Too Hot! Too Cold! Temperature Affects Workplace Productivity

When it comes to the workplace, if you can’t stand the heat or cold … productivity suffers.

A number of factors impact workforce productivity and not surprisingly one of them is the temperature of the room.

Research Studies Identify Most Productive Temps
Workplace performance increases with temperatures up to between 69.8 degrees and 71.6 degrees Fahrenheit with the highest productivity at around 71.6 degrees Fahrenheit, according to a study conducted by researchers from the Helsinki University of Technology and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Environmental Energy Technologies Division at Berkeley, CA.

Another study done in 2004 by Cornell University found that chilly workers make more errors and potentially increase a worker’s hourly labor cost by 10 percent. The number of typing errors fell by 44 percent and typing output increased 150 percent when the office temperature rose from 68 degrees to 77 degrees Fahrenheit, the study found.

OSHA Workplace Recommendations
OSHA recommendations for workplace temperature and humidity levels state that regardless of business size, the minimum temperature for indoor workplaces is 68 degrees Fahrenheit and the maximum is 76 degrees Fahrenheit. The acceptable range for indoor humidity is between 20 and 60 percent.

OSHA set these standards in 1975 in consultation with the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers.

Accommodating Everyone’s Wishes
Finding the ideal temperature for every worker can be tricky.  Each of us has their own built in temperature gauge that lets us know how comfortable we are.  Your age, body mass index and gender have a bearing on how each of us perceives the temperature in a room.

So even though the temperature in the room is set within the general range noted in these studies, some of us may still require that small fan or space heater to keep our productivity up.

Commercial HVAC Service
Mecko’s Heating & Cooling provides new equipment installation and maintenance services for existing systems as well as complete HVAC retrofits for commercial facilities in the Greater Lafayette, Indiana area.

To learn more about our total capabilities go to Mecko’s Commercial HVAC Service or contact us at 765-447-7555.