The Biophilic Office – December update
Biophilic design is about bringing us back into contact with nature. It is not just about incorporating plants — although that is often a factor — but also making use of natural materials and textures, colour variations, lighting and daylight, personalised workspaces, views, refuge spaces and much more.
In a study that which is one of the first of its kind in the world, the entire floor of a working office building on the BRE campus in Watford — and the 40 people occupying that floor — are the focus of wide-ranging testing and monitoring before-and-after the office is refurbished according to biophilic principles.
The subject of the refurbishment is a 1980s office building on the BRE campus site at Watford. It has a mainly cellular layout with some open plan space and is typical of office buildings up and down the UK and in many parts of world.
The space will be refurbished in early 2019. Prior to that — throughout 2018 and the beginning of 2019 — office conditions are being extensively monitored and the occupants’ wellbeing investigated. This will be continued for a year after refurbishment, giving comparable before-and-after data.
Previous research has shown that being in a natural environment, or even viewing depictions of nature, can have a positive impact on people’s wellbeing. But the fact that we spend the great majority of our lives in buildings isolates us from its beneficial effects.
For more on the project go to www.bregroup.com/biophilic. CIAT are a dissemination partner, playing an important role communicating project outputs to members and engaging in its development.
There is also a LinkedIn group for the project which you can join and contribute and share your experiences. You can also follow on Twitter using #biophilicoffice.
Early findings and initial designs
Initial investigations of the quality of the indoor environment — factors such as lighting, temperature, CO2 and VOC levels, relative humidity and acoustics — found that whilst lighting is poor in some areas of the building, in general these issues are within prescribed levels. When asked about office conditions, however, most occupants rated the look and feel of their office as ‘Poor’, and 67% reported that they would not really want to show clients or colleagues around.
Other aspects of wellbeing being currently monitored include fitness, ability to concentrate and stress levels. Occupants have been given wearable technology to monitor heart rate, activity levels and sleep patterns.
The project’s design partner — Oliver Heath Design — has consulted with occupants on their current working conditions, comfort needs and business requirements. Based on this, and findings reported in other reports on the building’s working conditions, they are designing areas with different biophilic design approaches, so that a wide range of design features can be investigated. The project’s core innovation partners are also heavily engaged in this process, providing their knowledge and expertise in acoustics, lighting, colours and finishes, plants and more.
Call for Papers - Wellness & Biophilia Symposium, 6 & 7 June 2019
BRE is inviting proposals from anyone working on biophilic design projects and in related areas of health and wellbeing in the workplace. The two-day conference will feature an array of international speakers and the latest research in an immersive and interactive two-day event based around the project, and site tours to nearby ‘biophilic’ themed satellite projects and showcases. Go to www.bregroup.com/biophilia/conference for more information.
CIAT member discount
There is an early bird discount for the conference which runs until the end of January, however CIAT members can also continue to claim a 20% discount by using the code CIAT20 when booking. There are also sponsorship and exhibiting opportunities.