Use annual surveys to track occupant comfort issues over time. Map out an administrative timeline for distributing the initial survey as well as annual follow-up surveys.
Survey responses must be collected anonymously, but it’s also important to match responses to particular building locations or zones so that you can take the right corrective action.
Make sure your survey is set up to capture a wide range of responses for each question. For example, present answers on a 7-point scale ranging from “very satisified” (+3) to “very dissatisfied” (-3) with a neutral (0) midpoint. You can adjust the scale increments to fit your needs; using a 7-point scale is not a credit requirement.
This credit references ASHRAE Standard 55-2004, Thermal Comfort Conditions for Human Occupancy. This standard specifies the combination of indoor environment (temperature, thermal radiation, humidity and airspeed) and personal factors (occupant activity and clothing) that typically make at least 80% of building occupants comfortable.
The CBE online survey tool is available for free to CBE Consortium members. The fee for non-members is $1,000 per building. Customizing the survey costs more, but isn’t needed to earn this credit.
The Center for the Built Environment (CBE) offers an effective online survey tool that collects the required data and provides a completed report upon completion. (See Resources.)
You don’t need to create your own survey—you can follow someone else’s template to ensure that your survey contains all the required topic areas. See the Documentation Toolkit for a basic Sample Occupant Survey.
The most common mistake with this credit is to use a survey that doesn’t include questions covering each of the six required occupant comfort categories.
Costs will vary depending on the level of measurement and verification work that may be completed by in-house staff. There may be costs associated with installing additional sensors and measurement equipment for air temperature and humidity. It may be cheaper in some cases to purchase handheld measuring devices for building use and perform the periodic measurements in-house.
