] https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/sick-building-syndrome/
Project Wellbeing 