Recent record temperatures, and no upper limit for working practices, means that those in the office are starting to feel the heat. Open plan offices and closed booth operations were all up against it when it came to figures regularly in excess of 35 degrees. So, what can employers do to help their employees carry on working without flaking out?
- Provide water coolers. They are a great place to meet other team members and have a chat. Now that the spectre of social distancing is no more, for now, we can start to discuss what we watched on Netflix last night and hydrate at the same time.
- Install some Brise Soleil on the sides of the building, especially the windows. This is a brilliant design to keep the costs of using an energy-hungry system like an aircon system. Brise Soleil, like those from alusystems.uk/ are slated metal or wooden additions that create a shade over the building. This deflects the natural light but allows people to look out of the windows.
- Supply fans. They might be a little noisy, but they aren’t as energy-draining as the aircon you could have. All fans do is circulate the air, but at least it’s a cool breeze. Fans move the static hot air and replace it with cooler, faster-moving air. It means sweat gets dissipated quickly too.
- Add some air conditioning. It’s an expensive last resort, it also costs the environment, but if things are getting terrible, then this might be the only answer. Just try and power it off a solar panel instead of a diesel generator.
