The missing link - Next generation IEQ lab with ultimate flexibility

In responding to the challenge of greenhouse emission reductions, intense international attention has turned to energy efficiency in the way we design and operate built environments. However, the risk of compromising Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) for building occupants with indiscriminate efficiency measures is high. It is not surprising that there is an intensification of IEQ related research activity; driven mainly by the simple fact that indoor comfort, particularly through air conditioning, typically accounts for more than half of a commercial building's operational energy. In response to these fundamental drivers, a next generation of Indoor Environment Quality Laboratory, with ultimate flexibility, is under construction at the University of Sydney's Faculty of Architecture, Design and Planning. For the first time, Australia's research community and the broader building sector can examine how multiple IEQ factors combine to affect human comfort, productivity and health outcomes for occupants in built environments.