Impacting the distribution of air and the Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) of commercial premises, HVAC systems play an essential role in the health and safety of your building occupants. The ongoing global pandemic and emerging evidence of aerosol transmission of the SARS-COV-2 virus has put the spotlight on ventilation systems in all types of commercial premises. Here’s the critical question – Is your building’s ventilation system contributing to the spread of viruses and diseases? Do you have sufficient measures in place to purify the air, enhance IAQ, and mitigate the risk of transmission?
The qualified and experienced HVAC professionals at TRI-AIR Systems offer insights on identifying and resolving the problem of poor IAQ in your commercial premises.
How Does Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Affect People in Your Commercial Premises
The occupants of buildings with poor IAQ may report a wide range of health issues. Typically, they may fall under one of these categories:
- Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) or Tight Building Syndrome (TBS): SBS or TBS does not pinpoint specific illnesses or causes. Essentially, they describe the cases of those building occupants who experience adverse health effects by spending time in the ventilated spaces.
- Building-Related Illness (BRI): These are attributable to a specific cause within your building premises. For example, Legionnaires disease, which occurs due to bacterial contamination of commercial air conditioning systems, is a BRI that may affect multiple occupants in your premises at a certain time.
- Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (MCS): MCS refers to the adverse reactions that specific individuals may experience because of the presence of chemicals in the indoor air of your building. These could be due to the use of particular carpet cleaning or sanitation products or even certain manufacturing activities that lead to the release of chemicals in the air.
Similar to other occupational illnesses, the conditions caused by poor IAQ may not impact all the building occupants with the same symptoms or to the same extent. While those prone to allergies or other chronic medical conditions may experience severe illness, others may remain entirely unaffected or develop symptoms only after prolonged exposure to this environment.
Are your building occupants complaining about one or more of the below symptoms of poor IAQ?
- Constant headaches or fatigue
- Nausea or dizziness
- Coughing, sneezing or aggravation of allergies
- Shortness of breath
- Dryness or irritation of the eyes, nose, throat, or skin
Many of these symptoms may be the result of other underlying health conditions or diseases. However, if an increasing number of building occupants experience these issues or report sick, it may indicate poor IAQ that needs rectification. Installing air filters, cleaners, and air purifiers in your ventilated spaces are among the most cost-efficient solutions to improving IAQ. While air filters, such as the High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters reduce the dust, pollen, and toxins in the air, UV air purifiers or air cleaners sanitize the air by neutralizing the air-borne pathogens, including virus, bacteria, or fungal matter.
Consult TRI-AIR to Improve the Health and Safety of Your Building Occupants
There is no substitute for measures, such as mask-wearing, physical distancing, or hand hygiene for controlling the spread of viruses or diseases in your commercial premises. However, improving the air distribution, increasing air-exchange rates, and removing or diluting aerosols can help you achieve a high-quality ventilated environment that is safe and comfortable for your building occupants. The technicians at TRI-AIR have decades of experience in creating and maintaining healthy ventilated spaces. Besides installing and maintaining commercial ventilation systems, we stock a range of top-of-the-line UV air purifying solutions, including UVMatrix 4X air purifiers, Sanuvox UV air sterilization systems, and Fresh-Aire UV air purifiers.
Call 905-470-2424 or contact us online for reliable, 24-hour commercial HVAC services. Our experts provide a range of solutions for enhanced IAQ and cleaner air to help you mitigate the risk of disease or virus transmission in your commercial building.
