Indoor Air Quality

I was reminded today about how much our industry has changed over the past few years. Why you might ask?

As an example, today I stimulated and participated in a conference with the project’s environmental engineer (Chris Belcher with Pinnacle Environmental) . Now, I’m pretty sure 20 years ago environmental engineers worked in industrial engagements. I’m all but sure the concept of having a team member lead a thoughtful discussion about how to create an appropriate inside air environment would have never been an agenda item.

Today, we talked about dust control, protecting material (like duct work) from being contaminated during construction with dust or (heaven forbid) creating an environment for mold to prosper, relative humidity inside the building during construction and methods to manage, techniques for monitoring the same, how to protect gypsum board from creating a home for mold growth, appropriate carpet adhesives and so forth.

I’m sure we all end up with better buildings and this of course is a good thing. But the development teams of the past are a far cry from what the market wants/needs today.