Ventilation in Commercial Projects should not be forgotten

The NCC provides fantastic guidelines for ensuring safety and integrity in design but at times, can leave you scratching your head for a solution to a problem. Take natural ventilation combined with restricted openings for example. 

On one hand, the rooms we use must have natural ventilation from ‘permanent openings, windows, doors or other devices’, while on the other, child safety measures stipulate strict rules around window open-sizes in buildings at certain levels above the ground. 

So how do you provide natural ventilation to comply with building requirements when faced with a requirement for restricted openings? In this example, conventional operable windows such as windows or louvres may not provide a practical solution so what would you do? 

Enter, AWS Trickle Vent™. 

This innovative unit allows natural ventilation and adaptive flow based on the outside air temperature. Integrating into the window or door system means there are no additional penetrations in the building envelope while delivering secure, continual background ventilation making it ideal for frequently locked or closed rooms.  Passive, natural ventilation for variably occupied rooms makes AWS Ventient ideal for education projects, commercial and healthcare applications, accommodation or multi-storey houses.  

In short, AWS Trickle Vent has been specifically designed for use in any building where natural ventilation is required without compromising occupant comfort, acoustics and building compliance.  

Commercial & Office - As part of a total ventilation system AWS Trickle Vent allows natural air infiltration to offset heating and cooling demand in buildings. The unique design of AWS Trickle Vent automatically adjusts the size of the ventilation inlet as ambient temperature changes. The manual override function allows occupants to control ventilation to suit if required. 

Residential & Accommodation - Homes are often locked up for extended periods during the day. AWS Trickle Vent is an ideal solution for residential buildings such as modern airtight medium and high-rise developments, providing ventilation when occupants are away.

Schools & Institutions – Due to high occupancy rates, classrooms required at least 10 times more fresh air than houses. The NZ Ministry of Education (2015) states that an adequate level of CO2 in a classroom to support student concentration is between 600-800 parts per million (ppm) before productivity and wellbeing become negatively impacted. The World Health Organisation recommends an upper limit of 1000ppm globally. 

Two independent studies in NZ identified that in 12 out of 35 (Mclntosh, 2011) and 4 out of 5 (Cutler-Welsh, 2006) naturally ventilated classrooms, the average level of CO2 was over 1,000 ppm during school hours for 50% of the time. A 2015 study by Massey University identified that in 40 schools across Auckland, only 40% of teachers open windows throughout the day to provide natural ventilation. 

Without fresh air flow, children are exposed to avoidably high levels of respirable pathogens and carbon dioxide. 

AWS Trickle Vent provides safe, quiet and secure outdoor air infiltration without human intervention. There are vast differences in student performances when exposed to high vs low CO2 levels so choose AWS Trickle Vent as an ideal solution for variably occupied buildings such as schools and Institutions. 

Health & Aged Care - Improved ventilation has a positive impact on the health of aged care residents. AWS Trickle Vent provides good ventilation while maintaining the safety of the building’s occupants.

 

---