WASHINGTON – In offices across the region, it’s likely that some co-workers, at least part of the time, aren’t happy with the temperature. Help beyond space heaters and fans could be on the way however.
New technology that includes everything from thermostat-adjusting apps to “smart” windows might help people such as Catherine Broadnax of Tenlytown.
“I actually have a heating pad that I sit on when I’m at work because I’m so cold,” she says.
Attilla Szaly of Rockville knows it’s a common issue. “Everybody was complaining: Some people liked it cold, some people liked it hot.”
And Szaly notes most people just learn to deal with it. “We really don’t have control over it, the building does,” he says.
But strategies to counter office temperature challenges are evolving.
Bloomberg Business details solutions that include an app from Honeywell that collects each worker’s preference to determine a “majority rule” for thermostat settings.
A company called View makes smart window glass that can be set to block or let in light for individual panels in order to adjust temperature.
A system called Comfy hooks software into HVAC systems to allow workers to choose whether their specific work areas should receive 10 minute bursts of cold or warm air.
The quest for personal comfort at work can even be served on a more intimate basis.
The University of California, Berkeley is developing Personal Comfort Systems to allow workers to regulate temperature by getting heating or cooling directly through the surfaces of an office chair.
