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    The assessment of indoor environment quality in New Zealand early childhood education centres : a thesis presented in full fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Building Science at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Flood, Tiffany
    The review of literature highlighted a knowledge research gap in the understanding of New Zealand early childhood education indoor environment quality, particularly in Auckland. The objective of this thesis was to, therefore, begin to fill this gap. This was achieved by predominantly monitoring the indoor environment quality in four early learning education centres for one year. The results showed a lack of indoor environment quality standards in early childhood education. Mean carbon dioxide levels in 75% of the sleep rooms monitored exceeded ASHRAE and Ministry of Education school guidelines; the mechanical ventilation in one of the centres did not meet the New Zealand mechanical ventilation standard and the thermal comfort range was exceed 14% of the time during operating hours. The maximum relative humidity guideline set by ASHRAE and recommended in New Zealand schools, was exceeded 29% of the time during operating hours and 66% of the time outside operating hours, therefore possibly supporting mould and bacterial growth. Building audits identified poor cleaning routines in most rooms. Only 22% of the classrooms met the New Zealand building code G7 for Natural light and 55% had poor views to outside, as also required under G7. None of the classrooms achieved a daylight factor greater than 2% as set out in the Ministry of Education school guidelines and 33% of the classrooms interior lighting met New Zealand interior and workplace lighting standards. Those classrooms with mostly hard floors and ceilings have potential reverberation issues. This study highlighted that further research is needed to investigate the ventilation requirements in sleep rooms and the natural light, views to outside and interior lighting requirements within early childhood classrooms. The Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health should provide guidance and advice before a centre is built. The inclusion of an indoor environment quality assessment should be considered as part of a centre’s Education Review Office assessment and that the importance of indoor environment quality should be part of the curriculum when training early learning teachers. This study may be applicable to the New Zealand early childhood education industry and researchers of indoor environment quality.
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    A study of indoor particle concentrations of less than 10[mu]m in Wellington office buildings : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Applied Science in Building Technology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2001) Cleaver, Katie
    Indoor air pollution can have significant effects on the health of people. Indoor pollutants can exceed outdoor concentrations by 2-5 times, and occasionally more than 100 times. This is significant not only because of occupational indoor exposures, but because in general people spend over 90% of time indoors. Particles are one indoor pollutant that has been linked as a causal factor of the Sick Building Syndrome. Particles can be noxious substances or have noxious substances adsorbed on to them. Of most concern are particles that penetrate to the gas exchange region of the human body as clearance times are often in excess of months. This study explores the relationship between particle concentrations measured indoors and outdoors and the affect of occupant activity on indoor particle concentrations. Particle concentrations were measured indoors and outdoors of four office buildings in Wellington. Indoor particle concentrations as a function of occupancy were assessed and the presence of occupants was shown to increase particle concentrations indoors for the size bands of 5μm and 3μm on a working day. Particles below 1μm were shown to generally behave independent of occupant activity. The concentrations of particles generated during a working day decreased over a period of no occupancy due to deposition and the air exchange rate of the building for the larger size bands of 5μm and 3μm. However below 1μm the pattern of a reduction in particles was not apparent. Overall there was no statistically significant vertical gradient of particles between 1.2m and 1.8m for the particle sizes of 5μm, 3μm, 1μm, 0.5μm, and 0.3μm. Standard filter media were shown to be effective at reducing particle sizes of 5μm and 3μm and less effective with particles below the 1μm range. The operation of the air handling unit over a weekend period resulted in a reduction of the number of fine particles (1μm, 0.5μm, 0.3μm) in the indoor space. The stack effect and its influence on particle transportation throughout the four buildings studied was inconclusive with several factors capable of confounding the collected data. Overall, the results of the study were consistent with other researchers' findings in relation to occupant influence on particle concentrations and filtering efficiency of standard media. Factors that may confound the assessment of the influence of the stack effect on particle concentrations need to be carefully monitored in future studies.
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    Development of a decision support system for the design of good indoor air quality in office buildings : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Product Development at Massey University, Turitea, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2001) Phipps, Robyn A.
    Office buildings are complex entities. Design decisions can affect the quality of the indoor air (IAQ) throughout the life of the building. Poor IAQ affects approximately 30% of all office buildings and is ranked within the five greatest risks to human health in developed countries. Despite a vast and growing body of scientific literature on IAQ, there is a large gap between the current knowledge and the application of this knowledge in building practices. The USA Environmental Protection Agency identified a high priority need for design and educational tools to assist building designers who are not experts in IAQ issues to create healthy buildings. In this study a Decision Support System (DSS) for the design of good IAQ in office buildings was developed. The DSS leads building designers through a structured question database on building attributes that affect IAQ. Full justification for each design decision is given in order to prompt designers to select building features that lead to low indoor concentrations of volatile organic compounds, gaseous pollutants, microbiological contaminants and respirable particulates. The DSS was developed for new office buildings in New Zealand conditions, with either natural or mechanical ventilation. An exisiting methodology for the development of DSS was used. The problem was approached from the perspective of the building users under the broad headings of site and external factors, building envelope, building infrastructure, interiors, and heating ventilating and air-conditioning. Each of these topics was subdivided into finer layers of detail until conclusions on the potential impact of each building element on the IAQ could be inferred. The hierarchy for decision-making placed highest priority on the elimination or reduction of pollutants at source. Opportunities for pollutants to enter from outside or spread within the building were also controlled. If either of these strategies were not found acceptable, then mitigation techniques were recommended. A panel of independent national and international experts validated the DSS for correctness and completeness. The reviewers reported that the system was very comprehensive, drew correct conclusions and would assist building designers without IAQ expertise, to design office buildings with good IAQ. The DSS was also considered to have a significant educational component for users.