Efficiency vs. Effectiveness:
With any mechanical ventilation system, there is a trade-off between optimizing occupant comfort and controlling operating costs. Common measurements for assessing effectiveness or the level of comfort among occupants include a variety of parameters such as temperature, humidity, air velocity, ventilation, vibration and noise. Individual perception plays a significant role since comfort is both physical and psychological and can vary greatly by individual. What is
comfortable for one person may be too warm for the next and too cool for a third.
When maximizing the operating efficiency of a system, a number of factors must be considered including fuel source and cost, electrical consumption, air filtration, equipment life, maintenance costs and more. These expenditures are often very visible. Controlling them has a direct impact on the day-to-day cost of building operation and can impact a company’s profitability. Reducing HVAC operating expenditures to a point where occupants are dissatisfied has other costs associated with it, including increased costs due to absenteeism, loss of people due to employee turnover, recruiting, training and decreased productivity to name but a few. So it is important to balance comfort against cost so both are optimized.
With any mechanical ventilation system, there is a trade-off between optimizing occupant comfort and controlling operating costs. Common measurements for assessing effectiveness or the level of comfort among occupants include a variety of parameters such as temperature, humidity, air velocity, ventilation, vibration and noise. Individual perception plays a significant role since comfort is both physical and psychological and can vary greatly by individual. What is
comfortable for one person may be too warm for the next and too cool for a third.
When maximizing the operating efficiency of a system, a number of factors must be considered including fuel source and cost, electrical consumption, air filtration, equipment life, maintenance costs and more. These expenditures are often very visible. Controlling them has a direct impact on the day-to-day cost of building operation and can impact a company’s profitability. Reducing HVAC operating expenditures to a point where occupants are dissatisfied has other costs associated with it, including increased costs due to absenteeism, loss of people due to employee turnover, recruiting, training and decreased productivity to name but a few. So it is important to balance comfort against cost so both are optimized.
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