Multi-Season Assessment of Occupant Responses to Manual Shading and Dynamic Glass in a Workplace Environment

Joon-Ho Choi, Vivian Loftness, Danny Nou, Brandon Tinianov and Dongwoo Yeom
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Joon-Ho Choi: School of Architecture, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA
Vivian Loftness: School of Architecture, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
Danny Nou: VIEW Inc., Milpitas, CA 95035, USA
Brandon Tinianov: VIEW Inc., Milpitas, CA 95035, USA
Dongwoo Yeom: College of Architecture and Design, Lawrence Technological University, Southfield, MI 48075, USA

Energies, 2019, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-20

Abstract: The quality and controllability of the building façade can significantly contribute to building indoor environmental quality (IEQ) as well as the building’s energy efficiency. Advanced technologies that support a façade’s dynamic response to climatic changes, such as electrochromic (dynamic) glazing, have emerged as smart systems for IEQ and environmental sustainability. This research summarizes a four-season study of office workers moving from a floor with conventional blinds to work environments equipped with smart dynamic glazing which changes tint in response to weather condition to control daylighting levels. Multiple occupant environmental satisfaction surveys were conducted over one year to investigate differences in environmental and psychological responses to office settings with manual, and often static, facades as compared to offices with dynamic glazing. This research confirms that dynamic glazing significantly affected occupants’ environmental satisfaction—enhancing individuals’ environmental perceptions and psychological health—as compared to manual blinds. It reveals that the occupants in work environments with dynamic glazing reported 21.7% higher productivity gains, 24.8% increased ability to relax, 12.7% improved concentration, 25.3% better moods and 29.4% greater alertness than when they were in offices in the same building with manual shading devices. Also, the dynamic feature of the smart glazing showed a significant contribution to perceived work productivity while enhancing positive emotional responses by an average of 26%.

Keywords: occupant well-being; dynamic façade; smart windows; electrochromic windows; work productivity; indoor environmental quality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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