If you’re pursuing higher levels of certification and have a building automation system (BAS) in place already, consider this credit. To earn it you’ll need to implement two forms of thermal comfort monitoring, including continuous monitoring of air temperature and humidity, and periodic measurements of air speed and radiant temperature. 

Once you’ve confirmed that you have or can implement the required monitoring, the credit requires that you also determine acceptable boundaries for thermal comfort in the building based off of ASHRAE 55-2010 or one of two alternative international standards. That means that pursuing the credit requires some engineering expertise in order to set the appropriate boundaries and put a system in place to track and verify performance.

One bright note is that under LEED v4, humidity monitoring can now be at the system (air handler unit—AHU) level, rather than in all occupiable spaces as was required in LEED 2009. This should make the credit somewhat more feasible from a cost perspective.

What’s New in LEED v4

• The referenced standard has been updated to ASHRAE 55–2010. For an explanation of changes from the 2004 version of the standard, refer to ASHRAE Journal (June 2011).
• The credit now includes international standards to provide more relevant compliance options for non-U.S. projects.
• The credit now requires humidity monitoring at the humidity zone level (e.g., for each air-handling system) instead of in each occupied space.
• USGBC has established new compliance paths for data centers, which must satisfy only the credit requirements in regularly occupied spaces.

Readiness Review Questions

• Are you performing continuous monitoring for air temperature, radiant temperature, humidity, and air speed? If not, can appropriate sensors be added to cover an adequate portion of occupied spaces? 

• Do you have a system in place to respond to thermal comfort system alarms or occupant complaints with appropriate corrective actions in a timely manner? 

• Are building engineers or third party technicians available and capable
 of performing periodic testing of air speed and radiant temperature?