In recent years, the UK has experienced fluctuating temperatures on both sides of the equation. Simply put, our summers are becoming hotter and wintry weather is getting more extreme.
As a business, the quality of your office building and interior environment plays a huge role its thermal comfort and ultimately, its success.
That’s because uncomfortable temperatures in the office can impact productivity and even job satisfaction. Also, on a practical level, if your office building is losing excess heat, then this can also increase your energy bills.
It’s fair to say that both extreme cold and heat can negatively impact your employees. But for this post, we’re focusing on keeping your office warm by sharing our top tips for retaining heat in your UK office building.
UK Workplace Temperatures In The UK – What Are The Legal Requirements?
The HSE doesn’t have specific temperatures your office must remain within to be legally compliant. However, the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 state that a ‘reasonable’ indoor temperature is at least 16°C.
To be considered comfortable, it is generally recommended to keep an office within the range of 18°C and 24°C.
For some offices, there may need to be even more precise with temperature ranges to ensure thermal comfort for employees or visitors.
The Top Factors Of Heat Leakage Within Offices
- Windows and doors
- Gaps between doors and frames
- Inadequate wall insulation
- Suspended ceilings with gaps
- Concrete floor slabs
- A lack of heat sources or inadequate heat transfer
- Poor office design or layout
Reducing Heat Loss In The Office
There are many ways that an office building can be made more thermally efficient, including retrofitting it with insulating materials and also updating any glazing.
However, an office refurbishment also provides a golden opportunity to address any obvious issues within specific rooms. Thankfully, these measures often involve straightforward design tricks which look to improve comfort while also retaining heat more effectively.
Some top tips include:
- Sealing drafts when updating rooms
- Insulating walls and ceilings
- Using acoustic or thermal panels (especially in open plan offices)
- Adding insulated office pods for heat retention in large spaces
- Use thermal blinds or curtains on large windows
Crucially, many office buildings feature hard materials and finishes which don’t retain heat well. So, by softening your office with softer and more absorbent materials, this can make a huge difference both to the energy efficiency of your office as well as the acoustics.
Improve Heat Retention (Or Cooling!) In Your Office With Our Commercial Office Services
If your office feels too cold in the winter or even too warm in the summer months, then the experts here at ACI are here to help.
Through our vast range of office design services, we can advise on the solutions that will make your office a happier, healthier and more productive place to work in.
Get in touch today by giving us a call on 0115 697 1943.
You can also send us a message and our team will be in touch shortly.