Forward-thinking organisations are recognising the modern workplace's influence on health outcomes. The spaces we inhabit each day directly impact well-being
and productivity. This shift in perspective led to the creation of the WELL Building Standard. Launched in 2014, it aims to change how we design, construct, and maintain buildings, ensuring they serve their users effectively.
What Is the WELL Building Standard and Why Should You Care About It?
Developed by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI), this certification sets the standard for health leadership. The standard is a performance-based system for measuring and monitoring features of a workplace building that impact our health and well-being.
Unlike traditional green certifications, which address environmental sustainability or health and safety laws focused on harm prevention, this human-centred approach examines how architectural and design choices influence health. The goal is to proactively improve staff wellbeing rather than just avoid harm.
Compliance with the WELL Building Standard is divided into 10 categories:
- Air
- Water
- Nourishment
- Light
- Movement
- Thermal Comfort
- Sound
- Materials
- Mind
- Community
Each category contains specific requirements. You must meet these criteria to achieve the WELL building standard certificate.
Projects must satisfy all 10 mandatory preconditions before pursuing additional points toward four levels: Bronze (40 points), Silver (50 points), Gold (60 points), and Platinum (80 points).
Why Air Quality is an Important Marker of Building Health
Air quality refers to the amount of pollution present in a particular area. and of the ten concepts, it is one of the most important. This category is often neglected as the negative consequences of poor air quality aren’t always obvious. It's important to keep pollution values low, particularly when the average person spends up to 92% of their time indoors, where a lack of fresh air increases exposure to air pollutants linked to conditions ranging from minor irritations, such as headaches, dry throat, and sneezing, to severe conditions, such as asthma, cardiovascular disease, and even cancer.
To receive a certification, you must complete intensive testing and air-quality monitoring. This ensures pollutants stay below recommended thresholds. A good air quality test looks for common infiltrants such as mould, damp, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, and dust. Investing in professional testing and maintenance helps you meet requirements for this category. At Ultra Protect, our Internal Air Quality Assessments also assess your building’s heat recovery systems and ensure adequate airflow. This could also earn you points in the thermal comfort category.
Understanding Compliance with the WELL Building Standard
You need to understand the system's points-based structure. There are 100 points available across all areas. You can also earn 10 extra points for innovative projects that go beyond the core principles.
The standard offers flexibility, allowing businesses and building owners to customise their journey based on their situation, priorities, and resources. A project with great air quality systems might pursue several optimisations in the Air concept, such as Enhanced Air Quality (A05), Air Filtration (A12), or Microbe and Mould Control (A14), while only meeting baseline requirements in other areas. Working with a skilled air quality assessor helps you excel in this category.
The precondition A04, Construction Pollution Management, states that air quality protection begins during construction. Strategies include sealing air ducts. They also cover installing high-quality filters for any ventilation systems used during construction and isolating work areas.
How Indoor Air Quality Monitoring Supports Certification
To ensure compliance with the WELL building standard, you should consistently test and solve problems. Feature A08, Air Quality Monitoring and Awareness, urges projects to monitor indoor air and inform people about their environment. Continuous testing gives you real-time data so you can identify issues before they affect occupant health.
Professional Indoor Air Quality Monitoring solutions track key pollutants and conditions. Systems like InBiot monitor humidity, carbon dioxide, particulate matter, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), and temperature. They generate indicators for 24/7 viewing. These are strong predictors of poor air quality. Through monitoring, you can maintain indoor air quality standards.
Instant alerts enable building managers to investigate issues right away. For example, if VOC spikes occur frequently in one area, an inspection can be conducted long before symptoms appear. When building managers see how occupancy, outdoor pollution, or maintenance affects indoor conditions, they can make informed decisions to protect health.
Recorded data also supports compliance. If questions arise about your air quality thresholds, you’ll have access to an audit trail that demonstrates your ongoing commitment to WELL Building Standard certification. You can also use this documentation for recertification or to gain more points by demonstrating a greater commitment.
In buildings with mechanical ventilation, monitoring systems can connect to existing equipment. This lets airflow adjust automatically in response to real-time conditions. With automation, indoor air quality monitoring standards are kept even when managers are not watching dashboards.
What Are the Benefits for My Business?
The WELL Building Standard provides tangible, measurable benefits to human health by drawing on rigorous scientific principles, peer-reviewed research, and verified literature. These benefits include enhanced occupant wellness, better regulatory compliance, and a positive reputation for prioritising health.
Research shows that better indoor environments lead to better business outcomes by improving cognitive function, reducing sick building syndrome (where people in a shared space develop symptoms over time), and reducing sick days, productivity losses, and penalties. Additionally, employees in WELL-certified buildings are more satisfied, which supports stronger recruitment and retention.
WELL-certified buildings can command higher lease rates and achieve higher occupancy. As people learn more about the link between buildings and health, tenants prefer spaces that prioritise wellbeing. For owners, certification gives you a competitive edge.
How to Monitor Air Quality Effectively
You could install sensors and hope for the best. However, to properly monitor air quality, you must understand your building’s challenges, including areas where pollutants accumulate. Effective monitoring starts with understanding your building's challenges, occupant needs, and certification requirements.
Sensors should be positioned where people spend the most time, not just in easy spots. The number and type of sensors depend on building size, layout, occupancy, and likely pollution sources.
Data management is another vital consideration. Without expertise and the proper tools for analysis, gathered data becomes overwhelming rather than actionable. Successful programmes combine monitoring data with building management systems, creating automated responses that maintain conditions without manual intervention.
Take the First Step and Get a Well Building Certification Today
The WELL Building Standard changes how we think about buildings and their effect on human potential. Its commitment to being evidence-based, verifiable, practical, and global means it will stay relevant as we learn more about health and well-being.
Maintaining indoor air quality monitoring standards is the first step to certification and ongoing health benefits. By investing in assessment and monitoring, owners and managers show a real commitment to creating spaces where people thrive.
For more information about Ultra Protect’s air quality assessments and monitoring, contact our team.
