Occupant Surveys & Thermal Comfort Verification

Thanks, Tristan! I didn't see that phrase in the Thermal Comfort credit about validation, so that's a consolation. I agree, I'm not sure what it means, and it's not very robust, given that you could likely interpret it as permission to ask 1-2 people whether they feel comfortable enough or not, and call it a day!

I think part of the issue here is that it was replaced in the 1st public comment draft with an Occupant Survey credit, which was then taken out in the 2nd public comment draft, so it was really in the 2nd phase that this occurred.

Either way, I hope that folks are able to see clearly where credits have been removed entirely. I'm unclear about why the official LEED documents don't do this for this credit (in any of the drafts), so I'll check in with someone at USGBC about it. Thanks!

I've submitted this comment through the official form, but wanted to post to LEEDUser, in the hopes of sharing this issue with others. Happy to start discussion, with the little time we have left:

This comment is to urge the re-placement of the Thermal Comfort Verification credit, more commonly known as the occupant survey credit, in the BD&C rating system. I appreciate that it is in EBOM, and I appreciate the theoretical construct of the USGBC staff in believing that it should be removed from the BD&C rating systems. But I respectfully disagree. For three major reasons:

1. Procedurally. It was not highlighted as a change in the 2nd or 3rd drafts of LEED 2012. This is a procedural anomaly, or, one might argue, a violation. Typically, changes are highlighted to the commenting public, so that we can decide as a community if we agree with the suggested changes. This change was not noted anywhere. One would have to sit with the 2012 draft next to the 2009 rating system to see the difference.

2. For the sake of market transformation. Sure, occupant surveying doesn't fit conveniently in the schedule of a BD&C project. However, it is still of utmost importance that architects, engineers, and the rest of the design team hear about the outcomes of their designs, NOT JUST THE OWNERS. If this credit only exists in EBOM, it will mean that we have eliminated this feedback loop for designers.

3. Because it's the best solution we have right now. I know we're all working on better, more streamlined ways to measure buildings, and occupant satisfaction, and happiness, and all of these wonderful lofty goals. But let's not eliminate the credit we have now, with nascent plans for the future. I would have loved to have seen this credit get better in LEED 2012, as so many other credits have. And I certainly attempted to do so. But worst case scenario, I'd rather see the 2009 version stay in, than nothing at all. It WILL continue to have a noticeable positive impact on the building industry- it is not wasted space, nor wasted credit allocation. Nor does it seem to be 'worth' considerably less than other process-related credits. I trust that it will be better than nothing. I urge you to trust with me. More architects and engineers will start making occupant feedback a part of their practice, if we keep this in. More surveys will be conducted, helping us to learn from our successes and mistakes.

And I think it goes without saying that the new phrase "Validate that the design criteria have been met..." in the Thermal Comfort credit will be pretty ineffective, as written. I mean, I'm sure I'm not alone on that opinion. That's got CIRs written ALL over it. Verify how? And with how many people? And analyze how? and what variables? Hard to believe that's a final draft.
Suggestion: Re-instate the Thermal Comfort Verification credit in the final, balloted version of LEED 2012. Then we can work together to improve the practice of occupant surveying, as a community, to improve the effectiveness of this practice in our industry. This would be, at least, not a step backwards.