ENERGY EFFICIENCY | OVERCOOLING The majority of future space cooling will come from the Global South By examining studies of global thermal comfort where cold discomfort, during the warm season, exceeds warm discomfort, they estimated an average of 17% were classed as overcooled, all occurring in warm climates balanced in future by the overall warming trend, and the fact that many residential buildings especially those controlled centrally may be wastefully cooled. It is instructive that the simple behavioural change of adjusting of thermostats to eliminate overcooling will have a significant impact on the planets total carbon budget for the next 30 years. It is not merely the impact on energy demand or carbon, however. Overcooling causes thermal discomfort that will have knock-on effects for health and wellbeing. These can result in increased absenteeism and loss of productivity, contributing to staff costs, which account for 90% of a typical institution or business costs. The researchers believe there is a shortage of studies that have the necessary thermal comfort parameters to obtain a fuller understanding of thermal comfort in warmer climates. As a result, further research on space-cooling culture in these geographies and climates is required, as current urbanisation trends within developing warmer ThermShield EIS classified fire dampers climate regions are expected to exacerbate the issue of overcooling significantly. It was discovered that the opportunity cost for mitigating this waste is low for example, through the use of a more climate- and culture-specific definition of thermal comfort. The researchers estimate that an upward adjustment of setpoint temperatures by, on average, 1.5K would likely reduce cooling-energy demand more than most good-practice passive design measures such as better heat-loss parameters and shading now and in the future. This is not to say that passive design measures are not needed quite the opposite but rather that the impact of poorly specified indoor environments is of a greater scale than is often appreciated. So, a departure from a universal interpretation of thermal comfort towards a climate- and culturespecific application would serve to not only avoid the waste of energy and carbon, but also improve health and wellbeing. CJ To read the paper visit: doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2022.111938 EIS classification for integrity, low smoke leakage and insulation in demanding projects. Fail-safe close For maintaining compartmentation Up to EI 120 (ve ho i <-> o) S classification, see the DoP for specific details ThermShields EIS classification plays a crucial part in fire compartmentation. Swegon offer the widest choice of dampers and damper controls to meet the envolving needs in the UK market. Visit swegon.com/uk to find out more 80 September 2022 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE Sept 22 pp78-80 Over cooled buildings.indd 80 26/08/2022 14:56