Nearly half of our total waking hours on any given day are spent at work. Add the time spent at home, and humans spend an extraordinary amount of time shuttered inside. It’s vital our workspaces inspire and promote total well-being. Green initiatives reimagine the modern office space as a productive, healthy place to spend time. Technology is a vital part of how we improve our workspaces.

A Harvard Study on indoor air quality and the built environment found worker cognitive scores were 61 percent better on a “green building day” and 101 percent higher on the “Green+ building” day. What did they do? They used technology to monitor and control the air quality in the office environment.  A “Green+” day simulated high outdoor air ventilation rate and low concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOC)s.

As part of the Well Building Standard, certified buildings use technology to enhance its construction or to monitor its interior conditions, like air quality. Essentially, Well Buildings apply tech to help their occupants feel better and have a productive working environment. Technology that helps includes:

Air quality monitoring

According to Comfy, temperature plays a major role in office space comfort. Their monitoring system and app gives tenants the power to adjust workspace conditions like temperature to meet their needs. However, indoor air quality isn’t just adjusting temperature and humidity levels. Particulates, dust, and chemicals constantly float through our environment. Air quality monitoring systems like the one by TZOA alert users to poor air quality and activates infiltration systems to process the pollution.

Lighting control systems

People need control over lighting systems to optimize their comfort. Too bright or too dark can cause eye-strain related headaches and migraines. Cisco has a Digital Ceiling framework, which combines the power of lighting, heating, cooling, and sensors into a single solution. The Digital Ceiling uses LED lights controlled by IoT. Digital Lumens is another example of tech in commercial real estate lighting control, specifically in the industrial space. In addition to kicking on and off, the sensors in the lights pick up on occupancy, which works with other building systems to not waste heating or cooling empty spaces.

Smart Window Technology

Advances in smart windows allow users to adjust their interior lighting based on exterior conditions. This allows for users to control the natural light based on their needs and time of day. The smart windows are controlled via a mobile app to dim or brighten spaces. ViewGlass’ dynamic glass technology offers four dimming levels to increase interior comfort levels. Not only does this control the amount of light, but it assists with heating or cooling spaces to user comfort.

All of these innovations have two driving factors: improve a commercial building’s operating efficiency and improving the comfort of its occupants. Truly, tech can help us feel better about our work spaces.