Smart Technology in Indoor Air Quality management

Abstract

Although people spend 90% of their time indoors, the issue of indoor air pollution had not gained interest as compared to outdoor until the global Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic made people and the scientific community realise the importance of good indoor air quality in tackling such health crises. There has been heightened public awareness and stricter air quality guidelines which the facility managers are responsible to address. As a response, they are shifting to innovative approaches and utilising smart indoor air quality (IAQ) technologies available to manage the IAQ better. Various smart technologies and services are available in the market which measure, monitor and report indoor air quality solutions. This research aims to explore: How does the adoption of smart IAQ technologies help the facility managers of Dutch universities and what are the barriers to it? The context is chosen to be university buildings due to the impact of IAQ on cognitive functions and the rising demand for health and comfort in educational spaces. This exploratory research includes theoretical desk research, qualitative case studies and interviews. The current status of different smart technology service providing companies are researched and evaluated. The use and benefits of these technologies in three Dutch universities is explored through the case studies and interviews with their facility managers. The interviews add to identifying barriers to the technologies from the perspective of a facility manager. A cross case analysis is done to compare and contrast the findings. One of the case studies is further investigated to get an in-depth understanding of the barriers to adoption from a different stakeholder perspective. The results show that the adoption and utilisation of smart IAQ technologies, depending on their level, can help the facility managers of Dutch universities in maintaining and enhancing an optimum indoor air quality, ensuring occupant health & safety, and taking a proactive role by making data driven decisions. However, there are several barriers in the process such as lack of knowledge, resources and manpower, conflict of stakeholders, split incentive, security issues and active involvement of facility managers in the process. The research lastly suggests recommendations to overcome these barriers to make use of these technologies effectively and to their full potential.