[ad_1]
Allison Mckenzie of SHP explores how designers can higher incorporate the ideas of the WELL Constructing Normal into their work.
It is a query we’ve been asking our shoppers—and ourselves—since earlier than COVID-19 fully modified the world. However the emergence of a worldwide pandemic has introduced into sharper aid a pattern that’s slowly however certainly gaining traction: how the constructed surroundings can help occupant well being and wellness.
This growth is a welcome one. Sustainability has been a sizzling matter inside our discipline for many years, however I’d argue that we can not construct a really sustainable future with out additionally taking human well being under consideration. These points are uniquely intertwined, in spite of everything; a extra sustainable world will finally help the well-being of humanity.
To that finish, designers and designers have an obligation to think about a constructing’s human impression, in addition to its environmental footprint—and this higher collective concentrate on well being and wellbeing has opened the door to the potential of the WELL Constructing Normal. How can we higher incorporate these ideas into our work?
WELL: Alternatives and Challenges
Much like how LEED (Management in Vitality and Environmental Design), probably the most extensively used inexperienced constructing ranking system on this planet, goals to measure and enhance a constructing’s environmental impression by way of design, the WELL Constructing Normal seeks to quantify a constructing’s human impression. Developed over 10 years in the past by the Worldwide WELL Constructing Institute (IWBI), WELL units pathways for supporting bodily and psychological wellbeing throughout 10 core ideas, together with air, water, nourishment, gentle, motion, thermal consolation, sound, supplies, thoughts, group and innovation. And whereas each of those techniques purpose to supply necessary frameworks for designing wholesome and sustainable buildings, WELL is way broader in scope than LEED. LEED is targeted on components like clear air and water, the safety of biodiversity and the usage of sustainable supplies; WELL, however, is targeted on the bigger human expertise.
The WELL customary is a wonderful method for designers and constructing house owners to prioritize the human impression of their buildings, however it additionally poses a novel problem—it requires a a lot completely different method from a sensible standpoint. Not like LEED, the place architects can train numerous affect over how program necessities are met all through the design and development course of, WELL certification depends on sure operational methods to achieve success. A WELL-certified constructing should promote motion and foster bodily exercise amongst its occupants, for example; it additionally requires the supply of contemporary meals and dietary transparency.
The long-term procedural, cultural, structural and operational insurance policies required of WELL Constructing Requirements typically fall out of our management as designers and designers. Certainly, the dedication required by constructing house owners could also be one of many greatest hurdles dealing with widespread WELL constructing adoption.
Incorporating WELL Requirements
The purpose of a WELL-certified constructing will finally fall to the constructing house owners, however common design ideas can assist shoppers obtain more healthy buildings, even when they don’t match strictly inside WELL Constructing Requirements. A few of the finest practices that we have to advocate for in design embrace:
- Air: air flow, circulation, filtration, IAQ, operable home windows and smoke-free environments
- Water: high quality, purification, hygiene, reuse and water filling stations
- Nourishment: cafeteria design, public gardens and edible landscaping
- Mild: daylighting, lighting controls and air pollution mitigation
- Motion: ergonomic and energetic furnishings, centrally situated stairs and website planning
- Thermal consolation: zoning, humidity and constructing controls
- Sound: acoustic design, noise administration, reverberation and discount
- Supplies: low-VOC paints, wholesome surfaces, supplies choice and waste assortment and administration techniques
- Thoughts: entry to nature, coloration principle and restorative areas
- Group: ingress and egress, accessibility, inclusivity and common design ideas
- Innovation: Cell hand-washing stations, bipolar ionization and answering the query, “Wouldn’t it’s nice if…”
These components of the WELL Constructing Normal have been featured within the design of a brand new Cincinnati workplace for the advertising and marketing company gyro (now Merkle B2B). The brand new area wanted to be on-brand, aesthetically pleasing and a useful surroundings for gyro’s workforce of creatives and strategic leaders—however with some intentional design decisions. The area was additionally designed to be a more healthy, extra supportive surroundings for workers.
The ultimate design included a cluster of personal workplace areas that might permit workers to drown out the hustle and bustle of the fashionable office and concentrate on necessary tasks, loads of pure gentle and a lush, self-sufficient dwelling wall. The completed area meets the crucial wants set forth by the enterprise, but additionally reveals an admirable quantity of dedication to the well being and well-being of its occupants—even when the constructing itself isn’t formally WELL-certified. This method is one thing that every one of us within the AEC business can think about as we plan and design new tasks.
The following step in making WELL requirements extra accessible? Connecting our shoppers with the mandatory assets and partnerships that may help long-term constructing upkeep and operations. In any case, good constructing design ideas must be accompanied by each one-off methods and ongoing assets and insurance policies that promote a more healthy constructing. As designers, we are able to design a constructing that promotes well being, consolation, security and satisfaction and we are able to preserve that momentum going by implementing long-term partnerships that preserve the constructing as wholesome, as WELL, as it may be.
[ad_2]
Source link
